China’s National Immigration Administration (NIA) on July 5 revealed that in the first half of 2024, China saw a total of 14.64 million foreign entries, 152.7 percent more than in the first half of 2023.
The soaring growth is largely due to China’s visa-free policies which allow visitors from certain countries in transit to stay in four appointed Chinese cities without a visa for 72 hours, including Changsha in Hunan Province, Harbin in Heilongjiang Province and Guilin and Beihai in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, or for 144 hours in 28 other Chinese cities and several provinces, including Beijing, Shanghai and Zhejiang Province.
With the resumption of visa-free entry in late 2023, which had been suspended due to the pandemic, visitors from 54 countries can take advantage of short visa-free stays in China if they are in transit. The NIA data shows that among foreign entries in the first half of 2024, more than 8.5 million came to China visa-free, accounting for 58 percent of the total, a 190.1 percent growth year-on-year.
The visa-free policies are giving a much-needed boost to the Chinese tourism industry. According to leading Chinese booking app Ctrip, reservations connected to inbound tourism grew by 28 percent in Q2 2024 when the government expanded and extended the scope of visa-free travel, which also allows citizens of certain countries to travel in China for 15 or 30 days without a visa.
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