Visa-Free & Transit Policies for China: The Complete Guide

If you've read about China's "72-hour" or "144-hour" visa-free transit, that information is now out of date. In December 2024 China merged both into a single 240-hour (10-day) transit policy, and at the same time it lets you travel across provinces instead of staying near one city. On top of that, more than 40 countries now get straight 30-day visa-free entry that has nothing to do with transit at all. This guide sorts out which rule applies to you, what the conditions actually are, and the mistakes that get people turned away at the border.

Policies here change several times a year, so treat the specifics below as a starting point and confirm current rules with the National Immigration Administration (NIA) before you fly.

The four ways into China without a visa

Most travelers fit into one of these paths. They have different conditions, so the first job is figuring out which one is yours.

• 240-hour visa-free transit — for citizens of 55 countries passing through China to a third country. Up to 10 days, now across multiple provinces.
• 24-hour transit — open to all nationalities, for very short layovers.
• Unilateral 30-day visa-free entry — for citizens of around 45 countries. No onward-ticket-to-a-third-country requirement, so this is the simplest option if your country qualifies.
• Regional and special policies — Hainan's 30-day visa-free entry (59 countries) and the 15-day cruise group policy.

240-hour visa-free transit: what changed and how it works

The headline change: since 17 December 2024, the old 72-hour and 144-hour transit policies were replaced by one policy allowing a stay of up to 240 hours — 10 days. According to the official announcement on China's State Council website, the policy also expanded the area you're allowed to move within, so you can now travel across provinces rather than being confined to one city or region.

The core idea is still "transit." You're passing through China on your way somewhere else. That means your point of arrival and your next destination must be two different countries or regions. Flying in from Bangkok and out to Tokyo qualifies. Flying in from Bangkok and back to Bangkok does not.

Who qualifies (55 countries)

As of mid-2025, citizens of 55 countries can use 240-hour transit. The list runs across four regions:

• Europe (40): Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Monaco, Russia, UK, Ireland, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, Belarus, Norway
• Americas (6): United States, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile
• Oceania (2): Australia, New Zealand
• Asia (7): South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Brunei, UAE, Qatar, Indonesia

The list grows over time (Indonesia was the most recent addition), so check the current roster on the NIA's 240-hour transit page.

The conditions you must meet

Border inspection will check all of these:

• You hold a passport from one of the 55 eligible countries, valid for at least 3 months.
• You have a confirmed onward ticket (date and seat) to a third country or region, departing within 240 hours.
• Your arrival country and departure country are different.
• You enter and exit through eligible ports.
• You complete an arrival card and answer the border officer's questions.

How the 240 hours are counted

This trips people up. Your stay is not counted from the minute you land. The clock starts at 00:00 the day after you enter. So if you arrive on a Monday afternoon, the 10-day count begins at midnight going into Tuesday. That quietly gives you most of your arrival day for free.

Where you can enter and where you can go

As of 5 November 2025, the policy covers 65 entry ports across 24 provinces and regions, after Guangdong added five ports including the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong high-speed rail West Kowloon station and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge port. The 24 provincial-level areas are: Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Liaoning, Heilongjiang, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Shandong, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Chongqing, Sichuan, Yunnan, Shaanxi, plus the newer additions Shanxi, Anhui, Jiangxi, Hainan, and Guizhou.

What you can and can't do

During your stay you can do tourism, business meetings, visits, and see family. What you cannot do without a proper visa: work, study, or news reporting — anything that needs prior approval still needs the right visa first.

24-hour transit: open to everyone

If your country isn't on the 240-hour list, or your layover is genuinely short, the 24-hour transit rule applies to all nationalities at every open port. You hold a valid travel document and a confirmed onward ticket to a third country, and you can stay up to 24 hours.

There's an important distinction here. If you stay inside the port's restricted area (the airport transit zone), you don't need any permit. If you want to leave the airport and go into the city, you apply to border inspection for a temporary entry permit. Since 5 November 2025, ten international airports — including Tianjin Binhai and Kunming Changshui — let 24-hour transit passengers skip border formalities entirely if they don't leave the airport.

Unilateral 30-day visa-free entry

This is separate from transit and, for many travelers, the better deal. China has extended visa-free entry to citizens of around 45 countries — including France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and Brazil — through 31 December 2026. Holders of ordinary passports can enter for business, tourism, family visits, exchanges, or transit and stay up to 30 days, with no requirement to be heading to a third country.

The list keeps shifting. Sweden joined in November 2025. Canada and the UK become eligible from 17 February 2026. Russia has its own arrangement running 15 September 2025 through 31 December 2027. Because each country's start and end dates differ, confirm yours on the official China visa service FAQ or your local Chinese embassy page.

Regional and special policies

Hainan: 30 days, 59 countries

Hainan island runs its own visa-free policy. Ordinary passport holders from 59 countries can enter Hainan and stay up to 30 days for tourism, business, visits, family, medical treatment, conventions, or sporting events (not work or study). The catch: you must enter directly through a Hainan port. If you clear immigration somewhere else in China first and then fly to Hainan, the Hainan policy no longer applies, and you must stay within Hainan's borders. Details are on the NIA regional visa-free page.

Cruise groups: 15 days

Since 15 May 2024, foreign tour groups of two or more people, organized and received by a mainland travel agency, can enter visa-free by cruise ship through 13 coastal city ports: Beihai, Dalian, Guangzhou, Haikou, Lianyungang, Qingdao, Sanya, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Tianjin, Wenzhou, Xiamen, and Zhoushan. You must leave on the same ship and stay no more than 15 days, with travel allowed in Beijing and 11 coastal provincial areas.

Which policy fits your trip?

Mistakes that get people turned away

Border inspection can refuse a temporary entry permit for transit in several situations, including a passport valid for less than 3 months, a passport carrying a Chinese visa refusal stamp, a record of illegal entry/exit/residence/employment in the past 5 years, or serious accommodation-registration violations in the past 2 years. Crew of internationally operating vessels and their families aren't covered by transit policies.

The most common avoidable errors:

• Round-trip from the same country. Transit means a different country in and out. A return ticket to where you came from disqualifies you.
• No confirmed onward seat. An open-ended or standby ticket won't satisfy the rule. You need a fixed date and seat within the time limit.
• Wandering out of the permitted area. Leaving your allowed province or region, overstaying, or exiting from a non-designated port leads to penalties under the law.
• Skipping accommodation registration. See the next section — this one catches independent travelers off guard.

Accommodation registration (住宿登记, zhùsù dēngjì)

Every foreigner in China must be registered with local police. If you stay in a hotel, the front desk does this automatically when you check in — keep your passport handy. If you stay anywhere else (a friend's apartment, a private rental), you or your host must register at the local police station within 24 hours. Failing to register is a real penalty risk during a visa-free stay, not a formality. We cover the details in our guide to booking hotels and registration rules.

Booking the onward ticket

For both transit policies, your onward ticket to a third country is the document that makes or breaks your entry. Book it before you fly, with a confirmed date and seat, and have it ready to show at check-in and immigration. Airlines also check this at boarding, because they're responsible if you're refused entry. Comparison sites like Trip.com make it straightforward to line up a qualifying onward flight that fits inside your transit window.

Common questions

Do I need a visa for a China layover?

Often no. If you stay airside and under 24 hours, the 24-hour transit rule covers any nationality. If you want to leave the airport and your country is on the 240-hour list, you can do that for up to 10 days as long as you're flying onward to a third country. If neither fits, you'll need a transit (G) or tourist (L) visa.

Is it still "144-hour" transit?

No. The 72-hour and 144-hour transit policies were both replaced by the 240-hour policy in December 2024. If a website still lists 144-hour rules, it hasn't been updated. The biggest practical upgrade is cross-province travel, which the old 144-hour rule didn't allow.

Does transit cost anything?

The temporary entry permit issued by border inspection for transit is free of charge.

Can I travel between cities on 240-hour transit?

Yes, within the permitted areas. That's the main improvement over the old policy. Just confirm that both the cities you want and your exit port fall inside the eligible zones for your entry point.

If you get stuck: the 12367 hotline

The National Immigration Administration runs a 24-hour service hotline. Dial 12367 inside China, or +86-21-12367 from abroad. English gets an immediate voice response; French, Russian, Japanese, and Korean are handled through interpreter three-way calls. You can also use the "NIA 12367" app, WeChat and Alipay mini-programs, or email [email protected]. Full details are on the NIA hotline page.

A note on travel insurance

Visa-free entry doesn't change the fact that a medical issue or a missed connection on a tight transit can get expensive fast. If you don't already have coverage, a flexible travel medical plan like SafetyWing can be set up before you leave and is worth having for any China trip — especially if you're relying on a precise onward flight to stay within your transit window.

The bottom line

China's visa-free system is more generous than it was a year ago, but it rewards reading the fine print. Figure out your category first: if your country gets unilateral 30-day entry, use it — it's the simplest. If not, 240-hour transit gives you 10 days and cross-province freedom as long as you're heading to a third country with a confirmed ticket. Keep your passport valid for at least 3 months, sort accommodation registration within 24 hours wherever you stay, and confirm the current country list, eligible ports, and permitted areas before you book, since these details change through the year. When in doubt, the 12367 hotline answers in English around the clock.

Related reading

• Visa Types Overview — if you don't qualify for visa-free entry, start here.
• How to Apply for China Visa — the step-by-step process for a tourist or transit visa.
• Arriving in China: Immigration & Customs — what happens at the border once you land.
• Booking Hotels & Registration Rules — how police registration works in practice.
• Sanya Beach Resort Guide — making the most of Hainan's 30-day visa-free window.

Last updated: June 2026