See if you can enter China visa-free, use 240-hour transit, or need to apply by nationality.
Last verified: October 18, 2026·79 nationalities visa-free · 57 more through 240-hour transit
These are the rules for ordinary passports and for the purposes they cover:
business, tourism, family visits, exchange visits and transit. Work, study and journalism are
not covered by any of these routes.
Policies change and depend on your circumstances. Confirm with a Chinese embassy or consulate
before booking. This tool is guidance, not an eligibility decision.
Three ways in without a visa, and one that is not
Most confusion about Chinese visas comes from treating these as one thing. They are separate
policies with separate country lists, and a nationality can appear on one and not another.
Route
Who
How long
Condition
Unilateral visa-free
50 countries
30 days
None beyond a valid ordinary passport
Bilateral exemption
29 countries
Set by each agreement, usually 30 days
None
240-hour transit
57 countries
Up to 10 days
Onward ticket to a third country, entry at one of 65 ports
24-hour transit
All nationalities
Under 24 hours
Must stay inside the port area
Two numbers worth separating: a country can be on the 240-hour list while its nationals still
need a visa for an ordinary holiday. The United States is the clearest example — no visa-free
entry for tourism, but 240 hours without a visa if the trip is a genuine stopover.
This tool covers foreign nationalities only. Residents of Hong Kong, China and Macao, China
travel on a Home Return Permit, and residents of Taiwan, China travel on a Taiwan Compatriot
Permit — neither is a visa, and neither appears in the list below.
30-day visa-free entry — 50 countries
Ordinary passport holders from these countries can enter China for up to 30 days per entry for
business, tourism, family visits, exchange visits or transit. No invitation letter and no
pre-registration. The column on the right is when the policy itself expires — not your stay.
Europe — 35
Country
Stay per entry
Policy runs until
Andorra
30 days
31 December 2026
Austria
30 days
31 December 2026
Belgium
30 days
31 December 2026
Bulgaria
30 days
31 December 2026
Croatia
30 days
31 December 2026
Cyprus
30 days
31 December 2026
Denmark
30 days
31 December 2026
Estonia
30 days
31 December 2026
Finland
30 days
31 December 2026
France
30 days
31 December 2026
Germany
30 days
31 December 2026
Greece
30 days
31 December 2026
Hungary
30 days
31 December 2026
Iceland
30 days
31 December 2026
Ireland
30 days
31 December 2026
Italy
30 days
31 December 2026
Latvia
30 days
31 December 2026
Liechtenstein
30 days
31 December 2026
Luxembourg
30 days
31 December 2026
Malta
30 days
31 December 2026
Monaco
30 days
31 December 2026
Montenegro
30 days
31 December 2026
Netherlands
30 days
31 December 2026
North Macedonia
30 days
31 December 2026
Norway
30 days
31 December 2026
Poland
30 days
31 December 2026
Portugal
30 days
31 December 2026
Romania
30 days
31 December 2026
Russia
30 days
31 December 2027 Separate term that runs a year longer than the rest.
Slovakia
30 days
31 December 2026
Slovenia
30 days
31 December 2026
Spain
30 days
31 December 2026
Sweden
30 days
31 December 2026 Added 2025-11-10.
Switzerland
30 days
31 December 2026
United Kingdom
30 days
31 December 2026
Asia — 7
Country
Stay per entry
Policy runs until
Bahrain
30 days
31 December 2026
Brunei
30 days
No end date announced The only country on this list with no end date.
Japan
30 days
31 December 2026
Kuwait
30 days
31 December 2026
Oman
30 days
31 December 2026
Saudi Arabia
30 days
31 December 2026
South Korea
30 days
31 December 2026
Americas — 6
Country
Stay per entry
Policy runs until
Argentina
30 days
31 December 2026
Brazil
30 days
31 December 2026
Canada
30 days
31 December 2026
Chile
30 days
31 December 2026
Peru
30 days
31 December 2026
Uruguay
30 days
31 December 2026
Oceania — 2
Country
Stay per entry
Policy runs until
Australia
30 days
31 December 2026
New Zealand
30 days
31 December 2026
Bilateral visa exemption — 29 countries
These rest on a signed agreement between the two governments rather than on a Chinese
announcement, so they have no expiry date. Stay length is whatever the agreement says; the
figures below are the commonly applied lengths, and a handful of agreements differ.
Europe — 5
Country
Stay per entry
Albania
90 days
Belarus
30 days
Bosnia and Herzegovina
90 days
San Marino
30 days
Serbia
30 days
Asia — 11
Country
Stay per entry
Armenia
90 days
Azerbaijan
30 days
Georgia
90 days
Kazakhstan
30 days
Malaysia
30 days
Maldives
30 days
Qatar
30 days
Singapore
30 days
Thailand
30 days
United Arab Emirates
30 days
Uzbekistan
30 days
Americas — 7
Country
Stay per entry
Bahamas
30 days
Barbados
30 days
Dominica
30 days
Ecuador
30 days
Grenada
30 days
Suriname
30 days
Antigua and Barbuda
30 days
Oceania — 4
Country
Stay per entry
Fiji
90 days
Samoa
60 days
Solomon Islands
30 days
Tonga
30 days
Africa — 2
Country
Stay per entry
Mauritius
90 days
Seychelles
30 days
240-hour visa-free transit — 57 countries
You may stay up to 240 hours (10 days) without a visa if you are travelling from one country to
another and China is only the stopover. Entry must be at one of 65 designated
ports across 24 provincial-level regions, and you may travel between those
regions while you are there. Some provinces only permit specific cities — Shanxi is limited to
Taiyuan and Datong, Jiangxi to Nanchang and Jingdezhen — so check the port you plan to use.
The one condition that catches people: the third country must actually be
different from the one you arrived from. London to Shanghai to London is a return trip, not a
transit, and it does not qualify. Border officers and airlines both check the onward ticket.
Europe — 40
AlbaniaAustriaBelarusBelgiumBosnia and HerzegovinaBulgariaCroatiaCyprusCzech RepublicDenmarkEstoniaFinlandFranceGermanyGreeceHungaryIcelandIrelandItalyLatviaLithuaniaLuxembourgMaltaMonacoMontenegroNetherlandsNorth MacedoniaNorwayPolandPortugalRomaniaRussiaSerbiaSlovakiaSloveniaSpainSwedenSwitzerlandUkraineUnited Kingdom
Asia — 9
BruneiIndonesiaJapanKyrgyzstanQatarSingaporeSouth KoreaUnited Arab EmiratesVietnam
Americas — 6
ArgentinaBrazilCanadaChileMexicoUnited States
Oceania — 2
AustraliaNew Zealand
Hainan runs its own regional policy: nationals of 61 countries can
enter through Hainan's open ports for up to 30 days, staying within the province.
What changed, and when
This is the part other guides tend to skip, and it is the part that matters if you are reading
a page written last year. Dates are the date of the official announcement.
National Immigration Administration announcement
Kyrgyzstan and Vietnam added to the 240-hour transit policy. Transit countries go from 55 to 57; open ports go from 60 to 65. Both are also added to the Hainan 30-day policy, which reaches 61 countries.
National Immigration Administration announcement
Indonesia added to the 240-hour transit policy, taking it to 55 countries.
MFA Consular Department notice, 2025-11-03
Sweden added to the unilateral 30-day visa-free list.
MFA Consular Department notice
The unilateral visa-free policy for 45 countries extended to 2026-12-31. Canada and the United Kingdom were added to the list later in the same cycle; Russia runs to 2027-12-31.
National Immigration Administration announcement
Transit visa-free stay extended from 72/144 hours to 240 hours. Entry ports raised from 39 to 60; permitted stay areas raised from 19 to 24 provincial-level regions, and cross-province travel within those areas became allowed.
Where this comes from
Every list above is checked against these sources on the date at the top of the page. Lists,
ports, permitted travel areas and airline boarding checks all change; the official text is final.
Chinese embassy and consulate sites — passport-specific rules and the most current country lists.
How people get this wrong
Checking nationality by residence. Where you live and where your card is billed decide nothing. Only the passport matters.
Treating a return trip as transit. Transit needs a third country. A round trip home does not qualify.
Reading the expiry column as a stay limit. “Policy runs until” is when the programme ends, not how long you may stay.
Assuming 30 days resets freely. Long stays assembled from back-to-back entries draw scrutiny at the border.
Relying on a guide written before August 2026. The transit list changed twice in 2026 alone.
About This Tool
Check whether your nationality qualifies for China's 30-day visa-free entry, a bilateral exemption, or the 240-hour visa-free transit. 79 nationalities enter visa-free and 57 qualify for transit, verified October 18, 2026.
How to Use This Tool
Pick your passport nationality. Residence country and card billing country do not matter.
Choose tourism, business, or a stopover on the way to a third country. The 240-hour route only applies to the third case.
Read the result, then check the policy expiry date in the table. Unilateral visa-free entry covers 50 countries and runs to 31 December 2026, except Russia (2027) and Brunei (no end date).
Confirm against the National Immigration Administration before booking, and carry your onward ticket to the airport.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which nationalities can enter China visa-free?
79 nationalities hold ordinary passports that enter China without a visa: 50 under China's unilateral 30-day policy and 29 under bilateral agreements. The United States is on neither list for tourism, but Americans do qualify for 240-hour visa-free transit.
How long can I stay in China without a visa?
30 days per entry under the unilateral policy, and whatever the agreement specifies under a bilateral exemption. The 240-hour transit route allows up to 10 days but requires an onward ticket to a third country. The 24-hour transit route applies to all nationalities but keeps you inside the port area.
Does the 240-hour transit rule apply at every Chinese airport?
No. It applies at 65 designated ports across 24 provincial-level regions, not at every international airport. You must also arrive from one country and depart to a different one, so a return trip to the same country does not qualify.
When does the visa-free policy expire?
The unilateral 30-day policy for 48 of the 50 countries runs to 31 December 2026. Russia runs to 31 December 2027, and Brunei has no end date. Bilateral exemptions have no expiry because they rest on standing agreements.