Visa-free China in 2026: which door you qualify for

Door one: 30-day visa-free entry

Citizens of around 50 countries can currently enter China without any visa and stay up to 30 days — for tourism, business, visiting family or friends, exchange, or transit. The list covers most of Europe, Australia and New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, several Gulf states, five South American countries — and, since February 17, 2026, the United Kingdom and Canada.

The clock starts at midnight after your entry day, entries are unlimited, and the policy currently runs to December 31, 2026. Country lists have changed several times a year, so check the official list for your passport before booking — that is exactly why every page here carries its verification date.

One passport to double-check: Russia sits on a separate one-year trial with its own expiry, not the December 2026 date. The United States is not on the 30-day list at all — American travellers use door two.

Door two: the 240-hour transit rule

Citizens of 55 countries — including the United States — transiting through China to a third country or region can stay up to 240 hours (ten days) without a visa. The conditions that trip people up: you need an onward ticket with a confirmed date and seat, and the onward destination must be different from the country you arrived from.

Both Shanghai airports are eligible entry ports, and the permitted area is generous: 24 provinces, with Shanghai, Beijing, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui and Fujian open in full — and cross-province travel between permitted areas is allowed. Tourism, business meetings and family visits are fine; working, studying and reporting are not.

The rule everyone forgets: register where you sleep

Every foreign visitor must have their stay registered with the police within 24 hours of arrival. Hotels and licensed serviced apartments do it automatically at check-in — one more reason they are the low-friction option for a first landing.

Staying in a private home or a homestay makes the registration your job. One detail catches people out: China’s national online-registration pilot, launched in 2026, covers seven provinces — and Shanghai is not among them, so filing through the national app will not work here. Shanghai runs its own portal instead; there is a guide to it on this site.