Dummy Ticket for Chinese Travellers: Schengen Rules, EVUS and Visa-Free Trips

Chinese passport holders face one checklist line that is stricter than most, and it changes how a reservation should be handled. The German missions in China want the outbound and return flights confirmed by the airline and say cancelled reservations are not accepted. Elsewhere, wording is looser: the Netherlands says no paid ticket is needed, the US advises against buying early, and Singapore and Thailand now let ordinary Chinese passports in without a visa. This guide goes through China's own exit rules, the flight wording destination by destination, EVUS for US visa holders, and the timing that keeps a reservation valid when it is checked.

Key facts for Chinese passport holders

What do Chinese border officers check when you leave?

Your travel document, and whether you are cleared to go where you are going. China's Exit and Entry Administration Law requires citizens who leave or enter to present their passport or other travel document to the border inspection authority for examination.^[1] Under the same law, citizens travelling to other countries must obtain the destination's visa or entry permit, except where a visa exemption agreement or other arrangement applies.^[1]

The law also lists the cases in which a citizen is not allowed to leave, such as holding no valid exit document, facing criminal proceedings or being involved in an unresolved civil case where a court has decided the person may not leave.^[1] A return flight is not on that list. The flight question for Chinese travellers belongs to the destination's consulate and to the airline at check-in, not to the exit officer.

Where do Chinese citizens need visas, and what flight proof is requested?

Here is what we found on official pages this month. The German wording is the one to read carefully.

Germany: "confirmed by the airline" and "not cancelled"

The German tourism information sheet for China, dated June 2024, asks for a copy of a flight reservation confirmed by the airline for the outbound and return flights. It then adds that cancelled flight reservations are not accepted. The same sheet says hotel reservations that have already been cancelled are not accepted either.^[2]

What does that mean for you? Two things. First, the reservation must exist in the airline's system under your name, and you should be able to open it on the airline's own site. Second, timing matters more than usual. A hold from us lasts no more than a fortnight, and the length is the carrier's call; book a month early and it may be dead on submission day. Our preference is to make it 48 to 72 hours ahead and look it up again on the eve of the appointment.

The sheet also sets out the practical side. Submission is possible from six months out; the German sheet wants it done at least 15 days before departure and says late files get no fast track. Which German office handles you depends on where you live, and the missions' website has a consulate finder.^[14] Fees are EUR 90 plus EUR 19.13 to VFS Global, payable in RMB, and the sheet notes that you don't need an agent.^[2]

Netherlands and other Schengen states

Dutch missions are happy with held flights into and out of Schengen, and their list says you needn't have paid for them.^[4] For France, Italy, Spain and others, read each mission's sheet; the EU's general timing rules still apply, with a usual decision period of 15 days that can stretch to 45.^[3]

US, UK and Canada

The US government's line is simple: no flight purchase before the visa decision.^[6] If you already hold a 10-year B1/B2, B1 or B2 visa in a PRC passport, there is an extra step: you must have a valid EVUS enrolment before travelling. CBP says enrolments generally last two years or until the visa or passport expires, whichever comes first, and you update after a new passport.^[7] For the UK, GOV.UK lists flight bookings as not useful evidence for visitors, except for transit, so we'd leave them out.^[8] For Canada, IRCC suggests a travel itinerary, which can include flight details.^[9]

Where can Chinese passports go without a visa, and is onward travel checked?

• Singapore. From 9 February 2024, ordinary PRC passport holders are exempt from visa requirements for stays of up to 30 days, under a mutual arrangement.^[10] ICA wants visitors ready to show their onward plans, and the SG Arrival Card is due in the three days preceding arrival.^[11]
• Thailand. Thai summary tables put PRC ordinary passports in the 30-day bilateral exemption group.^[12] The Thai embassy's page on exemption schemes lists onward travel within 30 days, proof of accommodation, THB 20,000 in funds and the TDAC within 3 days before arrival; it does not spell out how these apply under bilateral agreements.^[13]

Airlines check entry rules at departure, so a one-way passenger from Shanghai to Singapore may be asked about the next flight. If you are returning to China, buy the return; it is the simplest answer. If you are continuing to a third country you haven't settled on yet, a reservation for that leg shows the plan. Our onward-proof explainer and onward reservation page cover airline checks in detail.

Reservation, refundable fare or paid ticket?

Read our reservation versus refundable fare guide if you're unsure which column suits your trip.

How do you build the flight part of the file?

1. Find your mission by place of residence. The German missions' consulate finder shows which office covers your province.
2. Use the current information sheet and keep its order.
3. Agree your dates across leave letter, hotel, insurance and itinerary.
4. Reserve 48 to 72 hours before you hand in the file, typing the pinyin names letter for letter.
5. Open the booking on the airline site and keep a dated screenshot.
6. Call it a flight reservation in your forms and cover letter.
7. Buy the real ticket after approval, and for the US, check your EVUS status before flying.

Names deserve a moment. A Chinese passport shows the surname, say ZHANG, and given name, say XIAOMING, in pinyin. Airlines need the same split: ZHANG as surname, XIAOMING as given name, written as one word if the passport shows it as one. Don't add an English name you use at work unless it is printed in the passport.

Here's a worked example. Suppose you live in Hangzhou and have a VFS appointment in Shanghai on Wednesday 18 November for a trip from 26 December to 8 January. In that case we'd reserve on the 15th or 16th, confirm it on the carrier's website straight away, and look once more on the 17th. That is purely an example of timing.

Which mistakes cause trouble?

• Booking weeks early so the reservation has lapsed when the German mission looks at it.
• Surname and given name reversed, which breaks the airline lookup.
• A hotel booking already cancelled when submitted; the German sheet rejects those too.
• Forgetting EVUS on a 10-year US visa after getting a new passport.
• Using a seller whose "booking" never appears on the airline's website.
• Using a travel agency's packaged papers without checking that the dates match your real plan.

Two pages worth reading before you pay any seller: the questions to ask a provider and checking a booking before you submit it.

Travelling as a family, or with a tour operator?

Families usually do best with one reservation covering everyone. Each person's name goes in exactly as their own passport prints it, children included, and the price is per passenger. If one parent's appointment is a week after the other's, consider booking separately for the later date, because a single booking made for the first appointment may no longer be live by the second.

Package tours are a different case. The German sheet says that if you book an individual tourist trip through a tour operator, you should include the operator's proof of accommodation.^[2] When an operator also arranges your flights, use their booking rather than adding a second, separate reservation with different flights. Two sets of flights in one file only raise questions about which trip is real.

Business travellers, trade-fair visitors and people visiting relatives are not tourists under the German sheet, which points them to the information sheet for their own purpose.^[2] The flight item may be worded differently there, so read that sheet rather than this one.

How do you order a reservation from China?

Use our booking form. Enter your route, say Beijing to Frankfurt and back, and each passenger's name in pinyin as printed in the passport. For mainland Chinese customers we charge $9 per name, regardless of one-way or return, and price multi-city trips by each set of two legs. Payment is by card through Razorpay, so use a card that can pay online in US dollars. About ten minutes later the PDF with carrier and PNR reaches your email, and the tracker shows each stage.

Wider reading: how visa reservations work, reserved flights for applications, what each country asks and prices in each currency. Need a place to stay on paper as well? See hotel bookings for visa files. Foreigners applying to visit China should read our China visa guide.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

Last checked: October 2026.

1. Shenzhen Government Online, Exit and Entry Administration Law of the People's Republic of China (Articles 9, 11 and 12).
2. German Missions in China, Information sheet: Schengen visa for tourism, June 2024 (PDF).
3. European Commission, Applying for a Schengen visa; EUR-Lex, Visa Code, Annex II.
4. Netherlands Worldwide, Checklist: Schengen visa for tourism.
5. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Short-term stay for nationals other than China, Russia, the CIS, Ukraine, Georgia, the Philippines and Viet Nam (showing that Chinese nationals follow separate rules).
6. U.S. Department of State, Visitor Visa.
7. U.S. Customs and Border Protection, EVUS frequently asked questions.
8. GOV.UK, Guide to supporting documents: visiting the UK.
9. Government of Canada (IRCC), Supporting documents for visitor visa applicants.
10. Immigration & Checkpoints Authority, Singapore, Mutual 30-day visa exemption arrangement between Singapore and the PRC.
11. Immigration & Checkpoints Authority, Singapore, Entering Singapore.
12. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, Summary of the revised visa exemption and VoA schemes, 2026 (PDF).
13. Royal Thai Embassy, London, Visa exemption and visa on arrival schemes.
14. German Missions in China, Consulate finder.