Policy reference · Entry & stay
The right visa
before the right treatment
Cross-border medical demand keeps rising, and many overseas patients plan to enter China for surgery, clinical treatment or TCM rehabilitation. Applying with a tourist or family-visit visa for medical purposes can leave you unable to complete procedures or extend your stay. This page sets out the applicable categories, the document standard and the in-country extension rules.
Based on State Council Decree No. 814, the Exit and Entry Administration Law, and 2026 National Immigration Administration and consular specifications.
Category ledger
Four categories.
Only two of them cover paid treatment.
The approval purpose of a visa is binding. A visa that was issued for tourism or family visiting does not become a medical visa because your plans changed after arrival.
Short-term medical treatment, post-operative rehabilitation, accompanying an immediate family member
The standard route for short-term therapy and post-operation rehabilitation within 180 days.
Treatment and rehabilitation expected to exceed 180 days
You cannot stay long-term on the visa itself. Within 30 days of entry you must obtain a private-affairs residence permit from the local exit-entry administration.
Sightseeing and leisure travel
Paid medical treatment is not an approved purpose of an L visa.
Visiting relatives who are Chinese citizens or foreign permanent residents
Q2 approval does not include paid medical consultation or treatment.
Short visits under unilateral visa-exemption arrangements
If your treatment will run past the visa-free window you must apply for the matching S-type visa before departure. Visa category cannot be converted after entry.
Document requisition
What the consulate actually reads.
Prepare the whole set before you submit. Missing or inconsistent paperwork is the most common reason a case slows down, and falsified medical certificates lead to direct refusal.
01 Identity & application
- Passport
- Valid for more than 6 months, with at least 2 blank pages.
- Visa application form
- Completed and signed, matching the passport exactly.
- Compliant photo
- Standard white-background identity photo to the current specification.
02 Core medical paperwork
- Hospital admission confirmation letter
- Issued by a qualified receiving institution in China, stamped with the official hospital seal, and stating the patient's details, the planned treatment and the estimated treatment period. Letters from designated international medical facilities and Grade-A tertiary hospitals carry the highest acceptance.
- Medical records
- Diagnosis, imaging, pathology and prior treatment history in the form the hospital requires.
03 Financial capacity
- Proof of funds
- Covering both medical costs and living expenses in China. Most overseas consulates require documentary evidence of no less than USD 10,000.
04 Accompanying attendant
- Notarized proof of kinship
- Required from each attendant to establish the immediate-family relationship.
- Hospital care confirmation
- Issued by the hospital to confirm the attendant's role in the patient's care.
- A separate S2 visa per attendant
- Attendants apply independently. They cannot enter under visa-free status to provide care.
Limit: 2 attendants, immediate family only
Spouses, parents, children and siblings. Friends and hired carers are not eligible for attendant status.
In-country extension
When the treatment runs longer
than the visa.
If your treatment cycle is extended and your visa is approaching expiry, you may apply for an extension in person at the local exit-entry administration, submitting updated treatment documents from the hospital.
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Updated hospital documents
The hospital reissues diagnosis and treatment material showing the extended period. This is the core evidence for the application.
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File the application in person
You submit to the local exit-entry administration under Article 29 of the Exit and Entry Administration Law of the People's Republic of China.
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Delegate if you cannot attend
Seriously ill or mobility-impaired applicants may authorise the inviting organisation or an immediate family member to file on their behalf.
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Keep every record
Retain all treatment records after entry. Updated diagnosis material is what the extension is assessed against.
Wait until you are near expiry and you may not be able to file in time. Watch the days remaining from the week you arrive.
At the border
A visa is not a guarantee of entry.
Port border inspection authorities retain the right to re-examine your medical plan, financial documents and hospital certificates on arrival, and may refuse entry if the material raises doubt. Carry the originals of the documents you submitted.
This is a checkpoint, not a formality — which is why the paperwork standard above matters before you fly, not after.
Common failures
Five ways this goes wrong.
- 01 Applying with a tourist or family-visit visa for paid medical treatment.
- 02 Assuming the patient's visa covers a family member — each attendant needs an independent visa.
- 03 Entering visa-free when the treatment will outlast the visa-free window.
- 04 Submitting shortly before the scheduled treatment date instead of reserving full processing time.
- 05 Submitting hospital letters, funds evidence or notarised kinship papers with seals, signatures or formats incomplete.
Practical standard
How to file without a delay.
- Reserve full processing time. Do not file close to your treatment date; document review can push the schedule.
- Match the category to the purpose. Medical matters use S-type. Avoid L and Q2.
- File separately for every traveller. Attendants apply on their own visa, not on the patient's.
- Verify seals and formats in advance. Check hospital letters, funds evidence and notarised kinship papers against the requirement before submission.
- Keep the record. Updated hospital diagnosis material is the core document for any later extension.
Where Lifegreen comes in.
Lifegreen does not provide visa agency services. What we do is issue the hospital-side documents your application depends on — the admission confirmation and invitation material from a qualified receiving institution, in the form the consulate expects — as part of a treatment pathway secured through the 48-hour MDT.
References
- 01 Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Administration of the Entry and Exit of Foreigners — State Council Decree No. 814
- 02 Exit and Entry Administration Law of the People's Republic of China — Article 29
- 03 Guidelines for Visa Application for International Patients Seeking Medical Treatment in China — Chinese Overseas Embassies and Consulates (2026)
- 04 Specifications for Foreign Nationals' Stay Extension in China — National Immigration Administration
Disclaimer: This page is compiled from State Council Decree No. 814, the Exit and Entry Administration Law, and 2026 public visa guidelines issued by Chinese overseas embassies and consulates. It is policy reference only and does not constitute visa or medical advice, and it does not cover medical services or visa agency services. Visa issuance, port entry decisions and in-country extension outcomes are all subject to case-by-case review by Chinese consular missions and domestic exit-entry authorities. Every applicant's situation is different — do not apply these requirements mechanically.
Policy reference only — not visa or medical advice.