Alongside new transit rules, the NIA revealed on 5 November that visitors will be able to complete China’s arrival card online from 20 November 2025. Travellers can pre-register via the NIA 12367 app, the agency’s web portal, or embedded mini-programs on WeChat and Alipay, and then generate a QR code for scanning at e-gates. Paper forms will remain available during the transition.
Seven categories of travellers—among them foreign permanent-resident card holders, cruise-ship passengers and those transiting within 24 hours—are exempt from the digital card altogether. The reform should cut queuing times at major airports by an estimated 30 percent, according to pilot data from Shanghai Pudong.
![Digital arrival card rolls out to foreign travellers, ending paper forms]()
For businesses moving staff in and out of China frequently, the change means less paperwork and fewer data-entry errors at the border. Global mobility teams are advised to add the NIA mini-program QR code to pre-departure checklists and to remind assignees that the digital form must be submitted no earlier than 72 hours before arrival.
Data-privacy advocates note that the move aligns China’s border process with global norms: the United States, Australia and Singapore already use electronic declarations. The NIA states that information collected will be encrypted and retained only as long as needed for immigration control.
Seven categories of travellers—among them foreign permanent-resident card holders, cruise-ship passengers and those transiting within 24 hours—are exempt from the digital card altogether. The reform should cut queuing times at major airports by an estimated 30 percent, according to pilot data from Shanghai Pudong.
For businesses moving staff in and out of China frequently, the change means less paperwork and fewer data-entry errors at the border. Global mobility teams are advised to add the NIA mini-program QR code to pre-departure checklists and to remind assignees that the digital form must be submitted no earlier than 72 hours before arrival.
Data-privacy advocates note that the move aligns China’s border process with global norms: the United States, Australia and Singapore already use electronic declarations. The NIA states that information collected will be encrypted and retained only as long as needed for immigration control.
