Do I need a visa for China?
Pick your passport and describe your trip. The checker covers ordinary passports for mainland China; Hong Kong and Macao have their own rules.
Choose a passport to see your options.
How 240-hour visa-free transit works
Citizens of 57 countries can spend up to 240 hours (10 days) in mainland China without a visa when China is a stop between two other places.
- Arrive from one country or region and leave for a different third country or region. Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan count as separate regions, so US to Beijing to Seoul qualifies but US to Beijing to US does not.
- Hold a confirmed onward ticket departing within 240 hours, and a passport valid for at least 3 more months.
- Enter and leave through one of the 65 designated ports (47 airports, 14 seaports, 2 rail and 2 land crossings), including Beijing Capital and Daxing, Shanghai Pudong and Hongqiao, Xi'an Xianyang, and Chengdu Shuangliu and Tianfu.
- Stay within the 24 permitted provinces and municipalities; you may cross between them. Some provinces are limited to listed cities (in Sichuan, Chengdu, Leshan and nine other cities).
- The 240 hours usually start at 00:00 on the day after arrival. Tell the airline at check-in and use the visa-free transit lane at immigration.
Where you can go
Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Shanxi (Taiyuan and Datong), Liaoning, Heilongjiang (Harbin), Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian, Jiangxi (Nanchang and Jingdezhen), Shandong, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Chongqing, Sichuan (Chengdu, Leshan, Deyang, Suining, Meishan, Ya'an, Ziyang, Neijiang, Zigong, Luzhou, Yibin), Shaanxi, Guizhou, Yunnan (listed cities), Guangdong, Guangxi (listed cities), Hainan.
The arrival card
Since 20 November 2025 you can fill in China's arrival card online before you travel, on the official NIA website, the NIA 12367 app or the official WeChat and Alipay mini programs. It is free: ignore sites that charge for it. You can also fill it in on arrival.
More on what happens at the border: Visas and entry.