Lost Passport in China: What to Do Step by Step

Losing your passport in China is stressful, but the process to fix it is well-defined and thousands of travelers go through it every year. The short version: you'll report the loss to the local exit-entry police, get an official loss confirmation, apply for an emergency document at your embassy, and sort out your Chinese exit paperwork before you leave. None of it is fast, but none of it is impossible — and you can almost always still get home.

This guide walks you through the steps in the right order, with embassy contacts for major countries, fees where they're published, and the things that trip people up. If you're reading this in a panic at a train station, jump to the step-by-step list below.

First: stay where you are and retrace

Before launching the whole replacement machine, take ten minutes. Most "lost" passports turn up in a hotel safe, a day bag, or with hotel reception holding it after check-in. Call your hotel. Check the last place you used it (banks, SIM card shops, and trains all ask to see it). If it's genuinely gone — stolen or lost for good — then start the process below.

The replacement process at a glance

For a foreign visitor in China, the official sequence (confirmed by the Shanghai Public Security Bureau) is:

1. Report the loss to the local exit-entry administration of the Public Security Bureau (PSB) where you lost it, and obtain a passport loss confirmation (护照报失证明, hùzhào bàoshī zhèngmíng).
2. Apply for a new passport or emergency travel document at your country's embassy or consulate in China.
3. Re-do your accommodation registration under the new document number.
4. Sort out your Chinese exit or stay paperwork — either a new visa/residence permit, or an exit permit if you're leaving the country.

The key rule to remember: once you have your loss confirmation, you must complete your Chinese stay/exit formalities within 30 days of the date it was issued, according to the Shanghai PSB exit-entry guidance.

Step 1: Report to the police and get the loss confirmation

This is the step most travelers don't realize they need. Your embassy will issue you a new travel document, but Chinese immigration needs its own paper — the passport loss confirmation — to let you legally re-register and exit. It is issued by the exit-entry administration of the PSB, not by a regular neighborhood police station.

Where to go

Go to the exit-entry (出入境管理, chūrùjìng guǎnlǐ) division of the PSB in the city where you lost the passport. If you lost it in one city but plan to leave from another, report the loss in the city where it went missing — Singapore's consulate, for example, specifically warns its citizens that the report must be filed where the passport was lost, not where you intend to fly out.

What to bring

Based on the Shanghai exit-entry requirements, prepare:

• A written statement explaining how and where the passport was lost (you'll answer questions too)
• Proof of identity — a photocopy of the lost passport if you have one, plus any photo ID (driver's license, expired passport, etc.)
• Proof of entry into China — your inbound flight ticket, or an entry/exit record from border control
• Your temporary accommodation registration (the slip your hotel files, or the one you registered at the police station if staying privately)
• If you have a host organization in China, a letter of explanation from them

How long it takes

This varies by city. In Shanghai, after the police verify your case, the loss confirmation is generally issued about two working days later. Shenzhen is faster — its exit-entry service commits to one working day and even allows online application; you'll need a recent 48×33mm color photo with a blue background (bring two). Always confirm current processing times and exact addresses at the local office, since requirements differ between cities.

Step 2: Contact your embassy for a new passport or emergency document

Once the loss is reported, contact your embassy or consulate. Most can issue either a full-validity replacement passport (slower) or a limited-validity emergency travel document to get you home (faster). You generally must apply in person and attend a short interview.

China's National Immigration Administration also runs a 24/7 multilingual hotline, 12367, with service in Chinese, English, Russian, Japanese and Korean — useful if you're not sure which local office to approach. Details are on the Shanghai government's 12367 guide.

United States

For lost or stolen US passports, you must contact the nearest US embassy or consulate and apply in person. The consular section can issue an emergency passport (valid up to one year) if there isn't time for a full replacement, which you exchange for a full-validity passport after returning home.

• Emergency line: 010-8531 4000 (after hours: 010-8531-3000; from outside China: +86 10-8531 4000)
• Bring: one 2×2 inch (5×5cm) photo, proof of identity, proof of US citizenship (birth certificate or a copy of the lost passport), travel itinerary, and forms DS-11 (application) and DS-64 (report of loss)
• Fee: the adult replacement passport book is US$130 plus a $35 acceptance fee where applicable; under-16 is $100 + $35 (confirm current fees and local-currency options at the post)
• Good to know: the US consulate in Guangzhou handles passport replacements for people who need to leave China immediately without an appointment

See the US State Department's lost/stolen passport page and the US Embassy China passport information for the latest.

United Kingdom

UK citizens can apply for an Emergency Travel Document (ETD), normally valid for a single one-way or return journey. The fee is £125 (including courier, non-refundable), and online applications are usually ready in about two working days — but online application is only possible if your lost passport was issued on or after 1 January 2006. Crucially, before leaving China you must visit the local PSB exit-entry office to get an Exit Visa, which can take up to 10 working days. Details are on GOV.UK's travel urgently page and the British Embassy Beijing page.

Australia

Report immediately to the Australian Embassy in Beijing or the consulates in Guangzhou or Shanghai, get the official police loss report, then submit form PC8. If you can't meet full-passport requirements, the mission can issue a limited-validity emergency passport. Bring two standard photos and expect an interview; fees are paid in RMB cash (some posts accept UnionPay).

• 24-hour Consular Emergency Centre: +61 2 6261 3305 (1300 555 135 within Australia)
• Embassy Beijing: 21 Dongzhimenwai Dajie, Sanlitun, Beijing 100600 · +86 10 5140 4111

See the Australian Embassy lost/stolen passports page.

Canada

Canada provides 24/7 emergency consular assistance. Replacing a lost or stolen passport abroad requires the PPTC 203 declaration and the standard fee plus a CA$45 lost/stolen surcharge.

• Embassy Beijing: +86 (10) 5139-4000 · [email protected] · 19 Dongzhimenwai Dajie, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100600
• Report a lost passport: 1-800-567-6868

More on the Government of Canada passport page.

Singapore

Singaporeans should report the loss to the local exit-entry administration and obtain the Confirmation of Loss of Passport Report, then report to ICA and arrange an Exit Permit. Remember the rule about reporting in the city where the loss occurred. See the Singapore MFA Shanghai consular page.

Other countries

If your country isn't listed, search "[your country] embassy China lost passport" and look for the official government domain. Most embassies are clustered in the Sanlitun and Jianguomenwai diplomatic districts of Beijing, with consulates in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Shenyang and Wuhan. Our embassy contacts list has more numbers.

Step 3: Re-register your accommodation

China requires all foreign visitors to have a valid accommodation registration (住宿登记, zhùsù dēngjì). Hotels do this automatically at check-in; if you're staying with friends or in a private rental, you must register at the local police station within 24 hours of arrival. Once you have a new passport or emergency document with a new number, you need to redo this registration under the new number. Ask your hotel front desk to reprint it, or return to the police station. You'll need this updated slip for your exit paperwork. For the full rules, see our guide to hotel booking and registration.

Step 4: Sort out your Chinese exit paperwork

This is where it splits depending on your situation.

If your embassy gave you a new full passport

You'll need a new Chinese visa or residence permit issued onto it before you can legally stay or exit. Under China's Exit and Entry Administration Law, when your visa or stay/residence permit is lost along with the passport, you apply to the county-level-or-above PSB exit-entry authority for a replacement. Apply for the new visa/permit at the same exit-entry office. Note that obtaining a new Chinese visa is a separate process with its own processing time and fees — confirm these locally.

If you can't get a passport in time — the Exit/Entry Permit route

If you're a foreigner in China who can't replace your passport through your embassy in time, you can apply for an Exit/Entry Permit for Foreigners (外国人出入境证) to leave the country. You apply at the county-level-or-above PSB exit-entry authority where you're staying, in person, with an interview. Be aware: the law allows the PSB up to 30 working days to decide, so this is the slow route — useful as a backstop, not a quick fix. See the National Immigration Administration service guide.

If you entered visa-free

There's good news here. If you entered China under a visa-free policy and then lost your passport, Chinese border control can process your exit when you leave using your embassy's emergency document — they'll verify your identity, entry record or loss confirmation, and the supporting letter from your embassy. As long as everything checks out and you haven't overstayed, you can exit lawfully.

Emergency numbers to know

If your passport was stolen rather than simply lost, call 110 to report the theft and get a police report. A theft report can support your embassy application and, importantly, any travel insurance claim.

Travel insurance and your passport

Here's the honest truth: most travel insurance policies do not reimburse you for the passport document itself or pay the replacement fee directly. What they often do cover is the knock-on cost — extra hotel nights, rebooked flights, and transport while you're stuck sorting things out — usually filed under trip delay or personal belongings coverage. Some policies cover a passport stolen before departure.

The common thread across insurers like World Nomads is documentation: you'll generally need a police report, a copy of the passport, and your itinerary to support a claim, so report theft promptly and keep every receipt. If you haven't bought cover yet and you're planning a trip, comparing options through a provider like SafetyWing before you go is worth ten minutes — read our China travel insurance guide for what to look for.

How to avoid this in the first place

• Leave the passport in the hotel safe when you don't need it. You're legally required to carry ID, but for everyday sightseeing many travelers carry a photo of the passport plus another ID and leave the original locked up. (You do need the physical passport for trains, banks, SIM cards, and some hotel check-ins.)
• Photograph and back up the photo page and your visa/entry stamp before you arrive.
• Use a money belt or anti-theft bag in crowded places — train stations and tourist sites are where pickpockets work. Our guide to scams and theft covers the common situations.
• Know your embassy's location and emergency number before you travel, not after.

Quick recovery checklist

1. Confirm it's really gone — call the hotel, retrace your steps.
2. If stolen, call 110 and get a police report.
3. Go to the local PSB exit-entry office and apply for the passport loss confirmation.
4. Contact your embassy; apply in person for a new passport or emergency travel document.
5. Re-register your accommodation under the new document number.
6. Within 30 days of the loss confirmation, sort out your Chinese exit paperwork (new visa, or exit permit; visa-free entrants can often exit directly on the embassy document).
7. Keep all reports and receipts for any insurance claim.

It's a few days of paperwork and some queuing, but the path home is reliable. Move on the police report and embassy contact quickly — everything else follows from those two. When you're ready to fly out, our departing China guide covers the airport side.

Last updated: June 2026