Do's and Don'ts When Traveling in China

Foreigners wanting to travel in China can register in travel agencies in their countries or in China, which will arrange the trip. Travelers can also make arrangement by themselves. They should apply with a local Chinese organization of foreign affairs, consulates, or other organizations authorized by theMinistry of Foreign Affairs for tourist Visas. In the event of more than five persons, the organizer has to apply for group tourist visas, which will be issued by the organizer. For foreigners whose government has signed visa agreement with the Chinese government, they could follow the agreement. Foreign travelers who want to travel in Tibet could apply for visa with the permission of the Tibetan Tourist Administration or its overseas offices. Foreigners requesting to visit Shenzhen, Zhuhai, and Xiamen special economic zones (SEZ) may apply directly with visa authorities, approved by the Ministry of Public Security, in these zones for "tourist visas to SEZs". Foreigners who will stay in Hainan Province for less than 15 days for business talks, traveling, of visiting relatives can apply with entry visas in Haikou or Sanya. Foreign tourist groups from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on a 72-hour visit to the shenzhen SEZ are exempt from entry visas.

Foreigners with tourist visas must enter of exit through passes opened to foreigners of designated passes especially for foreigners, and follow all entry-exit procedures. Foreigners are not allowed to enter areas not opened to foreigners. Foreigners who want to visit, on official business, an area not opened to them should apply with the local public security organ for a Foreigner's Travel Permit. The foreigner's Travel permit should be used along with the passport.

A foreigner staying in China with tourist visa is not allowed to engaged in activities unfitted to his position, such as employment, study, and illegal journalist interviewing. Foreigners staying in China must abide by Chinese law and respect Chinese habits and customs.

Foreigners traveling with their own transport vehicles should apply for approval before they enter china. These include bicycles, motorcycles, cars, boats, and aircraft.

A foreign tourist may travel in China during the approval period of his stay. If he wants to continue traveling after the approved term of his stay expires, he should apply with the local public security organ for the elongation of his stay.

Customs

Inbound and outbound passengers should follow:

1. Customs Clearance
According to related laws and regulations, the luggage of inbound and outbound passengers must be under customs supervision and control. Passengers should make factually declaration to the customs on the actual information on the luggage they carry into of the territory.

2. Restricted Inbound and Outbound items Cigarettes, liquor
PassengersSet Bounds to Duty-free Tobacco ProductsSet Bounds to Duty-free>12? Liquors Inbound and Outbound Hong Kong and Macao (including passengers from and to Hong Kong and Macao200 cigarettes, or 50 cigars, or 250 grams of cut tobaccoOne bottle (less than 0.75 litres) Forth and back within 24 hours, or shuttle between china and Hong Kong and Macao many times within a short period of time40 cigarettes, or 5 cigars, or 40 grams of cut tobaccoNot allowed for duty free Others400 cigarettes, or 100 cigars, or 500 grams of cut tobaccoTwo bottles (less than 1.5 litres)

Note: The limits on importation of non-duty-free cigarettes and liquor are the same as those of duty free; Passengers under 16 years old are not allowed to carry any cigarettes nor liquor.

Passenger's Personal Articles :Each passenger is allowed to carry a camera, a portable tape recorder, a small movie camera, a portable video-camera, and a portable word processor. If exceeding the scope, he or she should make declaration to the customs. Passengers should bring what they have brought with them back on their departure with the permission of the customs.

Gold, Silver, and Articles Made of These Metals Passengers with gold, silver, and articles made of these metals, each exceeding 50 grams, should make declaration to the customs, and should carry out. Gold,
silver, and their products (including new arts and crafts articles, such as inlays and containers) bought from fixed shops shall be released by the customs after examination of the Special Receipts issued by the People's Bank of China.

Foreign Currencies :There is no limitation for the amount of foreign currencies, traveler's check, and credit card. Inbound passengers who are residents of China carrying more than US$2,000 or non-resident passengers with more than US$5,000 or an equivalent amount in other foreign currencies should make a declaration to the customs. When the passenger leaves China, outbound customs will release remaining foreign currency after examination against the declaration form issued by the customs upon entry. For outbound passengers with foreign currencies exceeding the above-mentioned, the customs shall release the foreign currency after examination against the foreign Currency Carriage Permit issued by the State Administration of Exchange Control.

Renminbi (RMB):The limit of Renminbi for inbound and outbound passengers is 6,000 yuan. Inbound and outbound passengers with more than 6,000 yuan will not allowed to enter or leave the territory.

Cultural Relics (including works of died famous contemporary calligraphers and painters) If inbound passengers with cultural relics want to carry the relics out of the territory, they should make a clear declaration to the customs. Passengers could carry out the relics bought in China with the appraisal by the Chinese
administrative departments for cultural relics. When cultural relics leave the territory, the customs shall release them after examination against the export permit from these departments and the appraisal marks stamped on the relics.

If passengers carry cultural relics out of the territory but fail to declare them to the customs, the customs shall deal with them in line with law. Raw and prepared Traditional Chinese Medicines.

The limit for tourists bound for foreign countries on raw and prepared traditional Chinese medicines is 300 yuan; for tourists to Hong Kong and Macao, 150 yuan. To mail to foreign countries, the limit is 200 yuan; to Hong Kong and Macao, 100 yuan, Outbound tourists carrying a reasonable amount of raw and prepared traditional Chinese medicines for personal purpose bought with foreign currency will go through the customs with related receipts and foreign currency exchange certificate.

Tourist Commodities:There is no restriction as to amount, value and variety for overseas tourists carrying tourist souvenirs and handicraft articles purchased with foreign currency in china except the variety of duty or with export permit in line with national regulations. The customs will release against related receipts and foreign currency exchange certificate.

3.Rules for Duty of Luggage and Mail Articles

To simplify customs procedure, Chinese Customs has instituted special tariff rules and rates for inbound passengers' luggage and inbound mail. The tariff rate includes 10%, 30%, 80%, and 100%.The tariff of articles will be charged ad valorem import rate. The CIF prices are approved, published and carried out
according to the retail prices on international market.

4.Articles Prohibited from Entry and Exit:

Articles Not Allowed into China

Various weapons, imitation weapons, ammunition, and explosives; Counterfeit money and forged securities;
Printed matter, negatives, records, films, audio and video recordings, laser optical video-discs, computer storage media and other articles containing materials deemed harmful to China politically, economically, culturally, or ethically; Deadly poisons; Opium, morphine, heroin, marijuana, and other narcotics; Dangerous bacteria, harmful insects, and other harmful animals, plants, and their products; food, drugs, and other articles from epidemic-stricken areas if such articles may be harmful to human beings and animals.

Articles that may not be taken out of china

Manuscripts, printed matter, negatives, photos, records, films, audio and video recordings, laser optical video disc, computer storage medium and similar articles if they contain state secrets; Cultural relics and relics not permitted to exit; Endangered and protected animals and plants (including specimens), their seeds and breeding materials.

Quarantine Service

Inbound and outbound passengers must accept health quarantine inspections by frontier quarantine services if so requested.

Persons carrying such objects as microorganisms, tissues from the human body, biological products, blood, or blood products cannot enter or exit unless they apply with a health quarantine service and accept requited quarantine inspections.

Persons who enter or leave China carrying, or consigning for shipment luggage or objects which may cause the spread of contagious disease must submit to health quarantine inspections. The quarantine inspection service is obliged to treat or destroy such articles as foodstuffs, drinks, and aquatic products if they are contaminated by contagious diseases.

Persons arriving from areas infested with yellow fever must present certificates of inoculation against yellow fever to the quarantine department when entering China. Any such person not having the above mentioned certificate will be detained for observation until the sixth day after leaving the infested area, or such person may be inoculated and detained until the time when the inoculation is deemed effective.

Animal & Plant Quarantine

The following objects may not be brought into China: 1) Animal and plant pathogens (including bacterial and venomous vaccines), pests and other injurious organisms; 2) animals and plants, their products, and other quarantinable objects from countries and regions infested by infectious diseases; 3) animal carcasses; and 4) soil.

Persons intending to bring animals, plants, and related products or other quarantinable objects into China must submit application forms to the customs, and they should be examined by the frontier quarantine department. Those whobring animals into China must present quarantine and other certificates issued
by the country or region of origin.

Each passenger is allowed to bring one pet into China. Such pets should be accompanied by quarantine and rabies-immunization certificates.

Main Ports of Entry

Air:
Beijing, Chengdu, Dalian, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Harbin, Hohhot, Hong Kong, Kunming, Qingdao, Shanghai, Shenyang, Tianjin, Urumqi, Xiamen, and Xi'an

Land:
Erenhot, Manzhouli, Ji'an, Hunchun, Tumen, Xunke, Mohe, Suifenhe, Friendship pass, Pingxiang, Wanding, Ruili, Nyalam (Zhangmu),Yadong,Baketu, Alataw, and kunjirap

Water:Tianjin, Qinhuangdao, Dalian, Dandong, Shanghai, Lianyungang, Zhenjiang, Nanjing, Yangzhou, Ningbo, Jiujiang, Weihai, Qingdao, Yantai, Hankou, Guangzhou, Huangpu, Shantou, Shenzhen, Zhanjiang, Beihai, Haikou, and Sanya Practical Information

Chinese Currency:Chinese currency is issued by the the People's Bank of China

The standard unit of Chinese currency is the Renminbi (RMB), also known as the yuan, The subsidiary units are the jiao and the fen. One yuan equals ten jiao and one jiao equals ten fen. Yuan, jiao and fen are issued both in bills and in coins. Chinese currency is issued in the following denominations:one, two, five, ten, fifty and a hundred yuan; one, two and five jiao; and one, two and fivefen.

Currency Conversion

The circulation of foreign currencies and the setting of accounts with foreign currencies is forbidden in the people's Republic of china. All expenditures in China must be settled with RMB. The Bank of China and other designated Chinese banks can convert foreign traveler's checks and cash in 22 foreign currencies and the New Taiwan Dollar into RMB. These banks can also issue RMB against foreign credit cards. The following currencies can be converted into RMB: US dollar, British pound, German mark, Japanese yen, Australian dollar, Austrian schilling, Belgian franc, Canadian dollar, Hong Kong dollar, Swiss franc, Danish krone, Dutch guilder (florin), Norwegian krone, Swedish krona, Singapore dollar, Malaysian ringgit, Italian lira, Macao pataca, and Finnish markka. Some hotels, restaurants and stores in China also provide foreign exchange service. The daily exchange service. the daily exchange rate is issued by the State Administration Exchange control. A foreign traveler may have the remaining amount of RMB converted back into foreign cash and brought out of China within six months prior to departure from china, upon presentation of a foreign currency
conversion receipt
.
Credit Cards:The following foreign credit cards are accepted in China: Master; Visa; American Express; JCB; and Diners.These card holders can draw cash at the Bank of China or use the cards for payment in stores, restaurants, and hotels designated by the Bank of China.

Traveler's Checks:The Bank of China can cash traveler's checks sold by international commercial banks and traveler's-check companies in the United States, Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Britain, France, Switzerland, and Germany.

The Bank of China also serves as agent for traveler's checks of the American Express Company, the First National City Bank, Thomas Cook Traveler's Check Co., Sumitomo Bank, and the Swiss Bank Corp.

Postal service

Postal service is available at the service desks of hotels and post offices. Note: to use standard envelopes, write the postal code, and be sure to use enough stamps. EMS is also available in most post offices and express mail agencies. Many stores can send items anywhere in the world.

Special Telephone Numbers

0086-IDD code of China
110-Police
119-Fire
120-Emergency
112-Telephone repair desk
113-Long distance operator
114-Directory inquiries and information
115-International operator
116-Long distance directory inquiries
117-Time
121-Weather

Electricity

The electricity in China is 220 volts, but the bathrooms of many luxury and medium-grade hotels also have 110-volt sockets.

Drinking Water:Only a few luxury hotels provide drinkable tap water, so don's forget to ask the hotel whether the tap water is drinkable or not. Boiled water is available in all guestrooms, and bottled mineral water is on sale everywhere.

Newspapers, Books, and Periodicals:Newspapers and magazines in English, such as China Daily and Beijing Review, are free in many hotels. Foreigners can also buy books and maps in foreign-language book stores or Xinhua Book Stores.

Television

English and Japanese television programs are available in many hotels via satellite relay. The China Central Television Station (CCTV) and some local TV stations also provide news and other programs in English.

Shopping

1.Business hours for most stores in China are 8:00 or 8:30 a.m. to 20:00 or 20:30 pm. In winter, the business hours for most stores are 9:00 a.m. to 19:00 p.m. Many shop assistants can speak English. Foreign currency exchange is available in most shopping centers and tourist stores.

2.The designated tourist stores are the most reliable place for shopping in China.

Medical Service

Hotels that receive foreigners have clinics that provide medical, health, and massage services. You can telephone the emergency centers in nearby hospitals or ask your tourist guide to make arrangements for medical service.

Work and rest

The working week in China is from Monday through Friday. Most people do not work on Saturdays and Sundays. Office hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 17:00 p.m. with one hour for lunch.

Public Holidays

1，New Year's day：
January 1, one day off;
2，Spring festival (Chinese New Year)：
The first day of the first month on the Chinese lunar calendar, three days off;
3，International Labor Day:
May 1, three days off;
4,National Day:
October 1, three days off.