Visa-Free travel to China starts for Canadian passport holders on Feb 17

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced that starting tomorrow (Feb. 17), that Canadian passport holders will no longer need a visa.

The announcement was made on the Ministry’s website and advises that “to further facilitate cross-border travel, China has decided to, starting from Feb. 17, 2026, extend its visa waiver policy to ordinary passport holders from Canada and the United Kingdom.”

It continues: Ordinary passport holders from the two countries can be exempted from [needing a] visa to enter China and stay for up to 30 days for business, tourism, visits to family/friends, exchange and transit purposes.”

The policy is in effect until Dec. 31, 2026.

In a post on X, Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Anita Anand noted that China had committed to visa-free entry for Canadians earlier this year during Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit to the country.

Minister Anand said that the new policy will make travel easier, support business exchanges and strengthen people-to-people ties between Canada and China.