You need to apply for a visa unless you meet the following visa exemption requirements:

1. Chinese nationals: For minors under 18 years of age traveling to China for the first time, if one parent is a Chinese citizen (including those from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan) and at the time of the child's birth, the Chinese parent held a KITAS (limited stay permit in Indonesia), the applicant may apply for a Travel Document from the Chinese Consulate General in Medan.

2. Mutual visa exemption for 29 countries: Citizens of the following 29 countries holding ordinary passports—Albania, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Dominica, Ecuador, Fiji, Georgia, Grenada, Kazakhstan, Solomon Islands, Maldives, Mauritius, Qatar, San Marino, Serbia, Seychelles, Singapore, Suriname, Thailand, Tonga, United Arab Emirates, Samoa, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, and Malaysia—are exempt from visa requirements for entry, exit, or transit into the other contracting party, provided that their stay does not exceed 30 days on a single visit. If they intend to stay longer than the permitted period, or engage in activities such as work, study, settlement, or news reporting that require prior approval from the competent authorities of the other party, they must apply for the appropriate visa before entering the other country.

3. Unilateral 30-day visa exemption for 50 countries: Citizens of the following 50 countries—Brunei, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Australia, Poland, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus, Slovenia, Slovakia, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Andorra, Monaco, Liechtenstein, South Korea, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Malta, Estonia, Latvia, Japan, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Russia, Sweden, Canada, and the United Kingdom—holding ordinary passports are exempt from visas for entry into China for purposes such as business, tourism, family visits, exchange visits, or transit, with a stay of no more than 30 days. Those who do not meet the visa exemption requirements must apply for a visa before entry. At present, the visa exemption policy for Bruneian ordinary passport holders has no set expiration date; for Russian ordinary passport holders, it is valid until December 31, 2027; and for the other 48 countries, it is valid until December 31, 2026.

4. 24-hour transit visa exemption: Foreigners holding valid international travel documents and confirmed connecting tickets for international flights, ships, or trains transiting through China to a third country or region, with a stay in China not exceeding 24 hours and without leaving the port-restricted area, are exempt from visas. If they need to leave the port-restricted area, they must apply for a temporary entry permit from the border inspection authorities at the port of entry.

5. 30-day visa-free entry to Hainan for citizens of 59 countries: Citizens of 59 countries—including Indonesia, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Norway, Ukraine, Italy, Austria, Finland, the Netherlands, Denmark, Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, Belgium, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ireland, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, the United States, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Philippines, Brunei, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Monaco, and Belarus—holding ordinary passports are exempt from visas for short-term visits to Hainan for purposes such as tourism, business, visits, family reunions, medical treatment, exhibitions, or sports competitions (excluding work and study). The activities are limited to the administrative area of Hainan Province, entry and exit must be through any of Hainan's open ports, and the stay shall not exceed 30 days.

6. 15-day visa-free entry for foreign cruise ship tour groups: Foreign tour groups (of 2 or more persons) arriving by cruise ship and organized by a Chinese travel agency may enter China visa-free through the cruise ports of 13 cities: Tianjin, Dalian (Liaoning), Shanghai, Lianyungang (Jiangsu), Wenzhou and Zhoushan (Zhejiang), Xiamen (Fujian), Qingdao (Shandong), Guangzhou and Shenzhen (Guangdong), Beihai (Guangxi), and Haikou and Sanya (Hainan). The tour group must stay with the same cruise ship until its departure from China. The permitted area of activity covers 11 coastal provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government): Tianjin, Hebei, Liaoning, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Shandong, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hainan, as well as Beijing. The stay shall not exceed 15 days.

7. 240-hour transit visa exemption for 55 countries: Citizens of 55 countries—including Indonesia, Albania, the United States, Argentina, Australia, Austria, the Netherlands, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Chile, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Germany, Canada, South Korea, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, North Macedonia, Malta, Mexico, Monaco, Montenegro, Norway, Poland, Portugal, France, Qatar, Romania, Russia, New Zealand, Serbia, Singapore, Cyprus, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, and Greece—holding valid international travel documents and confirmed onward tickets with fixed dates and itineraries, may transit through China to a third country or region and enter visa-free through any of the 65 open ports in 24 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government), with a stay of no more than 10 days within the designated areas. During this period, they may engage in tourism, business, visits, family visits, and other activities, but activities such as work, study, and news reporting that require prior approval still require a visa. For inquiries, please contact the National Immigration Administration's 12367 service hotline, available 24/7 at: +86 12367.  For  more information about 240-hour transit  visa-free policy, please refer to this link.

8. 6-day visa-free entry to Hainan for foreign tour groups from Hong Kong and Macao: Citizens of countries that have diplomatic relations with China, holding ordinary passports, may, after arriving in Hong Kong or Macao, join tour groups (of 2 or more persons) registered in Hong Kong or Macao and enter Hainan visa-free on a group-in, group-out basis. The activities are limited to the administrative area of Hainan Province, entry and exit must be through any of Hainan's open ports, and the stay shall not exceed 6 days.

9. 6-day visa-free entry to Guangdong for foreign tour groups from Hong Kong and Macao: Citizens of countries that have diplomatic relations with China, holding ordinary passports, may, after arriving in Hong Kong or Macao, join tour groups (of 2 or more persons) registered in Hong Kong or Macao and enter visa-free into the nine cities of the Greater Bay Area in Guangdong and Shantou City on a group-in, group-out basis. The permitted area includes Guangzhou, Foshan, Zhaoqing, Shenzhen, Dongguan, Huizhou, Zhuhai, Zhongshan, Jiangmen, and Shantou. Entry and exit must be through the open ports of these 10 cities, and the stay shall not exceed 6 days.

10. 6-day visa-free entry to Guilin, Guangxi, for tour groups from ASEAN countries: Tour groups (of 2 or more persons) from ASEAN countries—Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia—holding ordinary passports and organized by a Chinese travel agency, may enter and exit visa-free through Guilin Airport on a group-in, group-out basis. The activities are limited to the administrative area of Guilin City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, and the stay shall not exceed 6 days.

11. 6-day visa-free entry to Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, for tour groups from ASEAN countries: Tour groups (of 2 or more persons) from ASEAN countries—Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia—holding ordinary passports and organized by a Chinese travel agency, may enter and exit visa-free through Xishuangbanna Gasa International Airport, Mohan Railway Port, or Mohan Highway Port on a group-in, group-out basis. The activities are limited to the administrative area of Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, and the stay shall not exceed 6 days.

12. Holders of valid Chinese visas, APEC Business Travel Cards, residence permits, or permanent residence permits:

(1) A valid Chinese visa means one that is still within its validity period and has remaining entry times. If the identity information on the old and new passports is consistent, the visa in the old passport remains valid and may be used for the same purpose of visit; the traveler may enter China with both the old and new passports without applying for a new visa. Only one valid Chinese visa or residence permit (except for C-visa) may be held in one passport. When a new visa is issued, any previously valid Chinese visa or residence permit will be canceled.

(2) Holders of a valid APEC Business Travel Card (including virtual cards) may enter China visa-free for business purposes, provided that the passport number on the APEC card matches the applicant's current passport number and the card bears the CHN country code or designation.

(3) Holders of a valid foreigner residence permit issued by Chinese public security authorities. Foreigners coming to China for study, employment, work, family reunification, long-term family visits, or resident journalists must apply for a foreigner residence permit from the public security authorities after entry. Within the validity period of the residence permit, the holder may reside in China and enter/exit multiple times without a visa.

(4) Holders of a valid People's Republic of China Foreign Permanent Resident ID Card may reside in China and enter/exit multiple times without a visa.