Health and Vaccinations
Tetanus: Yes
Typhoid: Yes
Diptheria: Yes
Malaria: Sometimes
Rabies: Yes
Hepatitis-A: Yes
Yellow Fever: No. Visitors arriving from infected areas are required to carry Yellow Fever Vaccination Certification before arriving in the country.
Health Care
Medical facilities in China are much cheaper than most of its Western counterparts. The quality of healthcare in international hospitals is excellent. Most medicines known to the western folks are not available in China. Most people in China prefer traditional form of healthcare with indigenous medicines and treatments, like acupuncture.
The authorities in China strongly advise full travel insurance for all travellers to the country.
Travel Advice
From time to time, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in the UK issues Travel Advisories for visits to China. Accordingly, most visits to China are trouble-free but the global threat from international terrorism can never be ruled out. Therefore, the travellers should take adequate precautions while visiting the places of tourists’ interest in China.
China has experienced periodic outbreaks of avian influenza (bird flu), including some human fatalities in rural areas, like Liaoning, Guangxi, Anhui, Sichuan, Hunan and Guangdong provinces. Therefore, visitors should avoid places where contact with poultry is possible.
China has also seen some cases of Meningitis caused by a parasite after eating raw or undercooked Amazonian snails at Beijing restaurants.
Japanese Encephalitis is also rearing its head in Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces since August 2006.
At the time of publishing, this information is correct. However, the travel advice is periodically and rapidly updated. Therefore, all the visitors are advised to contact at the following addresses for the latest travel advice:
British Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Tel - 0845 850 2829
Website - www.fco.gov.uk
US Department of State
Website - www.travel.state.gov/travel
Passport and Visa Info
| Nationality | Passport Required | Visa Required | Return Ticket Required |
| British | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Australian | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Canadian | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| USA | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Other EU | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Passport
Passport is required for all nationals of the countries as mentioned in the chart above.
Passport must be valid for at least six months for a single or double entry within three months of the date of visa issue; at least nine months for multiple entries within six months.
HIV positive travellers are not allowed to enter China.
China does not recognise dual nationality, like US-Chinese, etc.
Travellers wishing to visit Tibet are strongly advised to do so only in a travel-group since individual travellers would require an Alien’s Travel Permit to be issued by Tibet Tourism Bureau.
Visa
Visa is required by all nationals of the abovementioned countries except:
(a) Transit Passengers (except US nationals) continuing the journey by same or connecting plane within 24 hours, provided they hold valid documentation and travel tickets, and do not leave the airport;
(b) Some Passengers (except US or UK nationals) transiting through Pudong or Hongqiao airports, along with necessary documentation, within 48 hours.
The nationals of all countries, not mentioned in the chart above, should contact their local embassy for visa requirements.
Visa Fee for UK travellers: Tourist, Business, and Transit – £30 (single entry); £45 (double entry); £60 (multiple entry for business visa only 12 months and 2-5 years). Group (at least five people) – £24 per person. Visa charges for other nationals vary.