Arrival Card guide
China Online Arrival Card: Official Steps and Fallbacks
Use China's free official online arrival card, recognize the correct NIA channels, know the exemptions, and keep an airport paper-form fallback.
This guide explains the official filing workflow, not an individual immigration decision. Border inspection staff and current NIA notices control whether a traveler must file and whether entry is permitted.
Quick answer
Use only the free NIA channel, save the submission result, and keep the on-arrival paper or terminal option as your fallback.
Use this practical sequence to prepare, act, and recover if the normal plan does not work:
- Open the arrival-card page from the NIA government service platform or an official Chinese embassy or government link, not from a sponsored or look-alike result.
- Check the current exemption list. Visa-free entry by itself is not listed as a blanket exemption.
- Enter passport, trip, transport, and accommodation details exactly as supported by your documents and booking records.
- Review passport number, name, flight or vessel information, arrival port, and China address before submission.
Applies to foreign travelers entering mainland china who are not in an exempt category, visa-free, visa-holding, and transit travelers who need to determine whether an arrival card is required, travelers who want to avoid fake arrival-card websites or a last-minute connectivity failure.
Key facts
Open the arrival-card page from the NIA government service platform or an official Chinese embassy or government link, not from a sponsored or look-alike result.
Close it and reopen the form through en.nia.gov.cn, s.nia.gov.cn, or an official embassy notice.
Check exact passport spelling and transport details; if it still fails, use an official on-arrival channel rather than inventing data.
Show the offline confirmation if available, or use the port's smart device or paper arrival card.
The NIA arrival-card service applies at mainland China entry inspection points.
Online, on-site device, QR-code, and paper fallbacks converge at the port of entry.
Step-by-step plan
- 01
Open the arrival-card page from the NIA government service platform or an official Chinese embassy or government link, not from a sponsored or look-alike result.
- 02
Check the current exemption list. Visa-free entry by itself is not listed as a blanket exemption.
- 03
Enter passport, trip, transport, and accommodation details exactly as supported by your documents and booking records.
- 04
Review passport number, name, flight or vessel information, arrival port, and China address before submission.
- 05
Save the confirmation or QR result offline together with your first hotel name, address, and phone number.
- 06
If the form or connection fails, continue to the staffed inspection area and use the official on-site QR code, smart terminal, or paper arrival card.
- 07
Recheck the NIA notice shortly before departure because channels, exempt categories, and form fields can change.
When the normal plan fails
A website asks for an arrival-card fee.
Close it and reopen the form through en.nia.gov.cn, s.nia.gov.cn, or an official embassy notice.
The form rejects my flight, address, or passport details.
Check exact passport spelling and transport details; if it still fails, use an official on-arrival channel rather than inventing data.
I have no mobile data at immigration.
Show the offline confirmation if available, or use the port's smart device or paper arrival card.
I am unsure whether an exemption applies.
Use the current NIA exemption list or ask inspection staff; completing the official form is safer than relying on an unsupported assumption.
Practical details
Source cross-check
This guide was checked against NIA: Beware of fraudulent websites for arrival card filling; Chinese Embassy: Guidelines for online completion of the arrival card; Shanghai Government: How to fill out an arrival card online. The three official sources agree that the service is free, that official online channels exist, and that on-site or paper completion remains available. The guide does not invent an advance-submission deadline because the cited notices do not set one.
Official channel check
A valid route starts from the NIA government service platform or an official government or embassy page. The official filing URL is `https://s.nia.gov.cn/ArrivalCardFillingPC/`. Do not treat a search-ad result, payment request, or copied QR code as proof of authority.
Phrase cards
Find official channel
English
Ask where to complete the official arrival card.
中文
您好，请问外国人入境卡应该在哪里免费填写？我想使用官方渠道。
Use on-site fallback
English
Explain that the online form failed and request a paper form.
中文
网上入境卡无法提交，请给我一张纸质入境卡，或者告诉我现场设备在哪里。
Check exemption
English
Ask staff to confirm whether an exemption applies.
中文
请帮我确认我的情况是否免填入境卡；如果不免填，我现在就办理。
FAQ
- Is the online arrival card mandatory before I fly?
- NIA provides online filing before travel, but also keeps on-arrival smart-device, QR-code, and paper options. Your airline or port may still give operational instructions.
- Does visa-free entry mean I do not fill the card?
- Not automatically. Check the separate NIA arrival-card exemption list.
- Should I pay an agent?
- No. NIA says the official filing service is free.
Sources and review
- NIA: Beware of fraudulent websites for arrival card fillingOfficial · checked Aug 12, 2026
- Chinese Embassy: Guidelines for online completion of the arrival cardOfficial · checked Aug 12, 2026
- Shanghai Government: How to fill out an arrival card onlineOfficial · checked Aug 12, 2026
Visible guide facts must be supported by the page sources and rechecked before the next update date.
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