Answer group
Passport, visa-free, transit, arrival-card, and document checks for travelers who need the legal entry question settled before the trip grows.
Check passport eligibility, visa-free or visa-required status, transit rules, arrival-card requirements, and document validity before booking aggressively.
Official source: China National Immigration Administration
Still verify
Official immigration, embassy, consulate, or visa-center guidance for your passport and itinerary.
Treat visa-free eligibility as passport-and-route specific, and treat it as dated: the current 30-day window runs to 24:00 on December 31, 2026 (Beijing time), and to December 31, 2027 for Russia. Check the official rule for your nationality, stay length, arrival port, onward ticket, and trip purpose.
Official source: China National Immigration Administration
Still verify
Official China immigration, embassy, consulate, or visa-center guidance for the exact passport and itinerary.
Do not treat 240-hour transit as a normal visa-free stay. It runs on its own country list, which is not the 30-day visa-free list, and it depends on a qualifying transit route, a permitted port, an onward ticket to a third country or region with a confirmed seat and departure date, and current official enforcement.
Official source: China National Immigration Administration
Still verify
Official port, immigration, airline, and embassy guidance for the exact inbound and outbound route.
If the official channel is available for your route, complete the arrival card before departure and keep a screenshot or confirmation accessible offline. Still carry hotel address, contact details, and route information.
Official source: China National Immigration Administration
Still verify
The official arrival-card channel and airline or port guidance for your arrival city.
Check official customs rules before packing anything that could be restricted, declarable, medical, food-related, high-value, professional, or intended for resale. When unsure, declare or remove the item rather than guessing at the airport.
Official source: China National Immigration Administration
Still verify
Official China Customs guidance, airline rules, prescription or medical documentation, destination-specific restrictions, and current declaration-channel instructions.
Other answer clusters
Each hub groups guide pages by the job a first-time visitor is trying to finish.
Next move
Read enough to make the decision smaller, then open the checklist, search a specific question, choose a setup tool, or share the page with the person planning with you.
Use the checklist when the question has shifted from research to preparation.
Search by the actual problem: Alipay, eSIM, transit visa, first transfer, vegetarian food, or a city name.
Open recommendations when the task is clear enough for a short list to be useful.