China readiness checker
Two answers in one place: whether the published visa-free rule matches your trip, and what the fact library says you actually have to finish before you fly.
The published visa-free rule currently matches
Romanian ordinary passport, tourism, up to 30 days, arrival on or before the published expiry of 2026-12-31. Recheck before departure.
22 things to do before flying · 24 can wait until arrival · 2 things you don’t need
22 things to do before flying
Every record in the library that carries an explicit before-arrival setup verdict. Ordered by how badly it hurts to skip.
- App store region change rules →Required before departure — it does not work otherwise.
- China Online Visa Application System →Required before departure — it does not work otherwise.
- China Visa Application Service Center Bucharest →Required before departure — it does not work otherwise.
- Chinese visa application in Romania →Required before departure — it does not work otherwise.
- Chinese visa application in Romania →Required before departure — it does not work otherwise.
- Chinese visa application in Romania →Required before departure — it does not work otherwise.
- Notify bank and enable international payments →Required before departure — it does not work otherwise.
- Travel esim install before arrival →Required before departure — it does not work otherwise.
- 12306 identity verification for foreign passports →Strongly recommended — this one takes working days, not minutes.
- 12306 English site →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
- Alipay →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
- Alipay →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
- Alipay transit QR code →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
- Connectivity paths overview →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
- DiDi →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
- DiDi (滴滴出行) mainland China app →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
- NIA online arrival card →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
- Payment methods overview →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
- Register presence with romanian mission →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
- Revolut eSIM →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
- Weixin Pay →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
- Weixin Pay (WeChat Pay) →Recommended at home, where the network and the app store both cooperate.
24 can wait until arrival
Either the record says the timing is optional, or it describes something that only happens once you are there. Nothing here is worth losing an evening to at home.
- Accommodation registration →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- Bank currency exchange →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- Bank of China ATM →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- Beijing attraction ticketing →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- Beijing metro luggage rule →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- Beijing Subway contactless gates →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- cash →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- cash / currency exchange →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- China arrival card →Optional. Either side of the flight works.
- China departure tax refund →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- China metro security check →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- China metro ticketing →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- China metro TVM →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- China Railway e-ticket →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- China Railway stations →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- China Railway ticketing →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- domestic bank account →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- extending a visa-free stay →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- Overstay penalty as summarised by Romania's MFA →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- Overstaying a permitted stay in China →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- Public security inspection →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- Revolut →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- Street-hailed taxi payment →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
- visa-free stay period →Happens after you land. There is nothing you can usefully do about it from home.
2 things you don’t need to prepare
The shortest list and the most useful one. It separates “nothing to prepare” from “cannot be prepared”, which are not the same answer.
- Chinese mobile SIM card →Impossible to do in advance — the procedure requires you to be in China in person.
- foreign card at POS →Nothing to prepare. It works on arrival as it is.
The three lists are generated from the timing and setup verdicts on the underlying records. The full grid is on the before-and-after table.
Decision support only. Recheck time-sensitive rules with the linked authority.