Whether you need a visa depends on your passport
China grants visa free entry to a specific list of countries, on terms that vary between them. Most of the world's nationalities are not covered and apply for a visa before travelling. If you are living in or visiting Thailand and you hold one of those passports, you need a Chinese visa, and we prepare and file it from Bangkok.
Some travellers are covered. Thailand and China have a mutual exemption, so Thai passport holders can enter for tourism for up to 30 days per entry, capped at 90 days within any 180 day period. Both limits are firm, and the second one catches people out, because the days accumulate across a rolling window rather than resetting with each trip.
Send us your passport details and your plans and we will confirm exactly where you stand, then handle whatever comes next.
Who needs a visa
- Anyone whose nationality is not covered by a Chinese visa exemption. This is the largest group we serve. The exemption follows your passport, not your residence in Thailand, so many long term residents of Bangkok need a visa regardless of how long they have been here.
- Anyone making a single trip longer than their exemption allows. For a Thai passport that is anything past 30 days in one visit.
- Anyone close to their 90 day allowance. Frequent travellers, and people with business or family in China, reach the 180 day cap regularly.
- Anyone travelling for study, work, journalism, longer term business or a documented family visit. Each has its own visa category.
Choosing the right category
Chinese visa applications from Bangkok go through the Chinese Visa Application Service Centre rather than the embassy counter, and the requirements vary substantially by category. A tourist visa (L) has a different checklist from a family visit visa (Q) or a business visa (M).
Typically you will need your passport, a photograph to Chinese specification, the completed online application form, confirmed flights and accommodation, an itinerary, proof of employment and financial evidence. Family visit and business categories add invitation documents from the party in China, and those invitations have their own required contents.
We establish which category fits your purpose, go through your documents thoroughly against that category's checklist, tell you what else to obtain, and file the application. Getting the category right at the outset is the single thing that keeps a Chinese application moving predictably.
If you want to stay longer
Plenty of people need more time in China than an exemption allows, and there is a route for each of the usual reasons. A trip beyond 30 days, an allowance that is nearly used up, a business relationship that needs regular travel, a family connection you want formally documented. Tell us what you are actually trying to do in China and for how long, and we will identify the category that fits and prepare the application.
What a visa free entry does not cover
If your passport is one of the exempt ones, it is worth knowing the limits before you plan around them.
- Work or paid activity. Visa free entry is for short visits. Working in China has its own visa category.
- Extension after arrival. Plan the length of your stay before you fly rather than expecting to add time later.
- Guaranteed entry. The border officer decides. Carry your return ticket, accommodation booking and an itinerary.
- Unlimited trips. The 90 day per 180 count applies across all your entries, and it is the most common thing exempt travellers lose track of.
FAQ
1. Does my passport need a Chinese visa?
Most nationalities do. Send us your passport details and we will confirm, then prepare the right category if you need one.
2. I am a foreigner living in Thailand. Am I covered by the exemption?
Only if your own nationality has an arrangement with China. Living in Thailand does not extend the Thailand China exemption to you. Applying from Bangkok, where your employer, bank and documents are, is the natural place to do it, and this is one of the most common cases we handle.
3. How does the 90 day rule work exactly?
It is a rolling window. On any given day, count back 180 days and add up the days you were in China. That total must stay within 90. It is not a calendar year or a calendar half year, which is why people miscount it. We can work your count out with you.
4. I want to go for 45 days. Can you get me that?
Yes. A trip beyond a 30 day exemption needs a visa, and we prepare and file it. Send us your dates and purpose and we will confirm the category.
5. I have nearly used my 90 days. What now?
This is a good moment to move onto a visa. Tell us your travel history and what you need next, and we will prepare the right application.
6. Can I extend a visa free stay once I am in China?
Plan on arranging the visa before you travel instead. It gives you a clear permitted stay from the day you land.
7. I want to visit my Chinese spouse's family. Which route?
For longer visits, or where you want the family relationship formally recorded, the family visit category is the one, and it needs invitation documents from your relatives in China. We tell them exactly what to prepare.
8. Can I work or run a business from China during a visa free stay?
Visa free entry is granted for short visits. If China is going to be a working base for you, there is a visa category for that and we will look at which one fits.
9. How long does a Chinese visa take to process?
Standard processing at the visa centre in Bangkok is usually a matter of working days once a complete application is lodged, with express options in some categories.
10. What exactly am I paying you for?
The right visa category identified, a thorough review of your documents against its checklist, a clear list of anything else worth obtaining, your contacts in China briefed where relevant, and the full application prepared, lodged and tracked. The decision belongs to the Chinese authorities. Everything within your control, we handle.
Whether your passport needs a Chinese visa outright, or you simply want more time than an exemption allows, send us your passport details and your plans. We will confirm where you stand and file the application that fits.
