Passport & Chinese Visa

Passports

A passport with minimum of six month validity is required for passengers traveling to China. You should provide the accurate information of the passport, including full name, date of birth, gender, nationality, passport No. and date of expiration to confirm yourself before booking Yangtze River cruises or tours with us.

Chinese Visa

Chinese Visa, issued through Chinese embassies or consulates overseas, is a necessity for visitors traveling to China. It is recommended that visitors apply for Chinese Visa (Tourist Visa) at least one or two months before the pre-arranged travel.

Tourist Visa (L Visa)

Our travelers usually apply for Tourist Visa. This kind of visa is issued to those who intend to go to China as a tourist. Persons who come to China for group travel can be issued Group L Visas.

You need to apply for a double-entry Visa if you need to leave for Hong Kong, Macao, or Taiwan from mainland China and then re-enter mainland China. Please kindly confirm the situation with your International Airline Company or your travel consultant.

How to Apply for Chinese Visa

1. The applicant should log in to the website https://cova.cs.mfa.gov.cn to access the online application form. The applicant should carefully read the COVA system prompts and follow the "COVA Visa Online Application Form Instructions" to fill out the visa application form. The applicant should ensure that all information is truthful, accurate, and complete. Once the application is submitted, it cannot be changed. If changes are necessary, the applicant must start a new application.

2. The applicant should download and print the application form (8 or 9 pages in total) and sign on the confirmation page and item 9 of the form.

3. After completing the online form, the applicant can use the "Go to Appointment" link to access the visa appointment page. Alternatively, the applicant can log in to the website https://avas.cs.mfa.gov.cn and enter their personal information and visa application number to schedule an appointment for visa processing. The "China Visa Application Online Appointment System (AVAS)" has been accepting appointments since January 16, 2023.

4. The applicant or their representative should bring the printed appointment confirmation to the visa center or consulate at the scheduled time to submit the application materials. The applicant or representative must provide a complete set of paper application forms (9-10 pages in total) and required materials (including "core materials" and "common materials") on-site. If unable to submit the application in person at the scheduled time due to special circumstances, the applicant must cancel the original appointment at least one working day in advance through the "China Visa Application Online Appointment System (AVAS)." Otherwise, the application will be considered a no-show, and the application number will be invalid. The applicant will need to start a new application and make a new appointment.

5. If the application form is filled out incorrectly or the materials do not meet the requirements, the visa application may be rejected on the spot. The applicant will need to fill out a new form and schedule a new appointment.

6. Payment for the application fee can be made by credit card (only Master Card or Visa) or a cashier's check or money order. The embassy usually does not provide mailing services.

Under what circumstances can foreigners go to China without a visa?

Foreigners who meet any of the following conditions can travel to China without a visa:

Bilateral agreements: According to bilateral agreements signed or reached between China and relevant countries, certain individuals from specific countries can travel to China without a visa. For specific information, please refer to the List of Mutual Visa Exemption Agreements between China and Foreign Countries at http://cs.mfa.gov.cn/zlbg/bgzl/lhqz/.

Transit without visa: For specific information, please refer to the website of the National Immigration Administration of China:

24-hour transit without visa
72-hour transit without visa
144-hour transit without visa

Read details about Transit without Chinese visa »

Holders of valid residence permits issued by Chinese public security authorities. Foreigners who come to China for study, employment, family reunion, long-term personal matters, and permanent foreign journalists must apply for a residence permit at the public security authorities after entry. Within the validity period of the residence permit, foreigners can reside in China and enter and exit multiple times without the need for another visa.

Holders of valid Foreigner Permanent Residence Cards of the People's Republic of China.

Holders of valid APEC Business Travel Cards. The APEC Business Travel Card is equivalent to a 5-year multiple-entry visa. The holder can enter China multiple times within the validity period of the card, with each stay not exceeding 60 days, using the travel card and a valid passport that matches the card.

Travel to the Pearl River Delta, Hainan Island, and Guilin:

Foreigners holding ordinary passports of countries that have established diplomatic relations with China and who have entered Hong Kong or Macao and registered with a legitimate travel agency in Hong Kong or Macao can enter the Pearl River Delta region of Guangdong province (referring to the administrative regions under the jurisdiction of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen, Zhaoqing, and Huizhou) for tourism for up to 6 days without a visa. Learn more »

Visa-free entry for tourists visiting Hainan Province. Under the policy, individuals with ordinary passports from listed 59 countries can enjoy visa-free entry to Hainan and are entitled to stay in the province for up to 30 days for business, family visits, tourism, medical treatment, exhibitions or sports competitions.Learn more »

Tour groups from the following countries (2 people or more), approved by the tourism authorities of Guilin City, and organized by qualified travel agencies, can enter and exit the country through the Guilin airport port and stay in the administrative area of Guilin for up to 6 days without a visa: Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Singapore, Brunei, and the Philippines. Learn more »

7. Citizens of Singapore, Brunei, and Japan:

Citizens of Singapore, Brunei, and Japan holding ordinary passports can enter mainland China for tourism, business, family visits, or transit for up to 15 days without a visa when China opens its borders to foreigners. However, the following situations require a visa in advance: traveling to China for more than 15 days for tourism, business, or family visits with an ordinary passport; going to China for study, work, settlement, official visits, or journalism.

Keep Reading about 144-hour Visa free Transit Policy

Up to now, citizen of the certain countries who meet the criteria could enjoy the 144-hour visa free transit and travel in the cities of China, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Chongqing, Xian, Kunming, Hangzhou, etc..

144-hour visa free requirements:

1. Passport holders belong to the citizen of 53 countries and regions;
2. Hold valid travel documents and the confirmed flight with date & seat for the third country within 144 hours;
3. Enter and exit China through specific airports, train stations, cruise ports and land ports.

Qualified Entry/Exit Ports

144-hour visa-free entry is available at the following ports and within the following activity areas. Travelers are not allowed to leave the activity areas in parentheses:

Yangtze River Delta: Shanghai Pudong, Shanghai Hongqiao, Shanghai Railway Station, Shanghai Port International Passenger Transport Center, Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal, Nanjing Lukou, Hangzhou Xiaoshan, Ningbo Lishe (added later) (Shanghai Municipality, Jiangsu Province, Zhejiang Province)

Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei: Beijing Capital, Beijing West Railway Station, Tianjin Binhai, Tianjin Cruise Home Port, Shijiazhuang Zhengding, Qinhuangdao Port (Beijing Municipality, Tianjin Municipality, Hebei Province)

Shenyang Taoxian, Dalian Zhoushuizi (Liaoning Province)

Xiamen Gaoqi, Xiamen Wutong Port, Xiamen International Cruise Terminal (Xiamen City)

Qingdao Jiaodong, Qingdao Port (Shandong Province)

Wuhan Tianhe (Wuhan City)

Chengdu Shuangliu (Initially limited to Chengdu City, the scope later expanded to include 111 cities including Leshan, Deyang, Suining, Meishan, Ya'an, Ziyang, Neijiang, Zigong, Luzhou, and Yibin)

Kunming Changshui (Kunming City)

Xi'an Xianyang (Xi'an City, Xianyang City)

Chongqing Jiangbei (Chongqing City)

The 144-hour transit visa exemption policy in Guangdong Province is the same as the national version, but the allowed entry and exit ports are different. There are only three airports that are allowed for entry: Guangzhou Baiyun, Shenzhen Bao'an, and Jieyang Chaoshan. However, there are 32 ports allowed for exit, including airports, train stations, land crossings, and ports.

Qualified Countries:

European Citizens (of 39 countries): Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Russia, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Albania and Belarus.

Americans (of 6 countries): United States, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, and the Republic of Chile.

Oceanians (of 2 countries): Australia and New Zealand.

Asians (of 6 countries): South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Brunei, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar.

We are a local and leading travel agency in China not only offering Yangtze River Cruise, but also offering tour packages in all over China. If you have any questions or needs, please feel free to contact us and our professional travel consultants are here ready to help!

Questions & Discussions

Following are latest questions and answers from our webusers and customers. You can learn many useful information from the discussion and cases. You can also join in the discussions or ask your own question. Our experts will help you ASAP.

Jeffrey C Feldman

Answer to Visa Application request for \"Detailed Address\"

Question 2.6 of the Visa Application Form of the People's Republic of China requests a Detailed Address. If I were to book a Yangtze River Cruise for four days, what would be the correct entry on the application? The name of the ship? The address of the ship company? The stopover ports and dates? Please advise.

2017-06-28 23:29

Hello Jeffrey,

Thank you for the good question. If you book a China tour with the Yangtze River cruise, you could write down the date and duration of each destination like city name for the “Date” part, and the destination names for the “Detailed address” part. However, if you book only the Yangtze River cruise in China without travelling to other places, you could write down your starting and ending dates of the travel for the “Date”. And for the “Detail address”, you could write down like this: arrive in Chongqing, board on the “which ship”, leave Yichang, please see the details on the attached itinerary of the 4 days & 3 nights Chongqing to Yichang Yangtze River cruise.
The above advice for filling the Visa Application Form of the People’s Republic of China is for your reference only. You could look for more information on the internet or enquire it from your friends who have applied a Chinese Visa.

Wish you a wonderful trip along the Yangtze River!

Carrie at yangtze-river-cruises.com 2017-06-29 11:09