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 cruise 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?

Citizens from Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, 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 Sep. 07, 2024 by Brenda Lian -

Questions & Answers on 24-Hour Visa-Free Transit

Asked by Jason from UAE | Nov. 20, 2024 09:57

Visa requirements for short transit in Guangzhou

We will be flying to Vietnam with a brief stopover in Guangzhou (just a few hours) and would like to know if there are any visa requirements, or if we qualify for the 24-hour visa-free rule. We hold British and Filipino passports.

Asked by Oskar from GERMANY | Nov. 20, 2024 05:35

Transfer in China takes 26 hours. What to do?

Hello our flights planned arrival in China (Shanghai Pudong) is 00:25. then we have a domestic flight in china to Shenzen bao‘an. After that our final flight leaves shenzen at 2:50am. This would mean that our total planned time in china comes up to 26 hours and 25 minutes. Will this scenario still fall under the 24hour TWOV rule how will I be able to take this flight as a German citizen?

Asked by Betty from USA | Nov. 19, 2024 13:22

Bangkok to Hong Kong for 5 days then to Canada: Can i visit Shenzhen for a day to shop without visa?

Hi, I'm going to fly into HK from Bangkok for 5 days in HK. Can i take the train to Shenzhen to shop for a day without a visa? I'm a US citizen. Thank you so much.

Answers (2)

Answered by Borut | Nov. 20, 2024 00:18

Unfortunately, this is impossible to perform without a visa. However, if you want, you can obtain a Shenzhen 5 day visa on arrival at Lo Wu / Luohu border crossing.

You can take a suburban train from Hong Kong to Lo Wu, shortly walk from Lo Wu to Luohu crossing and the visa office that is located at Luohu. You are advised to be there at least at 08:30 in order to avoid the major queues because the visa office opens its doors at 09:00. The price of a visa is affordable - 130 CNY.

When you enter Shenzhen, you can stay there up to 5 days and when you are done with it, you can return to Hong Kong by taking any border crossing and any mean of transport, high speed train included. You can arrive at Lo Wu / Luohu border crossing with just your passport. You will fill out the form at the crossing and the photo of you will be taken there.

So, if you want, you can do exactly as I have explained. Whatever your decision might be, I wish you a nice journey.

Answered by Oskar | Nov. 20, 2024 05:15

Asked by Aykut from TURKIYE | Nov. 19, 2024 06:12

Turkish citizen transiting through China to a third country with a domestic flight within 24 hours

Hello,
I am writing to seek clarification regarding my eligibility for a transit visa. I am a Turkish citizen currently residing in Milan, and I have a connecting flight itinerary as follows:

Milan to Chongqing (International Flight) (05.00 am entry to China)
Chongqing to Shenzhen (Domestic Flight)
Shenzhen to Manila, Philippines (International Flight) ( 23.25 pm departure from China)

Given this itinerary, I need to transfer from Chongqing to Shenzhen on a domestic flight and then wait for approximately 13 hours in Shenzhen for my next flight.
Am I eligible for the 24-hour visa-free transit, considering my need to change ports from Chongqing to Shenzhen?
I would greatly appreciate your guidance on how to proceed under these circumstances.
Thank you in advance for your prompt response.

Answers (231)

Answered by Borut | Nov. 20, 2024 00:12

Aykut, you do not need any kind of visa because your transit through China will be covered by 24 hour visa free transit because it is allowed to have more than one stop within your itinerary within this particular visa free transit scheme.

When you land in Chongqing the first thing you will do is to approach 24/144 hour visa free transit counter where you will formally apply for a temporary entry permit. This is free of any charge and everything you are supposed to do here is to present your flight tickets. Upon a short check, you will be granted a permit and you will then head to the immigration.

When you clear the immigration, you will formally enter China and you will head to the gate for your domestic flight to Shenzhen. When you land in Shenzhen, you will not go immediately to the gate for your flight to Manila because that would be too long to wait at the airport. You will simply proceed to the city and then return to the airport for your onward flight to the Philippines. In Shenzhen you will cross the exit immigration and security only. Basically, you should just follow the suggestions presented here and enjoy your journey.

Answered by Aykut | Nov. 20, 2024 08:54

Dear Borut,

Thank you for your response. I have been researching the matter but couldn't find definitive information regarding my specific situation. On the Chinese National Immigration website, I came across the following statement:

"In accordance with international practices, China has adopted a 24-hour visa-free transit policy for foreign nationals of multiple countries at all international ports of entry. Any passenger holding interline tickets with confirmed seats to transit to a third country or region via China by international flights, sea vessels, or trains does not have to apply for a visa if his/her stay period in China is less than 24 hours and he/she does not leave the port of entry. In the case where the passenger concerned needs to leave the port, a temporary entry permit from the entry/exit border inspection authority at the port shall be required."

This emphasizes that passengers can leave the port with a temporary entry permit, but it does not explicitly state whether traveling to another province or exiting from a different port is allowed. From this statement, I understand that leaving the port is possible, but it seems to suggest one must return to the same port to exit the country.

I apologize for reiterating my question, but I am trying to ensure clarity on whether my itinerary involving a domestic transfer is permissible. If you have any official references, past experience, or additional guidance on this matter, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thank you again for your assistance, and I look forward to hearing from you soon.

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Asked by Roman from SWITZERLAND | Nov. 17, 2024 03:24

Flying out from shenshen

Hi there
Will stay about 4 days in Hongkong and intend to fly from Shenzhen airport via Kunming by China Eastern Airlines to Phuket. Which kind of visa do I need and is it actually possible?
Thanks
Roman

Answers (1)

Answered by Borut | Nov. 18, 2024 08:07

Swiss citizens can travel to mainland China, Shenzhen/Kunming included, absolutely visa free for a stay of up to 15 days. Just to simplify, your travel to mainland China will be very similar to your trip to UK, for example. The only tiny difference is that you will have to fill out the arrival card in West Kowloon train station immigration section. Beside your passport and filled up arrival card, you do not need anything to perform your planned trip. Visas, visas on arrival and visa free transit stuff do not apply in your case. Please, be relaxed and enjoy your time.