Beijing confirmed on 15 February that **holders of ordinary British passports will be able to enter China visa-free for stays of up to 30 days starting this Tuesday, 17 February 2026**. The announcement, carried by state media and international wires, follows Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s January visit, during which he sought to reset trade relations and secure easier market access for British firms.
The waiver aligns the UK with France, Germany, Italy, Spain and several ASEAN nations that already enjoy short-stay visa-free access. Chinese officials framed the move as part of a ‘post-pandemic reopening’ designed to boost business travel, tourism and academic exchange. The policy will run at least until 31 December 2026, with a review scheduled for Q4 next year.
![China Grants 30-Day Visa-Free Entry to UK Citizens From 17 February]()
To navigate the fine print—such as determining whether a planned itinerary might still trigger a work-authorisation requirement—travellers and corporate mobility teams can lean on VisaHQ, which maintains up-to-the-minute entry guidance and document solutions for UK citizens worldwide. Its portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-kingdom/) flags when a visa, ETA or health form is still needed and streamlines compliance for both employees and travel managers.
For UK businesses, the change eliminates a costly and time-consuming hurdle: applicants previously paid at least £130, submitted fingerprints at visa centres and waited up to two weeks for approval. Mobility and travel teams should update booking tools and traveller-briefing documents immediately, but also remind employees that the waiver covers only visits for tourism, meetings and training—not work requiring a Z-visa.
Airlines flying the busy London–Shanghai and Manchester–Beijing routes are preparing capacity boosts, and travel-insurance providers expect demand spikes. Meanwhile, UK Border Force will monitor reciprocity rules to ensure Chinese nationals continue to meet Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) requirements when visiting Britain.
The waiver aligns the UK with France, Germany, Italy, Spain and several ASEAN nations that already enjoy short-stay visa-free access. Chinese officials framed the move as part of a ‘post-pandemic reopening’ designed to boost business travel, tourism and academic exchange. The policy will run at least until 31 December 2026, with a review scheduled for Q4 next year.
To navigate the fine print—such as determining whether a planned itinerary might still trigger a work-authorisation requirement—travellers and corporate mobility teams can lean on VisaHQ, which maintains up-to-the-minute entry guidance and document solutions for UK citizens worldwide. Its portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-kingdom/) flags when a visa, ETA or health form is still needed and streamlines compliance for both employees and travel managers.
For UK businesses, the change eliminates a costly and time-consuming hurdle: applicants previously paid at least £130, submitted fingerprints at visa centres and waited up to two weeks for approval. Mobility and travel teams should update booking tools and traveller-briefing documents immediately, but also remind employees that the waiver covers only visits for tourism, meetings and training—not work requiring a Z-visa.
Airlines flying the busy London–Shanghai and Manchester–Beijing routes are preparing capacity boosts, and travel-insurance providers expect demand spikes. Meanwhile, UK Border Force will monitor reciprocity rules to ensure Chinese nationals continue to meet Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) requirements when visiting Britain.
