Beijing 72 Hours Free Visa Transit

Are you planning your Beijing Layover Tour? You may think whether you need a transit visa in Beijing? This is the question frequently asked by many travelers who are going to transit in Beijing and continue to fly a third country.

 

Yes, basically you need a Chinese visa to visit Beijing if you want to exit from Beijing Capital Airport for a few hour’s layover tour or 2 or 3 days short stay in Beijing. But currently, 51  countries are entitled to 72 hours free visa transit stay in Beijing. So Visa-free travel to Beijing is possible now!

 

Which are the 51 countries and what the preconditions for getting the free visa transit stay permit in Beijing? I will answer your questions one by one.

 

1. Prerequisites for getting the 72 hours transit free China Visa

1) The Eligible 51 nationalities include:24 Schengen Countries in Europe:

1) 24 Schengen countries in Europe:

Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovak, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

 

2) 13 other European countries:

Russia, Great Britain, Ireland, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Republic of Montenegro, Macedonia and Albania.

 

3) 6 American countries:

The United States, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Chile.

 

4) 2 Oceanian countries:

Australia and New Zealand.

 

5) 6 Asian countries:

Republic of Korea, Japan, Singapore, Brunei, United Arab Emirates, and Qatar.

 

2) Travelers must have valid passports.

 

3) Travelers must have confirmed tickets to a third country or regions (Hong Kong and Macau).

 

4)  Foreign airlines must contact Beijing Entry Frontier General Office to apply for 72 hours free transit visa for their passengers.

 

Remark

1) The 72 hours transit free visa policy is not applicable to Beijing Railway Stations and Tianjin Cruise Port

2) Passengers who transit in Beijing and fly to Hong Kong or Macau are also entitled to 72 hours transit free visa.

3) Travelers must register with police within 24 hours of arrival ( Your hotel will do this for you.).

4) Travellers would “face punishment” if they left the administrative region of Beijing to other places in China during the 72 hours free-visa stay in Beijing.

 

2. Where to apply for the 72-hour free-visa?

When you exit your plane at Beijing airport, just follow the throng or the signs directing you to international arrivals, immigration and customs.

 

Passport Control/Immigration

In the Passport Control/Immigration Area, there are mainly two connected zones ( lanes ）: Lanes for Foreign Citizens on the left side and Chinese Citizens on the right side.

 

Where to find your special lanes for 72-hour visa-free transit passengers?

Some 72-hour transit passengers miss their layover tour in Beijing simply because they cannot locate the special lanes to get the visa-free permit. Yes, it is a bit tricky to find the special counters (or lanes) to register and get your visa-free permit to enter Beijing. There are no clear signboards directing you to the special counters.

[Source: http://www.tour-beijing.com/blog/beijing-travel/travel-review/beijing-transit-visa]