China 24-Hour Visa-Free Transit

Foreigners eligible for the 24-hour visa-free transit can be exempt from border inspection procedures at the following 9 airports: Beijing Capital Airport, Beijing Daxing Airport, Shanghai Pudong Airport, Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport, Xiamen Gaoqi Airport, Guangzhou Baiyun Airport, Shenzhen Bao’an Airport, Chengdu Tianfu Airport, and Xi’an Xianyang Airport.

24-hour visa-free transit in China, also called the 24-hour transit without visa (24-hour TWOV for short), regulates that visa is not required for air, train, and ship passengers transiting in mainland China for a stay of no more than 24 hours before heading for a third country or region.

Who are eligible for the 24-hour TWOV of China?

National of most countries are eligible for the 24-hour visa-free transit, while there are exceptions in certain airports for some nationalities.

1. Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Syria, Thailand, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Yemen passport holders transiting in Xiamen require a visa.

2. Syrian citizens transiting in Guangzhou are not eligible for the 24-hour visa-free transit.

What are the port restrictions?

Though a majority of international airports in China opt in the 24-hour TWOV, passengers transiting through the following airports all need a visa no matter how long the layover is.
• Huangshan Tunxi Airport
• Mudanjiang Hailang Airport
• Yanji Chaoyangchuan Airport

Citizens from Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Syria, Thailand, Turkey and Yemen are not eligible for 24-hour visa-free transit in Urumqi Diwopu International Airport.

If transiting in Guangzhou for less than 24 hours, you are able to apply for the 24-hour TWOV from Guangzhou Baiyun airport instead of its railway stations or other ports of entry. That is, only entering Guangzhou by air, you would be issued the 24h visa-free transit under qualified travel itinerary.

What is an eligible transit route?

24-hour Direct Transit Rules

An eligible transit route goes like Country A → China → Country C.

A and C are different countries. Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan can be regarded as A or C in this respect. For instance, if a passenger travels like USA – Beijing – Hong Kong, there is no doubt that this route qualifies for China 24 hour TWOV.

Generally speaking, the 24-hour visa-free transit allows aliens to have multiple stops in China as long as they leave the country within 24 hours, therefore the route USA - Beijing - Shanghai - South Korea also counts as eligible.

What are the requirements for TWOV?

Passport valid for at least 3 months from the date of entry
Onward air, cruise or train ticket with confirmed seat and date
Visa for a third country or region (if needed)

Can I get out of the airport during layover?

Passengers wishing to get out of the restricted transit area to claim luggage, take a connecting flight, or do some sightseeing in the city can apply for the 24-hour visa-free entry permit, which is a stamp or sticker on passport showing the permitted stay length.

Apply for 24-hour visa-free entry permit in 4 steps

Fill an Arrival/Departure Card at the border inspection counter
Get the temporary entry permit stamp or sticker
Claim the luggage (if needed)
Go through the customs

How to count the stopover time?

Starting: scheduled arrival time
Ending: scheduled departure time

Recommended Tours for Transit Passengers

Beijing Layover Tours

Xi'an Terracotta Army Tour

Beijing Mini Group Tours

Differences among 24/72/144-hour free transit

24-Hour TWOV	72-Hour Visa-Free Transit	144-Hour Visa-Free Transit
For almost all countries	For 54 countries	For 54 countries
Available in most Chinese cities	Available in major Chinese cities	Guangdong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Dalian, Shenyang, Chengdu, Wuhan, Qingdao, Kunming, Xiamen, Xi'an, Chongqing
By air, cruise, train	By air	By air, cruise, train
Counted from the landing time	Counted from 0:00 the day following the entry date (Scheduled landing time in Beijing)	Counted from 0:00 the day following the entry date
Multiple stops	Single stop	Multiple stops

Note:
Note that if 1) you lack any of the required documents listed above, 2) or your route does not qualify, 3) or you have the record of overstaying in a country or getting visa refusal before, your application for the 24-hour visa-free transit may be turned down. For fear of inconvenience caused by such case, please make sure that you are eligible or apply for a regular transit visa in advance.

- Last updated on Apr. 23, 2024 by Kate Liu -

Questions & Answers on 24-Hour Visa-Free Transit

Asked by Tyler from UNITED KINGDOM | Apr. 22, 2024 00:06

London - Shenzhen (6 hour layover) - Hanoi Vietnam

Hi! I've seen mixed accounts of whether Shenzhen airport applies for the 24 hour without visa scheme, could you please clarify if i need a visa to transit through Shenzhen as a British national? Thanks a lot!

Answers (1)

Answered by Borut | Apr. 22, 2024 05:23

This is a quote/excerpt from official National Immigration Administration website that clearly says:

The second measure relieves foreign nationals eligible for 24-hour visa-free transit at major hub airports such as Beijing Capital International Airport from the need to undergo inspection procedures. Foreign nationals eligible for the 24-hour visa-free transit policy are exempt from border inspection at nine international airports in China: Beijing Capital International Airport, Beijing Daxing International Airport, Shanghai Pudong International Airport, Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport, Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport, Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport, Chengdu Tianfu International Airport, and Xi'an Xianyang International Airport. Individuals with international interline tickets transiting to third countries and regions within 24 hours through any of the aforementioned airports may enjoy visa-free direct transit without border inspection procedures.

As you can see, Shenzhen is clearly mentioned, so the answer is, you do not need any kind of visa. Enjoy your journey.

Asked by Richard Thomas from UNITED STATES | Apr. 20, 2024 05:51

144 hour visa free China

Is there a limit in same year. Can I go through twice - example - Seoul to Beijing 144 hrs. - Beijing to Hong Kong - after a few day - Hong Kong to Chengdu 144 hrs - then Chengdu to Japan. Does this work? thanks

Answers (1)

Answered by Borut | Apr. 21, 2024 22:38

Yes, it works. There is no limit on the number of 144 or whatever visa free transit that can be done within certain period of time. If you only want, you can enjoy 144 hour visa free transit literally every week.

Asked by Sharon from NIGERIA | Apr. 18, 2024 10:12

TRANSIT VISA

I am a Nigerian traveling to Macao on Qatar airways and I have layover in Beijing. Do I need another visa for that transit?

Answers (1)

Answered by Borut | Apr. 19, 2024 11:27

Sharon, if your layover in Beijing is shorter than 24 hours, you will be covered by 24 hour visa free transit and you do not need any kind of visa. However, if your layover in Beijing is longer than 24 hours, a visa obtained in advance is a must. If you travel on a single ticket, you will just exit the plane in Beijing and will continue walking toward your flight for Macau and during that process you will not be a subject of immigration and/or customs control, but you will just cross a security check. If not traveling on a single ticket, but separate ones, you will approach the transit counter immediately upon your landing. At the transit counter you will apply for a temporary entry permit by presenting your flight tickets. This application is a formality, free of charge and and after a short check, you will be granted a permit to cross the immigration and to collect your luggage in order to make a check-in for your flight to Macau. Both cases are covered by 24 hour visa free transit and no visa is needed.

Asked by Mark from UNITED KINGDOM | Apr. 18, 2024 00:35

transit without visa (TWOV)

hi.
please can you help?

we are 2 persons (UK Passports) flying on the following route by cathay pacific (CX) airlines -

MAN - HKG (connecting flight) - TFU (CHENGDU) - stay 6 Days - TFU - HKG (stay 7days) - MAN (Final Destination).

will we be able to get the TWOV in Chengdu as we transit HKG, and HKG is our destination when we leave Chengdu?

would it be safer to get an L Tourism Visa?

many thanks
Mark

Answers (1)

Answered by Borut | Apr. 18, 2024 04:01

Unfortunately, your itinerary is not eligible for any kind of visa free transit scheme. The basic rule of visa free transit clearly says that the immediate points before and after your mainland Chinese destination have to be in two different countries or eligible territories (eligible territories: Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau). As you can see, your both immediate points are in Hong Kong, so your itinerary requires a visa obtained in advance.

Asked by Terry from UNITED KINGDOM | Apr. 17, 2024 07:27

24hr TWOV Shanghai

My partner and I (British, Spanish) have a 12 hour layover in Shanghai, and then an onward flight to Vietnam via Macao. We'd like to use the TWOV to do some sightseeing in Shanghai before our onward flight. As this will be daytime (arrive 8am, leave 8pm) we will not be checking into a hotel. Would we need to register at a police station in Shanghai, or can we simply return to the airport in the evening for our onward flight?

Answers (2)

Answered by Michael | Apr. 17, 2024 22:09

No need to register. Your only challenge is time is too short. If you will land in PVG, take the Maglev to Longyang Rd Station and then take the Metro line 2. Near the transfer area, there are many restaurants for breakfast. Metro line 2 runs through many key sightseeing areas like People's Square and Nanking Rd. You can get off at People's Square and check out Shanghai Museum, then stroll to the Bund along Nanking (Pedestrian) Rd. Yu Garden is also nearby.

Answered by Borut | Apr. 17, 2024 22:39

First thing first. Spanish citizen can exit the airport without any conditions because Spanish citizens can enter China visa free for a period of up to 15 days. So 24 or 144 hour visa free transit does not apply on them. He/she needs only to fill out arrival/departure card and step into the immigration line and exit the airport. No need to report to anyone, just to return to the airport.

For British citizen it is important to say the fact that the basic rule of 24 hour visa free transit is that a passenger has a right to transit through China visa free, but that same rule says that it has to remain within the airport transit area.

However, there is also a temporary entry permit that allows a person, if granted, to exit the airport. This permit is not a passenger's right, but more as a bonus that is granted to those traveling with small children, with physically disabled passengers and those with long/overnight layovers. In any case, this is not the right, but as I have told you, just a bonus. In other words, upon your landing in Shanghai, you will immediately approach transit counter where you will apply for a temporary entry permit by presenting your flight tickets. This application is free of charge. Having in mind the nature of your layover, your chances to be granted a permit are really almost certain especially since you are accompanied by Spanish citizen. After this, you will cross the immigration and you can spend your time in Shanghai as you wish.

British citizen will be will be covered by 24 hour visa free transit and no visa is needed. He/she will just fill out arrival/departure card and apply for a temporary entry permit. No registration at the police is required.