Starting July 1, 2024, tourists from three new countries will be eligible for visa-free stays in China for up to 15 days.
China is set to expand its recent key measure aimed at simplifying travel by adding three countries to its unilateral visa exemption policy.
“To further promote the exchange of people between China and foreign countries, China has decided to expand the scope of visa-free countries and implement a pilot visa exemption policy for ordinary passport holders from three new countries”, announced the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China today.
The three new countries qualifying for Chinese visa exemption are Australia, New Zealand, and Poland.
In their statement, Chinese consular authorities explained that from July 1, 2024, to December 31, 2025, ordinary passport holders from these countries who visit China for tourism, business, visiting relatives and friends, or for transit purposes for a duration of up to 15 days can enter China without a visa.
However, the Consular Department specified that Australian, New Zealand, and Polish citizens who do not meet the conditions of this measure must apply for a visa before entering China.
Which are the 15 countries exempt from entry visas to China?
On December 1, 2023, China introduced a unilateral 15-day visa exemption regime for visitors from six countries.
Over the months, China has expanded this list to reach 15 countries by July 1, 2024.
Here are the countries whose nationals are currently exempt from visa requirements to travel to China until December 31, 2025:
- France, Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Germany, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Poland, Malaysia, Australia, and New Zealand.
China, which has just closed some of its visa application centers across Europe, also grants visa-free entry to cruise tourists for a maximum duration of 15 days.
Currently applicable to citizens of 54 countries, the visa-free transit policy in China for stays of 72/144 hours will also be extended to more nationalities soon, according to Chinese authorities.
