At the border
In short
There is a declaration threshold rather than a ban. Customs sends you to the red channel at RMB 20,000 in cash or above, or foreign currency cash equivalent to US$5,000 or above, and the same two figures apply on the way out. If you bring in more than US$5,000 in foreign cash and want to take it out again, fill in two declaration forms and keep the endorsed copy Customs returns to you.
Check entry rules by passportApplies to
Anyone flying into or out of mainland China carrying banknotes, in any currency, and anyone unsure which customs channel to walk through.
Check before you rely on it
Neither page we opened states the size of the penalty for undeclared cash, or the exchange rate Customs uses to test a mixed-currency total. Those gaps are printed below rather than filled in.
Review date: 2026-07-25
Declaring costs you a queue. Not declaring, when you should have, is a customs offence. The maths takes thirty seconds and is worth doing before you reach the hall.
The thresholds
Customs prints the same cash figures for arriving and departing passengers. The other rows are the ones visitors miss.
| What you are carrying | Coming in | Going out | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Renminbi in cash | Declare at RMB 20,000 or above | Declare at RMB 20,000 or above | Customs lists the same figure for inward and outward passengers, in both cases as a reason to take the Goods to Declare channel. |
| Foreign currency in cash | Declare at the equivalent of US$5,000 or above | Declare at the equivalent of US$5,000 or above | Stated as any other foreign currencies in cash equivalent to US$5,000 or above. It is an equivalent, so it covers every currency you are carrying together, not just dollars. |
| Foreign cash above US$5,000 you plan to take out again | Two declaration forms, one returned to you endorsed | Present the endorsed copy | Customs states that passengers carrying foreign currencies in cash worth more than US$5,000 and intending to take them out of China in the future shall fill out two declaration forms, one of which is returned after endorsement for use when leaving. |
| Personal articles that will stay in China (non-Chinese residents) | Declare at RMB 2,000 or above | Not applicable | A separate red-channel line from the cash rules, and the one visitors trip over when they bring gifts or equipment that is not going home with them. |
| Gold, silver and other precious metals | Covered by the general prohibited and restricted rules | Red channel, as its own listed item | Customs lists precious metals separately among the outward red-channel items, alongside cultural relics and endangered species products. |
Every row above: General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China — Customs Clearance Guide for International Passengers (read 2026-07-25)
Before the hall
The move most people miss
This is how your own foreign cash leaves China again without an argument.
Customs states that passengers carrying foreign currencies in cash worth more than US$5,000 who intend to take the currencies out of China in the future shall fill out two declaration forms. After the forms are endorsed, one copy is returned to the passenger for use at the time of leaving China. Keep that copy with the passport for the whole trip: the guide also says an endorsed declaration form must be kept properly and re-submitted at the time of return if necessary.
Source: General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China — Customs Clearance Guide for International Passengers (read 2026-07-25)
The published facts
Each line links the official source and the day we read it. Sources read 2026-07-25.
Customs lists, as a red-channel trigger for inward passengers, RMB 20,000 cash or above, or any other foreign currencies in cash equivalent to US$5,000 or above. The identical line appears in the outward list.
Inward item 4, outward item 2
Source: General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China — Customs Clearance Guide for International Passengers (read 2026-07-25)
Passengers carrying foreign currencies in cash worth more than US$5,000 and intending to take the currencies out of China in the future shall fill out two declaration forms. After Customs endorsement, one copy is returned to the passenger for use at the time of leaving China.
Source: General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China — Customs Clearance Guide for International Passengers (read 2026-07-25)
All inward and outward passengers, except those exempted from examination or control under the relevant regulations and those under 16 travelling with adults, shall complete a declaration form and declare truthfully to the Customs.
Source: General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China — Customs Clearance Guide for International Passengers (read 2026-07-25)
Non-Chinese residents carrying personal articles intended to remain in the territory valued at RMB 2,000 or above must use the red channel. Chinese residents have a separate RMB 5,000 line for articles brought from overseas.
Inward items 1 and 2
Source: General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China — Customs Clearance Guide for International Passengers (read 2026-07-25)
The red channel is also required for 1,500ml or above of alcoholic drinks containing 12% alcohol or above, 400 sticks or above of cigarettes, 100 sticks or above of cigars, or 500g or above of tobacco.
Inward item 3
Source: General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China — Customs Clearance Guide for International Passengers (read 2026-07-25)
Customs states that passengers who are not certain about the instructions shall ask the Customs officers for details or choose the Goods to Declare channel. The State Council's visitor page says the same thing in its own words.
Source: General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China — Customs Clearance Guide for International Passengers (read 2026-07-25)
The State Council's customs page states that travellers who fail to declare and bring in prohibited, restricted or taxable goods are penalised under the Customs Law of the People's Republic of China and the Regulation on the Implementation of Customs Administrative Punishment.
Page dated 4 August 2020
Source: The State Council of the People's Republic of China (English portal) — Customs (services for visitors to China) (page dated 2020-08-04; read 2026-07-25)
Customs states that a declaration form verified and endorsed by the Customs shall be kept properly and re-submitted at the time of return if necessary, and that seals affixed by Customs on baggage must not be opened or broken without prior authorization.
Source: General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China — Customs Clearance Guide for International Passengers (read 2026-07-25)
The State Council's customs page states that personal mailed items entering China are subject to import duties, that items with import duties not exceeding 50 yuan are exempt, and that the legal maximum value is 1,000 yuan for items sent to or from foreign countries and 800 yuan for Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan.
Source: The State Council of the People's Republic of China (English portal) — Customs (services for visitors to China) (page dated 2020-08-04; read 2026-07-25)
In short
The limit, whether the two currencies add up, the way out, and what happens if you get it wrong.
There is no published ban on an amount. There is a declaration threshold: Customs lists RMB 20,000 in cash or above, or foreign currency cash equivalent to US$5,000 or above, as a reason to take the Goods to Declare channel. Below both figures you can use the green channel; at or above either, declare.
Customs prints them as one line covering both: RMB 20,000 cash or above, or any other foreign currencies in cash equivalent to US$5,000 or above. The foreign-currency side is stated as an equivalent, so it covers everything you are carrying in every foreign currency together.
The outward list carries the same two figures. If you are leaving with RMB 20,000 or more in cash, or foreign currency cash equivalent to US$5,000 or more, you belong in the red channel on the way out as well.
Ask for two declaration forms on the way in. Customs states that passengers carrying foreign cash worth more than US$5,000 who intend to take it out in future fill in two forms, and that one endorsed copy is returned to them for use when leaving China. Keep that copy with your passport.
The State Council's customs page states that travellers who fail to declare and bring in prohibited, restricted or taxable goods are penalised under the Customs Law and the Regulation on the Implementation of Customs Administrative Punishment. Neither page we opened publishes the size of a fine for undeclared cash, so we do not quote one.
It can. A non-Chinese resident bringing in personal articles intended to remain in China worth RMB 2,000 or above must use the red channel. Items you are taking home with you are a different case: outward passengers wanting to bring back a camera, video camera or laptop worth over RMB 5,000 each fill in two forms and keep the endorsed copy.
The red one. Customs says a passenger who is not certain should ask an officer or choose the Goods to Declare channel, and the State Council's visitor page repeats it. Declaring something that turns out not to need declaring costs you a queue; the reverse is a customs offence.
Not published
The penalty amount and the conversion rate are the two things a worried traveller wants, and no page we opened states either.
Source: The State Council of the People's Republic of China (English portal) — Customs (services for visitors to China) (page dated 2020-08-04; read 2026-07-25)
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