As of November 2026, most international visitors to mainland China must complete an official China Entry Card and submit 10-digit fingerprint scans at immigration before entry. No extra fees apply, and the full process takes 5 to 20 minutes per traveler under normal conditions. All rules outlined below are current as of November 2026. Travelers are advised to re-check official updates with their local Chinese embassy 2 weeks before departure.
Who Needs to Complete China Entry Card and Fingerprinting in 2026
This requirement applies to all foreign passport holders entering mainland China via airport, seaport, or land border crossing, regardless of visa type or transit status. The rule applies equally to visitors with 30-day visa-free entry, 240-hour transit, tourist visas, business visas, and resident permits.
Exceptions to the Fingerprint Requirement
A small set of travelers are not required to submit fingerprint scans, including:
- All children under 14 years of age
- All adults 70 years of age or older
- Travelers holding valid diplomatic, official, or service passports
- Citizens of countries that have signed mutual fingerprint exemption agreements with China (12 total as of November 2026, including Singapore, Brunei, and Qatar)
Even travelers exempt from fingerprinting are still required to complete the China Entry Card, unless they remain in the restricted international transit zone for their entire stay during a short connecting flight. HXXC Travel flags all eligible exceptions for our tour guests 7 days before their scheduled arrival to avoid unnecessary delays at immigration.
Step-by-Step Process to Complete Entry Card and Fingerprinting
Since 20 November 2025 the arrival card can be completed online within 72 hours before arrival. The official channels are the National Immigration Administration website (s.nia.gov.cn), the NIA 12367 app and the WeChat and Alipay mini-programs. Paper cards are still handed out on incoming international flights and at immigration-hall kiosks if you have not filled in the digital version.
Step 1: Fill Out Your China Entry Card
The entry card collects basic arrival information that is shared between China Customs and National Immigration Administration. Required fields include full legal name exactly as printed on your passport, passport number, visa or transit type, arrival flight or vessel number, full intended accommodation address in China, local contact phone number, and stated purpose of your visit.
The most common delay cause for first-time travelers is entering only a city name instead of their full hotel or tour accommodation address. HXXC Travel shares the exact full address and 24/7 local contact number for all our tour guests 3 full days before their scheduled arrival, so no one has to look up this information at the airport. Other common avoidable mistakes include misspelling names, entering an expired passport number, and selecting an incorrect purpose of visit.
Step 2: Submit Fingerprint Scans at the Immigration Counter
After you submit your completed entry card to the immigration officer, you will be directed to the attached fingerprint scanner. The standard process follows this exact sequence:
1. You place all four fingers of your right hand flat on the glass scanner surface for a 2-second scan
2. You then place all four fingers of your left hand on the scanner for a second scan
3. You finally place your left and right thumb on the scanner together to capture your two thumb prints
4. The officer will take a single facial photo of you to match against your passport
If any scan fails 3 consecutive times, the officer will switch to an inkless manual fingerprint pad to capture your prints, which adds no penalty and usually takes no more than 2 extra minutes. Average wait times at major ports like Guangzhou Baiyun, Shanghai Pudong, and Beijing Daxing sit at 12 minutes during off-peak weekday hours, and can rise to 35 minutes during peak national holiday weeks in early October or early February.
Common Problems and How to Avoid Delays
Most issues with the entry card and fingerprint process are easy to resolve with small pre-trip preparation, based on arrival data from HXXC Travel's 1,200+ international guests in 2026.
Fingerprint Scan Fail Fixes
Scans often fail if travelers have wet hands, small cuts or bandages on their fingertips, fresh henna dye on their hands, or heavily worn fingerprints from regular manual labor. If you know you have low-quality prints, wipe your fingertips dry with a clean tissue before approaching the scanner, and inform the officer before they start the scan. Officers can adjust scanner pressure and sensitivity to capture usable prints, and all 7 of our 2026 guests with heavily worn fingerprints completed the process in under 5 minutes without issues.
Entry Card Mistakes to Skip
The three most common mistakes that trigger extra questioning or delays are:
- Listing a purpose of visit as "business" when you are traveling for tourism, which will prompt officers to ask for additional invitation documents
- Forgetting to sign the bottom of your paper entry card if you do not use the digital version
- Throwing away the stamped entry card stub that is stapled to your passport after arrival
You must keep the entry card stub for your entire stay in China, and hand it over to exit immigration when you depart the country. If you lose the stub before departure, you can report the loss to exit immigration 1 hour before your flight to get a free replacement, with no fines applied as of November 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to pay any fee for China entry fingerprinting?
No. There are no government fees for the fingerprint scan or entry card processing for regular international visitors. Any third-party website that asks you to pay to fill out an entry card is not an official government service.
Can I fill out my China Entry Card before I arrive?
Yes. You can complete the arrival card online within 72 hours before arrival through the National Immigration Administration’s official channels — the NIA website (s.nia.gov.cn/ArrivalCardFillingPC), the NIA 12367 app, or the WeChat and Alipay mini-programs. It is an immigration service, not a China Customs app. The form generates a QR code you show at the border; save a screenshot offline in case airport Wi-Fi is unavailable.
Do 10-year China visa holders need to give fingerprints every time they enter?
Yes. All eligible non-exempt travelers are required to submit a full set of 10 fingerprints on every arrival into mainland China, even if you already submitted scans during a previous trip. No past records are reused for new entry sessions.
What happens if my fingerprints can't be scanned at all?
If even manual scans fail to capture usable prints, the immigration officer will log your details manually, stamp your passport, and grant you entry. No traveler is denied entry solely for un-scannable fingerprints, as long as their visa and travel documents are valid.
Can I skip the entry card if I am on 240-hour visa-free transit?
No. All travelers using 240-hour visa-free transit are required to complete the entry card and submit fingerprint scans, even if they do not plan to leave the city they arrive in. The only exception is if you never exit the restricted international transit zone to collect checked luggage.