China and Malaysia announce mutual visa exemption!

453    2025-07-18

On July 17, the China-Malaysia Mutual Visa Exemption Agreement officially came into effect.

Holders of valid Chinese Service Passports, Chinese Ordinary Passports, and Malaysian Ordinary Passports, who enter, exit, or transit through the other contracting party for purposes such as leisure tourism, and stay for no more than 30 days with a cumulative stay within any 180-day period not exceeding 90 days, shall be exempt from visa requirements.

  • Starting from December 1, 2023, China implemented a trial unilateral visa-free policy for Malaysian ordinary passport holders. On the same day, Malaysia introduced a visa-free convenience measure allowing Chinese citizens to enter Malaysia for up to 30 days without a visa. During the trial period, according to Malaysian statistics, the number of Chinese tourists visiting Malaysia in 2024 reached 3.8 million, making China Malaysia’s largest source of tourists outside the ASEAN countries.

  • On April 16, 2025, the two sides signed the Agreement on Mutual Visa Exemption between China and Malaysia (Malaysia). Starting from July 17, this agreement officially came into effect, marking the formal entry of China and Malaysia into the "visa-free era."

Holders of ordinary passports from the following countries enjoy mutual visa exemption with China:

Asia: United Arab Emirates, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Qatar, Maldives, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan .

Europe: San Marino, Serbia, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania .

North America: Bahamas, Grenada, Barbados, Dominica, Antigua and Barbuda .

South America: Suriname .

Africa: Seychelles, Mauritius .

Oceania: Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, Solomon Islands .

Note: As of July 17, 2025, Malaysia officially joined the mutual visa exemption list, allowing Chinese citizens to stay up to 30 days per visit . For complete details, refer to the latest agreements.