Xiamen visit lasting 86 hours - will Visa application at airport entry be denied?

Hi Till, I actually just returned from Xiamen using the Visa on Arrival visa, 2 days ago. If you have a German passport, you're eligible. It's valid for 5 days, not 3, and starts at the following 12:00am, so if you arrive in Xiamen in Monday the 20th, your five days start at 12:00am on Tuesday the 21st of may, and you need to be out of China (scheduled flight departure time) by Saturday the 25th, 11:59pm local time.

Actually, this is not a transit visa, but a travel that is visa free. In formal language it is 144 hours visa free transit. I sincerely advise you to use correct terminology to avoid any possible misunderstandings. Also, visa free transit is valid for 6 days :)

Hi Zupan, I am not referring to the visa free transit method of entry. It seems you are the one who misunderstood. I'd like to take this opportunity to explain to everyone, cause there isn't much correct information online about this.
The visa free transit is where you are going to a third country and is only stopping over in one of those Chinese cities/ports. His method of entry requires you to be going to a third country, for example, Australia to USA via Beijing, or some other participating city. In this case, you can stop in Beijing for up to 144 hours for your layover, before boarding your connecting flight to the USA. This is an example only, please check the allowed layover duration for your city of interest. The time usually starts at the following 12:00am but can vary depending on the city. In Chinese it is called "In Transit visa exempt".
The visa that I used, and that Till would need judging from his/her explanations, is indeed the Visa on Arrival Visa. This visa allows you to enter for a certain amount of time (5 days from the following 12:00am for Xiamen) WITHOUT the need to go to a third country. For example, Australia to Xiamen, and then back to Australia. This is a direct entry and NOT a visa free transit entry, ie, you ARE required to obtain a visa, but on arrival. In Chinese it is called a "Special zone tourism visa". You apply for the visa at customs in arrival with 90 RMB and 2 passport sized photos and you fill in a form and they put the visa in your passport on the spot. For Hainan, the cost is 168RMB, they only accept local Chinese currency.

*This method of entry...

If you want to find out more about it, it is called "Special Economic Zone" visa, but please note, for Xiamen where I went last week, the stay duration is 5 days, not 3 as some websites say it is.

Stephanie, thanks for you kind post and I can say that I am quite familiar with VOA details, including VOA for Xiamen. Anyway, by reading the initial post offered by Till, I have noticed that he has perfectly eligible opportunity to travel visa free, by using 144 hours visa free transit in Xiamen, i.e. his itinerary is Taiwan - Xiamen - Hong Kong. From these details, I have drawn the conclusion that he, in reality, is looking after the most convenient option and that is why I have jumped without properly reading your answer to his post. Now I have realized, that you were mentioning VOA and this is fine, although in Till's case, probably the best option would be 144 hours visa free transit.

In any case, thanks for your kind efforts, explanation and reasonable approach.

There is no need for photographs and no need to spend money. Took 15 min and is FOC. So very simple.

Thank you everyone for the replies and information.
In my passport it states Temporary Entry Permit.
Arrival date was May 20
Permit valid until May 26