Do I Need A Visa For A Layover In China
You are sitting at home and dream of having sex so you rush to the airport to catch your flight to China. Before you go in, you ask yourself “Should I have a visa for a layover in China?” The answer is no. Perhaps you thought you would have to get a visa for every country on your itinerary. This is very untrue as long as you do not plan on leaving the airport and/or stay more than 24 hours.
The Visa rules for the most part are quite simple. You will need a visa if you have to stop in China on your way to another destination. For example, China is a great place to stop over on your way to Japan, or as I once did on my way to my Russian wife at the time. China visa is not needed if you fly direct from USA to Russia of course although a Chinese visa can be more convenient and save some time in Japan where you have to do a lot of things anyway like getting a new multi-entry Japanese visa, finding a hotel and red tape stuff.
Do I Need A Visa For A Layover In China
Transit visa exemption arrangements for mainland China
1. 24-Hour Direct Transit
Under the 24-hour visa-free transit rule, no visa is required for international flight, ship, or train passengers who transit directly through mainland China and will stay for less than 24 hours. Passengers should hold tickets to a third country or region and have a confirmed seat.
Those who transfer in more than one city of China within 24 hours can also enjoy this policy. For instance, if one’s trip is Moscow – Lanzhou – Guangzhou – Bangkok and the total time in China is less than 24 hours, the passenger can still enjoy the 24-hour direct transit. But the passenger needs to apply for the temporary entry permit upon his arrival.
2. 72-hour Visa-Free Transit
Passport holders of the following 51 countries and regions can be granted a visa-free stay up to 72 hours while transiting via Beijing Capital Airport, Shanghai Pudong Airport, Shanghai Hongqiao Airport, and airports of Guangzhou, Chengdu, Chongqing, Shenyang, Dalian, Harbin, Xian, Guilin, Kunming, Hangzhou, Wuhan, Tianjin, Qingdao, Nanjing, Changsha, and Xiamen:
24 Schengen Agreement Countries: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland
13 Other European Countries: Russia, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, Macedonia (FYROM), Albania
6 American Countries: the United States, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile
2 Oceania Countries: Australia, New Zealand
6 Asian Countries: Korea, Japan, Singapore, Brunei, United Arab Emirates, Qatar
3. 144-Hour Visa-Free Transit
Passengers from the above countries transiting in Nanjing Lukou Airport of Jiangsu, Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport of Zhejiang, and all air, sea and railway ports of Shanghai, including Pudong Airport, Hongqiao Airport, Shanghai Port International Cruise Terminal, Wusong Passenger Transport Center and all railway stations in Shanghai can enjoy a visa-free stay up to 144 hours in Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang. Passengers can enter and leave from any of the above ports.
72-Hour Visa-Free Transit in China
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| Transit Service Counter in Beijing Capital Airport |
The 72-hour visa-free transit policy in China allows air passengers from 53 countries to transit and stay for up to 72 hours (3 days) in 18 China cities without a visa. In order to facilitate international visitors’ short stay in China, the policy is promising to be carried out in more and more cities in the future.
Qualified Countries
24 Schengen Agreement Countries: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland
15 Other European Countries: Russia, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, Macedonia (FYROM), Albania, Belarus, Monaco
6 American Countries: the United States, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile
2 Oceania Countries: Australia, New Zealand
6 Asian Countries: Korea, Japan, Singapore, Brunei, United Arab Emirates, Qatar
Cities Enjoying the Policy
Harbin, Guilin, Changsha
Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Xi’an, Chongqing, Shenyang, Dalian, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Shijiazhuang, Qinhuangdao, Chengdu, Wuhan, Xiamen, Qingdao, Kunming, the whole Guangdong Province – Extended to 144-hour Visa-free Transit
Areas Allowed to Stay
Cities only with the 72-hour free entry policy:
Passengers transiting in Changsha are allowed to travel in the whole province.
Passengers transiting in Harbin and Guilin cannot leave the transit city.
Cities where the 72 hours scheme has been extended to 144-hour transit without visa (TWOV):
Passengers transiting in Shanghai, Zhejiang, or Jiangsu can move around the three places. With the implementation of the 144-Hour Visa-Free Transit Policy, they can actually stay for as long as 144 hours.
Passengers transiting in Xi’an Xianyang Airport are permitted to travel in Xi’an and Xianyang.
Passengers transiting in Guangdong can travel around the whole province.
Passengers transiting in Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei can also move around the three places freely for 144 hours.
Passengers stopping over in Dalian or Shenyang can travel in the whole of Liaoning Province.
Passengers transiting in Chengdu, Kunming, Wuhan, Chongqing or Xiamen cannot leave the transit city.
Passengers transiting in Qingdao are allowed to move freely within the whole Shandong Province for 144 hours.
Recommended Tours for Transit Passengers in Different Cities
To Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Great Wall…
To Terracotta Warriors, City Wall, Small Wild Googe Pagoda…
3 days private tour to Guilin, Longsheng and Yangshuo
Conditions for Application
1. The confirmed seat onward ticket and valid visa to a third country or region (if required) are needed for entry. Based on the latest information, the 72 hours starts from 00:00 the day following the entry date in almost all the airports, except Beijing Airport. For example, if an air passenger arrives in Guangzhou at 08:00 on June 2nd, then the latest time for him to leave is 23:59 on June 5. In this case, the actual stopover time is more than 72 hours. However, in Beijing, the 72 hours count from the scheduled arrival time of the flight. To play on the safe side, passengers are recommended to be more conservative and not to exceed the “strict 72 hours” which counts from the flights’ scheduled arrival time to the departure time.
2. The flights can only stop in one Chinese city, meaning passengers have to enter and exit from the same city, except in cities where the 144-hour visa-free transit has been implemented. For instance, if a flight lands in Xi’an via Beijing, passengers are not able to enjoy the policy. In addition, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan are regarded as a third region in terms of transit issues. If a flight passes USA – Beijing – Hong Kong/Macau/Taiwan, passengers are able to enjoy.
3. Only use flights to transfer in China. Passengers using other vehicles (including using flight for single trip) are not eligible to enjoy the policy.
4. Passengers are required to leave from the same airport that they arrive, except in some of the cities with 144-hour visa-free transit scheme where they may enter or leave from land or sea ports.
Documents for Application
Passport valid for at least 3 months from the date of entry. Actually there are cases that some passengers are denied at the immigration counter because the remaining validity of their passport is not more than 6 months, so it’s better to keep your passport valid for at least 6 months to play safe. Visa for a third country or region (if applicable) A full completed Arrival/Departure Card (including name, nationality, passport no., visa no. & issuance place, flight no., purpose of visit, date of birth, gender) An onward ticket with confirmed seat are needed