240-hour visa-free transit in China: how it works (2026)

If your passport does not get China’s 30-day visa-free entry, the 240-hour transit rule can still give you up to 10 days without a visa. It is called transit, but you do not have to stay at the airport: you can travel, sightsee and cross provinces, as long as you stay inside the allowed areas and leave for a third country.

Check your exact case in our visa checker.

Who can use it

Ordinary passport holders from 57 countries:

• Europe (40): all 27 EU countries, plus Albania, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Monaco, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Russia, Serbia, Switzerland, Ukraine and the United Kingdom
• Americas (6): Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Mexico, the United States
• Asia-Pacific and Middle East (11): Australia, Brunei, Indonesia, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, New Zealand, Qatar, Singapore, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, Vietnam

Many of these countries already get 30 days visa-free (see who gets visa-free entry), which is simpler. The transit rule matters most for travelers from the US, Mexico, Indonesia, Vietnam, Ukraine, the Czech Republic and Lithuania.

The key rule: a third country

You must arrive from one country or region and leave for a different one, with a confirmed onward ticket (fixed date and seat) that departs within 240 hours.

• New York to Shanghai, then Shanghai to Seoul: works.
• New York to Beijing, then Beijing back to New York: does not work. That is a round trip.
• Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan count as separate regions, so Los Angeles to Shanghai to Hong Kong works. Hong Kong to Shanghai and back to Hong Kong does not.

How the 240 hours are counted

The clock starts at 00:00 on the day after you arrive. Land at 14:00 on 1 May and your 240 hours run from 00:00 on 2 May, so you must leave by midnight at the end of 11 May.

Ports and allowed areas

You can enter and leave through any of 65 designated ports (airports, seaports and a few land and rail crossings) in 24 provinces, and they do not have to be the same port. Between them you can move freely within the allowed areas:

• Whole province or city: Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Liaoning, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian, Shandong, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong, Hainan, Chongqing, Guizhou, Shaanxi
• Only some cities: Shanxi (Taiyuan, Datong), Heilongjiang (Harbin), Jiangxi (Nanchang, Jingdezhen), Guangxi (12 cities including Guilin, Nanning and Beihai), Sichuan (Chengdu, Leshan and nine other cities), Yunnan (Kunming, Dali, Lijiang, Xishuangbanna and five other areas)

Not included: Tibet, Xinjiang, Gansu (so no Dunhuang), Inner Mongolia, Qinghai, Ningxia and Jilin. Our visa checker lists every port and city.

At check-in and at the border

1. At check-in, tell the airline you are using 240-hour visa-free transit and show your onward ticket. Airline staff can refuse boarding if they are not convinced.
2. Carry a printed copy of the onward ticket. Airlines ask for a passport valid for at least three months.
3. On arrival, fill in the arrival card and go to the counter for visa-free transit or temporary entry. Officers may ask about your route and hotels.

Common mistakes

• A round-trip ticket. Your next stop must be a third country or region.
• An open or unconfirmed onward ticket. It needs a fixed date and seat.
• Leaving the allowed areas. Pingyao, for example, is in Shanxi but outside Taiyuan and Datong. Jiuzhaigou is in Sichuan but not in the listed cities.
• Miscounting the days. Count from 00:00 the day after arrival and leave before 240 hours are up.
• Planning work or study. The rule covers tourism, business, visits and family. Work, study and journalism need a visa.

For a trip that fits in 10 days, see how many days you need and our routes.