China opens up Hainan to more kinds of visa-free travel as it seeks to transform island into major free-trade port

China has expanded its visa-free policy for Hainan beyond tourism to various travel purposes as it seeks to transform the southern island into a major free-trade port.

From Friday, passport holders from 59 countries will be able to enter Hainan for business, family visits, medical treatment, exhibitions and sporting events - as well as tourism - for up to 30 days without a visa.

According to the National Immigration Administration (NIA), such travellers can land on the duty-free hub via any of the available ports but foreigners wanting to work long term or study there will still need a visa.

Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team.

It follows an announcement in October that travellers from the 59 countries did not need a visa to visit the island with a travel agency, upon invitation by an entity or as individuals.

In addition to 27 European Union member states, the list includes Iceland, Norway, Russia, Switzerland, Ukraine and Britain as well as the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

In Asia, the visa-free arrangements apply to South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Kazakhstan, the Philippines, Indonesia and Brunei.

Australia and New Zealand are also on the list along with Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Mexico and the United States.

The NIA said the move "is a new effort to deepen reform and opening-up of the province, and contribute to the development of Hainan ... as a free-trade port with Chinese characteristics".

Hainan's economy grew 9.2 per cent last year, the second fastest in the country after Tibet, state news agency Xinhua reported last month, citing its governor, Liu Xiaoming.

Its economic recovery has been driven by the revival of tourism, with more than 90 million tourists visiting the island last year, an increase of nearly 50 per cent year on year. Hainan's tourism revenue also rose 72 per cent to 181.3 billion yuan (US$25 billion).

China aims to develop Hainan into the world's biggest free-trade port, with an independent customs regime set up by the end of next year.

The tropical island is about the size of Taiwan and is seeking to attract investors, businesses and individuals with reduced taxes and relaxed visa regulations.

The country hopes to turn Hainan into a hub for offshore financing and duty-free shopping, bringing it on par with the likes of Hong Kong and Singapore.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2024 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2024. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.