China: visa-free policy extended to 30 days
From November 30, 2024, visa-free stays in China will increase from 15 to 30 days, and nine new countries will be added to the list of nations benefiting from the unilateral visa-free policy.
Good news for travelers from the many countries benefiting from China’s unilateral visa-free policy: from November 30, 2024, visa-free stays in China will be extended to 30 days, instead of the current 15.
This decision was announced today by Chinese diplomacy, which will take the opportunity to extend the list of countries eligible for this entry facility to 38 nations, and add exchange visits (type “F”) as a purpose of stay authorized without a visa.
“In order to further facilitate exchanges between China and foreign countries, China has decided to expand the scope of visa-free countries. Thus, from November 30, 2024 to December 31, 2025, it will implement a visa-free policy on an experimental basis for ordinary passport holders from Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Montenegro, Northern Macedonia, Malta, Estonia, Latvia and Japan,” says the Chinese Foreign Ministry.
Chinese diplomacy adds that the country has “decided to simultaneously optimize its entry policy by including exchange visits as a purpose of visa exemption and extend the visa-free stay period from the current 15 days to 30 days.”
The 38 countries eligible for China’s visa-free policy
In December 2023, China introduced an experimental, first-of-its-kind visa waiver for travelers from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia. Tourists and business travelers from these six countries could stay in China for up to 15 days without a visa.
Over the months, China has added several countries to this list of nations eligible for the visa-free policy.
As explained by the Chinese Embassy in Japan, which has already made today’s announcement official, travelers who do not meet the conditions for visa exemption must apply for one before entering China.
In the third quarter of 2024, China welcomed 8.19 million foreign visitors, marking a 48.8% increase on the same period last year. Of these travelers, 4.89 million entered China under the visa waiver scheme, a year-on-year increase of 78.6%.
From November 30, citizens of the following 38 countries and territories will be able to enjoy a 30-day visa-free stay in China:
Andorra
Australia
Austria
Belgium
Brunei
Bulgaria
Croatia
Cyprus
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Ireland
Italy
Japan
Latvia
Liechtenstein
Luxembourg
Malaysia
Malta
Monaco
Montenegro
Netherlands
New Zealand
North Macedonia
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Slovakia
Slovenia
South Korea
Spain
Switzerland