Answered by Stephanie from Australia | May. 16, 2019 18:29
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.