Hainan: 240-hour visa-free transit
Hainan is one of the 24 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities in China's 240-hour (10-day) visa-free transit scheme. Citizens of 57 countries can enter through any of its 2 eligible ports with an ordinary passport and a confirmed onward ticket to a third country or region.
Where you can stay
Permitted stay area (NIA): Hainan Province.
The official table covers the whole of Hainan Province, so after entering you may move freely within it.
You may also continue into the permitted areas of the other 23 provinces in the scheme, as long as your total stay in China stays within 240 hours.
Eligible ports in Hainan
Airport (2)
Hainan 30-day visa-free entry (61 countries)
Hainan also has its own regional scheme. Enter via any open port in Hainan and stay up to 30 days within the province, with no onward ticket needed. The provincial government lists these ports: Haikou Meilan, Sanya Phoenix and Qionghai Boao airports, and Yangpu, Haikou, Qinglan, Basuo and Sanya seaports.
Sources: NIA – Regional visa-free entry policies (Hainan 30-day, 61 countries) (checked 2026-10-17) · Hainan Provincial Government – Hainan 30-day visa-free policy & ports (updated 2026-08-20) (checked 2026-10-17)Before you rely on transit
- Stay is counted from 00:00 on the day after you arrive.
- Your onward ticket must be to a third country or region. A round trip back to where you came from does not count.
- If your nationality has the 30-day unilateral visa exemption, that is usually simpler: no onward-ticket rule and no stay-area limit. For most countries it is valid until 2026-12-31.
- Work, study and news reporting need the right visa.
Check your passport and port in the eligibility checker →
Sources: NIA – Eligible Ports and Permitted Stay Areas table (image) (checked 2026-10-17) · NIA – Visa-Free Transit Policies (updated 2026-08-20) (checked 2026-10-17) · Chinese Embassy in Switzerland – FAQs on Visa-free Entry (2026-08-19) (checked 2026-10-17)