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Eligibility check

Check what your passport gets you

Three separate schemes let foreign nationals into mainland China without a visa. They overlap, they have different conditions, and most travel sites only describe one. Pick your passport below to see all of them at once.

How the three schemes differ

 30-day visa-free240-hour transitTreaty exemption
Nationalities505729
Length of stay30 days10 days14–90 days, varies
Onward ticket requiredNoYes — to a third country or regionNo
Where you may travelAll of mainland China24 provincesAll of mainland China
Entry pointsAny open port65 approved portsAny open port
Expires2026-12-31No stated end dateOpen-ended treaty

Reading the table: if you qualify for both the 30-day scheme and transit, take the 30-day one. It is longer, geographically unrestricted, and does not tie you to an onward ticket you may want to change.

30 days, no visa, no application

The unilateral scheme is the most generous route China offers and the least understood. There is no form, no fee and no advance notification. You board your flight, present your passport on arrival, and you are admitted for thirty days for tourism, family visits or business.

Current authorisation runs to 2026-12-31. It has been extended every year since 2023, and both the UK and Canada were added in February 2026 — but it is an extension, not a permanent right, so check the date before booking travel far ahead.

Two exceptions, both in your favour. Russian passport holders are authorised to 2027-12-31 — a full year longer than everyone else. Brunei's exemption carries no announced end date at all.

240-hour transit

If the 30-day scheme does not cover you, transit probably does. You get ten days, entering at any of 65 ports and moving freely across 24 provinces. The one hard condition is a confirmed onward ticket to a third country or region — meaning anywhere that is not where you came from, and not mainland China. Hong Kong and Macao both count.

Where you may travel

The 24 permitted regions cover every city a first-time visitor is likely to want, and a good deal more:

Tibet, Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Gansu, Qinghai, Ningxia, Jilin and Gansu sit outside the scheme. If your itinerary includes any of them, you need a proper visa — and Tibet needs a separate permit on top.

Treaty exemptions

Separately from the schemes above, China holds mutual visa-exemption agreements with 29 countries for ordinary passport holders. These are bilateral treaties rather than policy announcements, so they do not carry an expiry date — but the permitted stay differs in every agreement, from 14 days to 90. Your own foreign ministry is usually the fastest source for the exact term.

Questions people get wrong

What is the difference between visa-free entry and visa-free transit?

Visa-free entry (30 days) has no onward-ticket condition — you can fly in and out of the same airport and go anywhere in mainland China. Visa-free transit (240 hours) requires a confirmed ticket to a third country or region, and restricts you to 24 provinces.

Does Hong Kong count as a third country for transit purposes?

Yes. Any destination outside mainland China qualifies, including Hong Kong and Macao. Flying Bangkok to Shanghai to Hong Kong is a valid transit itinerary.

Can I work or study while visa-free?

No. These schemes cover tourism, family visits, business meetings and transit. Employment, enrolment in a course and journalism all require the matching visa category, arranged before you travel.

What happens if I overstay?

Overstaying carries a daily fine, possible detention and a re-entry ban. The 240-hour clock in particular is easy to misjudge — it starts at 00:00 on the day after you arrive, not at your landing time.

Cleared to travel? Here is the checklist