China is looking to international tourism to boost its flagging economy by trialling no visa travel for citizens from six countries.
From 1 December 2023 to 30 November 2024, citizens from Malaysia, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain will be able to visit China on business or leisure for up to 15 days without requiring a visa.
These visitors will be allowed to sightsee, conduct business, visit family or transit.
This is to help “promote China’s high-quality development and opening up”, spokeswoman Mao Ning told the BBC.
Currently, only citizens of Singapore and Brunei, who are entering China for business, tourism, family visits and transit for no more than 15 days, are allowed to travel without a visa.
China’s tourism sector was hit hard by three years of zero-Covid, with Beijing only reopening its borders and ditching quarantine in January.
There are different visa criteria for cruise passengers and those visiting Hainan Island. Tour groups who enter China via the Shanghai Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal may stay onshore for up to 15 days without visas.
Hainan allows nationals from 59 countries to enter visa free and without charge. Visitors to the tourist hotspot need to purchase a round-trip flight to the province’s two main gateways of Sanya or Haikou and fill out an arrival form on the plane.
