China Arrival Card

The China Arrival Card is the entry declaration required from foreign nationals arriving in mainland China by air, land or sea. It records your passport details, visa or visa-free basis, flight or train number, port of first entry, purpose of visit and the address of your first night's accommodation. Since 20 November 2025 it can be filed online through the National Immigration Administration portal before you travel, instead of on paper at the border.

The card is mandatory; filing it online is not. Every foreign visitor outside the seven exempt categories must complete an Arrival Card to enter mainland China. But the NIA is explicit that you may complete it on arrival instead — by scanning the QR code at the immigration hall, using the smart devices at the port, or filling in a paper Arrival Card. All three remain available and all three are free. Filing online in advance is a convenience, not a legal obligation.

Yes — the government form is completely free. The NIA states plainly that the online arrival card filling "is free of charge," and in December 2025 it issued a public warning that fraudulent websites were posing as China's official platform to charge travellers fees. You can always file it yourself at no cost on the official NIA portal at s.nia.gov.cn, and you can always complete it free at the airport. Our charge is a service fee — for checking your passport data against the exact required format, confirming your flight and first-night address, submitting the form in English and sending your confirmation before you fly. It is not a government charge, and we do not claim to be an official channel. If you would rather do it yourself, that is a completely reasonable choice. Check the exact fee when you start your application.

The online system operates on a 72-hour window before arrival — submissions much earlier than that are not accepted, so you cannot file weeks in advance. Note that no NIA or consular notice states this figure verbatim; it reflects how the portal behaves in practice. What the official notices do say is that you may fill the card in "before coming to China" or on arrival at the port — there is no published deadline that bars you from entering if you file late.

Seven categories are officially exempt: holders of the PRC Foreign Permanent Resident ID Card; holders of the Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents (non-Chinese citizens); holders of a group visa or those eligible for group visa-free entry; travellers in direct transit within 24 hours without leaving the port-restricted area; cruise passengers entering and exiting on the same vessel; travellers entering through fast lanes or e-channels; and foreign crew of cross-border transport vehicles. Everyone else needs the card.

Submit a new Arrival Card. The card is tied to a specific flight, port of entry and first-night accommodation address, and border officers scan your most recent submission — the newer card supersedes the earlier one. There is no penalty for refiling. If DoVisa filed your original card and your details change before departure, tell us and we will resubmit at no extra cost.

Yes. The Arrival Card is issued per traveller, per entry, so every child and infant needs their own — there is no family or group submission. A parent or guardian completes it on the child's behalf using the child's own passport details. If you are travelling as a family, allow a few extra minutes and have every passport to hand, along with the shared first-night address.

No. The Arrival Card is a declaration, not a permission to enter — it records who you are and where you are going, and it confers no right of entry on its own. You still need either a valid Chinese visa or a qualifying visa-free basis, such as the 30-day visa-free scheme covering 50 countries through 31 December 2026, or the 240-hour transit policy. Check what your passport requires before you book.