Speaking to reporters late on March 5, National Committee member and Spring Airlines chairman Wang Yu used hard numbers to press for deeper visa reform. China welcomed more than 40 million foreign visitors in 2025, he said, and a record 30.08 million—74 percent—entered visa-free. Yet many European and North American travellers still pick Japan or Thailand first, partly because China’s 144/240-hour transit waiver requires an onward air ticket and is limited to 65 designated ports. Wang proposes three fixes: 1) allow railway, highway and ferry crossings to count as “onward travel,” 2) add popular border points such as Guangxi’s Dongxing and Inner Mongolia’s Erenhot, and 3) halve the paperwork by letting visitors register itineraries online rather than at check-in. He also wants a coordinated global media push and what he calls an “Inbound Content-Creator Fund” that would pay young influencers to document friction-free China trips.
![CPPCC delegate urges simpler 240-hour transit visa and stronger global marketing]()
International travelers and corporate mobility teams trying to navigate these shifting entry rules can simplify planning through VisaHQ’s dedicated China hub (https://www.visahq.com/china/). The platform tracks the latest visa-waiver expansions, provides step-by-step assistance for full visa applications when required, and pre-populates digital arrival forms—saving clients precious time at check-in while ensuring compliance with evolving regulations.
Why it matters: The airline industry sees transit-visa traffic as a low-hanging fruit that can fill off-peak seats and feed domestic routes. Consulting firm OAG estimates that every one-percent shift of long-haul layovers from other Asian hubs to Chinese hubs adds US $240 million in annual airport revenue. If rail and road gateways are opened, Yunnan and Guangxi could siphon backpacker flows currently landing in Bangkok, while Heilongjiang could capture Russian Far-East traffic. For employers, easier multi-modal transit visas would let project teams route via Kunming or Chongqing to Southeast Asia without entry costs, potentially shaving 10–15 percent off travel budgets. Corporate mobility managers should track Ministry of Public Security notices; pilot expansions often start as three-month trials before becoming nationwide policy. Wang’s proposal also highlights an emerging challenge: awareness. An internal survey cited by Spring Airlines found that 80 percent of European agents “still believe China requires a traditional visa for every traveller.” Companies with China market interests may wish to brief their global travel agencies so that staff stop “defaulting” to Tokyo or Seoul when building Asia itineraries.
International travelers and corporate mobility teams trying to navigate these shifting entry rules can simplify planning through VisaHQ’s dedicated China hub (https://www.visahq.com/china/). The platform tracks the latest visa-waiver expansions, provides step-by-step assistance for full visa applications when required, and pre-populates digital arrival forms—saving clients precious time at check-in while ensuring compliance with evolving regulations.
Why it matters: The airline industry sees transit-visa traffic as a low-hanging fruit that can fill off-peak seats and feed domestic routes. Consulting firm OAG estimates that every one-percent shift of long-haul layovers from other Asian hubs to Chinese hubs adds US $240 million in annual airport revenue. If rail and road gateways are opened, Yunnan and Guangxi could siphon backpacker flows currently landing in Bangkok, while Heilongjiang could capture Russian Far-East traffic. For employers, easier multi-modal transit visas would let project teams route via Kunming or Chongqing to Southeast Asia without entry costs, potentially shaving 10–15 percent off travel budgets. Corporate mobility managers should track Ministry of Public Security notices; pilot expansions often start as three-month trials before becoming nationwide policy. Wang’s proposal also highlights an emerging challenge: awareness. An internal survey cited by Spring Airlines found that 80 percent of European agents “still believe China requires a traditional visa for every traveller.” Companies with China market interests may wish to brief their global travel agencies so that staff stop “defaulting” to Tokyo or Seoul when building Asia itineraries.
