Speaking at the sixth Russia-China Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Forum in Xi’an on 24 November, Russian Federation Council Deputy Chairman Nikolay Zhuravlyov forecast that bilateral tourist flows will climb 30 % next year to 3.5 million trips, thanks largely to China’s unilateral visa-free entry for Russian nationals and Moscow’s plan to introduce reciprocal visa-free access for Chinese citizens.
Beijing began a year-long visa-waiver pilot for ordinary Russian passport holders on 15 September, granting stays of up to 30 days for tourism or business. Russian officials say inbound Chinese numbers have already rebounded to pre-pandemic levels, with Harbin, Shanghai and Beijing seeing the fastest growth. On the outbound side, Russia expects to finalise its own visa-free scheme by the second quarter of 2026, but Zhuravlyov hinted that an interim facilitation—such as e-visas or group waivers—could be launched sooner.
![Visa-free regime expected to push Russia-China tourist traffic to 3.5 million trips]()
Tour operators attending the Xi’an forum reported a surge in charter-flight applications for the 2026 Harbin Ice Festival and new rail-tour packages along the China–Mongolia–Russia economic corridor. Airlines including China Southern and Aeroflot are evaluating additional frequencies on the Beijing–Moscow and Shanghai–St Petersburg routes for the 2026 summer schedule.
For corporate mobility managers the figures matter: more leisure traffic supports route profitability and seat supply on key business sectors, potentially lowering fares for assignees. The visa-free framework also simplifies short-term technical-support visits, although longer-term work assignments will still require standard Z-class visas or Russian work permits.
Companies should nonetheless keep compliance protocols up to date; neither country has waived customs declarations or currency-control rules, and Russian border posts still require migration cards to be completed on arrival. Should both sides move to full mutual visa waiver, expect further liberalisation of group tour and payment-settlement regulations.
Beijing began a year-long visa-waiver pilot for ordinary Russian passport holders on 15 September, granting stays of up to 30 days for tourism or business. Russian officials say inbound Chinese numbers have already rebounded to pre-pandemic levels, with Harbin, Shanghai and Beijing seeing the fastest growth. On the outbound side, Russia expects to finalise its own visa-free scheme by the second quarter of 2026, but Zhuravlyov hinted that an interim facilitation—such as e-visas or group waivers—could be launched sooner.
Tour operators attending the Xi’an forum reported a surge in charter-flight applications for the 2026 Harbin Ice Festival and new rail-tour packages along the China–Mongolia–Russia economic corridor. Airlines including China Southern and Aeroflot are evaluating additional frequencies on the Beijing–Moscow and Shanghai–St Petersburg routes for the 2026 summer schedule.
For corporate mobility managers the figures matter: more leisure traffic supports route profitability and seat supply on key business sectors, potentially lowering fares for assignees. The visa-free framework also simplifies short-term technical-support visits, although longer-term work assignments will still require standard Z-class visas or Russian work permits.
Companies should nonetheless keep compliance protocols up to date; neither country has waived customs declarations or currency-control rules, and Russian border posts still require migration cards to be completed on arrival. Should both sides move to full mutual visa waiver, expect further liberalisation of group tour and payment-settlement regulations.
