Visa-free Shanghai extended

This item appears on page 4 of the April 2016 issue.

The city of Shanghai, on the central coast in eastern China, increased the period of its visa-free stays from 72 hours to 144 hours on Jan. 30, 2016. This extension applies to travelers entering at an airport or cruise port and includes the outlying cities of Hangzhou and Nanjing. In Shanghai, specifically, though a traveler’s visit begins upon his arrival, the 144-hour time limit doesn’t start counting down until 12 midnight following his arrival.
To qualify for a visa-free stay, a traveler must have a valid passport, a confirmed ticket to a new destination outside of China within the 144-hour time period (and a valid visa, if necessary) and a completed arrival/departure card. For the purposes of the visa-free stay, Hong Kong and Macau are considered to be outside of China.