China’s aggressive visa-liberalisation drive is already paying dividends. Data released by online agency Qunar and reported by VisaHQ on 14 January 2026 show that foreign bookings for Mainland cities surged 38 percent year-on-year during the first seven days of 2026. Shanghai, Guangzhou and Beijing were the top three entry points, with travellers from Germany, Argentina and several ASEAN countries leading the uptick.
The rebound comes after Beijing unilaterally waived short-stay visas for passport-holders from 45 nations in late 2025, and added Germany, Brazil and a clutch of Southeast Asian states to the list in December. At the same time, the National Immigration Administration has rolled out 240-hour (10-day) visa-free transit and a 15-day cruise waiver for Hainan, lifting long-standing bottlenecks for MICE and leisure groups. Airports in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen marked the New Year by staging red-carpet “welcome ceremonies” for arriving foreigners—a PR effort designed to signal that China is back on the global circuit.
For corporate mobility managers the numbers matter. A larger visa-waiver pool means faster deployment of technicians and project teams that previously required invitation letters and biometric appointments. It also reduces the administrative burden of short-cycle trips to manufacturing hubs such as Suzhou or Dongguan—locations that fall within the 24-province footprint of the transit scheme.
![Inbound Bookings to China Jump 38 % in First Week of 2026 as Visa-Free List Expands]()
Companies that need help navigating these rapidly changing entry rules can tap VisaHQ’s dedicated China services. The platform (https://www.visahq.com/china/) offers real-time eligibility checks, document reviews and streamlined processing for cases where a visa is still required, giving HR and travel teams a single, reliable source of compliance support.
Yet the boom also poses operational challenges. Hotel occupancy in Tier-1 cities has tightened to pre-pandemic levels, driving room rates up by as much as 18 percent, according to STR Global. HR teams should therefore lock in accommodation earlier and review per-diem budgets. Airlines, meanwhile, are already scrambling for capacity: China Southern has announced an extra daily rotation on the Frankfurt–Guangzhou route starting in March.
Tourism officials say the next step is to negotiate reciprocal waivers with Europe and Latin America, but caution that talks will hinge on aviation-rights and data-sharing agreements. In the interim, multinational firms should keep a close eye on local implementations—city immigration offices retain discretion to demand proof-of-funds or onward tickets even for visa-exempt travellers.
The rebound comes after Beijing unilaterally waived short-stay visas for passport-holders from 45 nations in late 2025, and added Germany, Brazil and a clutch of Southeast Asian states to the list in December. At the same time, the National Immigration Administration has rolled out 240-hour (10-day) visa-free transit and a 15-day cruise waiver for Hainan, lifting long-standing bottlenecks for MICE and leisure groups. Airports in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen marked the New Year by staging red-carpet “welcome ceremonies” for arriving foreigners—a PR effort designed to signal that China is back on the global circuit.
For corporate mobility managers the numbers matter. A larger visa-waiver pool means faster deployment of technicians and project teams that previously required invitation letters and biometric appointments. It also reduces the administrative burden of short-cycle trips to manufacturing hubs such as Suzhou or Dongguan—locations that fall within the 24-province footprint of the transit scheme.
Companies that need help navigating these rapidly changing entry rules can tap VisaHQ’s dedicated China services. The platform (https://www.visahq.com/china/) offers real-time eligibility checks, document reviews and streamlined processing for cases where a visa is still required, giving HR and travel teams a single, reliable source of compliance support.
Yet the boom also poses operational challenges. Hotel occupancy in Tier-1 cities has tightened to pre-pandemic levels, driving room rates up by as much as 18 percent, according to STR Global. HR teams should therefore lock in accommodation earlier and review per-diem budgets. Airlines, meanwhile, are already scrambling for capacity: China Southern has announced an extra daily rotation on the Frankfurt–Guangzhou route starting in March.
Tourism officials say the next step is to negotiate reciprocal waivers with Europe and Latin America, but caution that talks will hinge on aviation-rights and data-sharing agreements. In the interim, multinational firms should keep a close eye on local implementations—city immigration offices retain discretion to demand proof-of-funds or onward tickets even for visa-exempt travellers.
