China Visa from Bangkok

Hi everyone,

I’ll be in Bangkok at the end of March and I’m thinking of heading to Chongqing, China, for a few days. I know China has a visa exemption program for French citizens, but a few years ago, I was in South Korea and wanted to go to Shanghai. They wouldn’t let me board because I was departing from Thailand instead of France—basically, the 3-day visa exemption at the time only worked if you were coming from Europe, not Asia. So I lost my flight tickets and accommodations and ended up staying in Seoul.

Now I’d like to give it another shot to visit that wild city, Chongqing. I read on the embassy’s website that "you can travel to China without a visa, even from a third country" (??)... But nothing’s clear—you call them, they don’t answer; you don’t know where to go to ask; and the website talks about 2025, not even 2026 yet. It’s kind of a mess...

If you’ve got any firsthand experience, I’d love to hear it! :)

Thanks everyone,

Hi there

There are lots of Europeans entering China from third countries (like people on multi-month trips), and I’ve never heard of anyone being turned away.

Hi,

I wasn’t allowed to board because I was leaving from Thailand instead of France: basically, the 3-day visa exemption at the time only worked if you departed from Europe, not Asia.

In my opinion, the issue wasn’t that, but the fact that this exemption was only valid for transits at that time.

Michel