How to Travel to China Without a Visa

When traveling internationally, obtaining visas for transit or tourism within different countries, regions, and jurisdictions can be confusing, time-consuming, and expensive.  This is especially true with complex bureaucratic governments such as that of China.

However, in recent years, in an effort to help streamline this process (and thus boost tourism and revenues), the Chinese government has issued several orders allowing for transit without a visa (TWOV) for various durations in various provinces and cities, depending on the country of nationality of the traveler.  Here, we attempt to cut through all these regulations and provide a definitive guide as to how to travel to China without a visa, including the limitations, requirements, restrictions, and more.

As a bit of a disclaimer, travelers should always check with their travel agency, passport or visa office, or other foreign office resources prior to finalizing plans, as best practices and current situations can change from time to time.

Transit Without Visa (TWOV)

The recent regulations related to travel without a visa include various categories and exceptions, as well as restrictions by nationality and location.  We’ve tried to provide a useful step-by-step process outlined below to highlight who, where, and for how long some visitors can transit without a visa in China.  Notably, we are only focusing on the TWOV exceptions here, and not including things like foreign study visas, diplomatic exceptions, etc.

There are three types of TWOV programs – 24 hours, 72 hours, and 144 hours.

For the purposes of all of these programs, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau are considered “outside of mainland China.”

24 Hour TWOV:

1. This program is designed for those transiting through mainland China in one or multiple cities, with a limit of 24 hours total, essentially cutting out the need for visas in the case of plane, train, or boat stopovers at Chinese ports, as long as the departure origin and outbound destination is outside of mainland China.
2. Typically, it only applies to within the transiting passenger area within most ports – leaving the port to visit the city requires an application for a Temporary Stay Permit.
3. Multiple mainland cities can be included in this program, but the total time, from initial arrival in the country to scheduled departure, collectively, must not exceed 24 hours.
4. Nearly all nationalities of citizens are eligible, as are nearly all cities and ports within mainland China.
5. Exceptions:
   1. Passport holders from the following countries cannot apply for this program:

• Afghanistan
• Azerbaijan
• Iran
• Iraq
• Kazakhstan
• Kyrgyzstan
• Malaysia
• Nigeria
• Oman
• Pakistan
• Saudi Arabia
• Sri Lanka
• Thailand
• Turkey
• UAE
• Yemen

1. The following cities are ineligible for this program, regardless of nationality:

• Yanji
• Mudanjiang
• Fuzhou
• Shenzhen
• Citizens of the United States and Canada cannot have multiple stops on their 24-hour TWOV if transiting in Weihai, Wuhan, Xian, or Zhengzhou
• Most travelers in Urumqi Diwopu airport only get a 2-hour visa-free transit window, but there is no issue so long as they apply for a 24-hour TWOV and leave the mainland in the remaining 22 hours.

1. Requirements:
   1. Valid passport for at least 3 months beyond the date of entry
   2. Confirmed seat and ticket for a destination outside mainland China scheduled within 24 hours of arrival
   3. Filled out arrival/departure card
   4. A valid visa for destination country outside of China (if required)

72 Hour TWOV:

1. This program is designed for those transiting through mainland China in one of 18 designated Chinese cities to stay for up to 72 hours without a visa.
   1. The government has promised to increase the number of cities and regions available in the near future.
   2. Current cities include:

• Beijing
• Changsha
• Chengdu
• Chongqing
• Dalian
• Guangzhou
• Guilin
• Harbin
• Hangzhou
• Kunming
• Nanjing
• Qingdao
• Shanghai
• Shenyang
• Tianjin
• Wuhan
• Xiamen
• Xian

1. The program is only open to air passengers at this time.
2. The program is only open to passengers from 53 countries, including:
   1. The 24 European Schengen area countries
   2. 15 additional European countries:

• Albania
• Belarus
• Bosnia-Herzegovina
• Bulgaria
• Croatia
• Cyprus
• Ireland
• Macedonia
• Monaco
• Montenegro
• Romania
• Russia
• Serbia
• UK
• Ukraine

1. 6 countries from the Americas:

• Argentina
• Brazil
• Canada
• Chile
• Mexico
• US

1. 6 countries from Asia:

• Brunei
• Japan
• Korea
• Qatar
• Singapore
• UAE

1. 2 countries from Oceania:
   1. Australia
   2. New Zealand
2. There are restrictions based on what city you are transiting in:
   1. Guangzhou, Chengdu, Qingdao, and Changsha allow traveling through the entire Guangdong province
   2. Chongqing, Harbin, Guilin, Kunming, Wuhan, and Xiamen do not allow travel outside of the city
   3. Xian Xianyang Airport allows travel in both Xian and Xianyang
   4. Shanghai, Zhejiang, and Jiangsu allow movement between these three places
   5. Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei allow movement between these places
   6. Dalian and Shenyang allow travel within the whole Liaoning province
3. Requirements:
   1. Passport valid for at least 3 months beyond the date of entry
   2. Ticketed and confirmed seat to a third country within 72 hours
      1. The time count starts from midnight (0:00) the day following entry, except for Beijing Airport, which counts the actual scheduled arrival time of flight
   3. Entry and exit flights must be from the same city, with the exception of Shanghai, Zhejiang, and Jiangsu.
   4. Transfer flights are the only applicable mode of transit for this visa – boat, train, or single direct flights are not acceptable.
   5. Filled out arrival/departure card
   6. A valid visa for destination country outside of China (if required)

144 Hour TWOV:

1. Passengers from the same group as the 72 Hour TWOV (see #3 above) are eligible for 144-hour visa-free travel within three primary areas of mainland China, provided, like the other cases, the origin flight is from outside mainland China, and the destination flight goes to somewhere outside mainland China.
   1. These need to be non-stop flights, or at least not having a stopover anywhere in mainland China.
2. There are three areas eligible for this program. Entry at any airport within the three areas is valid for visa-free travel within that same area.  No crossing of areas is allowed.

• Shanghai, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang

1. All air, sea, and rail ports in Shanghai are eligible, as is Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport and Nanjing Lukou Airport
2. Can freely travel within these cities
3. Can enter and leave from different ports so long as they are one of those listed in (i) above

• Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei
  1. The Capital International Airport and West Railway Station in Beijing are eligible, as well as the Binhai International Airport and cruise ship port in Tianjin, and the Zhengding International Airport and Qinhuangdao ship port in Hebei
  2. Can freely travel within these cities
  3. Can enter and leave from different ports so long as they are one of those listed in (i) above
• Liaoning (Dalian, Shenyang)
  1. Zhoushuizi International Airport in Dalian and Taoxian International Airport in Shenyang are eligible
  2. Can freely travel within entire Liaoning province
  3. Can enter and leave from either port
• Guangdong province is adding support for this program as well, with preliminary details as follows:
  1. Air coming into Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Jieyang airports will be eligible.
  2. Can freely travel within entire Guangdong province
  3. Can enter and leave from any of these three airports
• Requirements:
  1. Passport valid for at least 3 months beyond the date of entry
  2. Ticketed and confirmed seat to a third country within 144 hours
     1. The time count starts from midnight (0:00) the day following entry
  3. Filled out arrival/departure card
  4. A valid visa for destination country outside of China (if required)