Arriving in China: Arrival Card, Immigration, Baggage and Customs
The official arrival card is free to complete. After landing, pass through immigration, collect your baggage and clear customs; use the red channel and make a truthful declaration if you are carrying declarable items.
The order of procedures after landing
After an international flight lands in China, passengers normally proceed through health quarantine or port checks, immigration inspection, baggage reclaim and customs. The arrival card provides information before immigration inspection, while the customs declaration concerns items in your baggage. They are different forms and neither replaces the other. Whether a connecting passenger must complete the entire process depends on whether they enter China, whether their baggage is checked through and how the next flight is arranged.
Follow the airport signs to immigration inspection for foreign nationals or another designated channel.
Have your passport, visa or basis for visa-free entry, onward itinerary and accommodation details ready.
After immigration, use the baggage screen to find and collect checked baggage.
Use the green channel if you have nothing to declare. Use the red channel and submit a declaration if you are carrying declarable items.
Keep your passport, boarding pass and baggage receipt until you have cleared customs and reached your onward transport.
Who must complete an arrival card and where to do it
The National Immigration Administration introduced online arrival cards for foreign nationals on 20/11/2025. Foreign nationals who must complete a card can do so before travelling through the National Immigration Administration website, its government-service platform, the Immigration Administration 12367 app, or the official WeChat and Alipay mini programs. Passengers unable to complete it online can still use a device at the port of entry or fill in a paper arrival card after landing.
Online completion is free. Search results may include websites that imitate the official arrival card, charge a fee or collect passport information. A page that looks like a government website is not proof that it is genuine. Use the National Immigration Administration's published address directly: `https://s.nia.gov.cn/ArrivalCardFillingPC/`. Do not enter through an advertisement.
Information to prepare before departure
Your name, date of birth, nationality and document number as shown on the passport information page.
The arriving flight or other inbound transport details.
Your first accommodation address in China, preferably saved with its Chinese and English names, city and phone number.
Onward tickets and invitation details required for your visa, visa-free entry or transit arrangement.
A list of anything in your baggage that may be restricted, prohibited or subject to declaration.
The record or screenshot produced after online completion, with a copy available offline.
What immigration officers check
Immigration inspection determines whether you may enter under your documents and the policy currently in force. Your answers should be consistent with the purpose of the visa or visa-free entry, length of stay, accommodation and departure plan. If you use the 240-hour visa-free transit policy, be ready to show a confirmed itinerary to a third country or region. People entering for long-term work, study or family residence should also carry the supporting documents they may need for the later residence procedure.
Being asked to wait to one side does not mean entry has already been refused. Officers may need to verify the itinerary, visa, accommodation or fingerprints. Keep your documents and phone accessible and provide the material that answers each question. If you do not understand, ask clearly for language assistance instead of guessing dates or addresses.
Choosing between the red and green customs channels
According to the General Administration of Customs service guide, a passenger carrying no items that must be declared does not need to complete a baggage declaration and may use the green Nothing to Declare channel. A passenger carrying declarable items must use the red channel and submit a truthful declaration. Personal baggage must be for personal use and in a reasonable quantity, and remains subject to customs supervision. Check the General Administration of Customs' current notices to determine which items require declaration; do not decide solely because something is for personal use, is a gift or was bought duty-free.
Before departure, use the current General Administration of Customs list to check cash, medicines, food, animal and plant products, valuables and commercial samples.
If you are unsure whether an item must be declared, use the red channel and explain it to an officer. This is safer than concealing it.
Keep prescriptions, purchase receipts, an itemised list and other records that explain the purpose and quantity.
During an inspection, do not remove a customs seal or take away an item awaiting a decision without permission.
If unaccompanied baggage will be processed later, tell customs when you enter and keep the declaration receipt.
Connections, baggage and incorrect information
An international-to-domestic connection, separate tickets, an airport change or baggage that is not checked through often requires formal entry, baggage collection and a new check-in. A purely international connection with through-checked baggage may follow a different process. At your departure airport, confirm the baggage's final destination at check-in. After landing, follow the transfer counter and baggage screens rather than relying only on the word “connection” in a booking platform.
If information on an online arrival card is wrong, verify it again through the official channel or explain the error to staff at the port. Do not submit your passport details again to a paid intermediary. Allow extra time if your passport is lost, the visa appears irregular, the itinerary has changed or you cannot show accommodation. Call 12360 for customs questions and 12367 for entry-policy questions.
Official channels and verification date
The arrival-card information is based on the National Immigration Administration notice dated 2/12/2025. The customs-channel information is based on the General Administration of Customs service guide on supervision of inbound and outbound baggage. This article was checked through 4/8/2026. Use only the National Immigration Administration's free arrival-card channel. Before departure, check the current General Administration of Customs notices for declarable items and quantity limits, or call 12360.