Question

Asked by Mohamed from sudan | Nov. 02, 2025 02:07

About:24-Hour Visa-Free Transit

Question about 24-hour transit at Shanghai Pudong Airport

Hi,
My wife (a Moroccan citizen) and I (a Sudanese citizen) have booked a flight from Casablanca (Morocco) to Auckland (New Zealand) this coming December, with layovers in Istanbul and Shanghai.

Our flight details are as follows:
Casablanca → Istanbul (Turkish Airlines)
Istanbul → Shanghai (Turkish Airlines)
Shanghai → Auckland (Air New Zealand)

We have a 21-hour layover in Shanghai and would like to exit the airport and stay at a nearby hotel during this time.

I’m not 100% sure about the following:
A) Will our baggage be checked through from Casablanca to Auckland, considering that both Turkish Airlines and Air New Zealand are Star Alliance members?
B) Will we receive boarding passes for all three flight segments (Casablanca → Istanbul, Istanbul → Shanghai, and Shanghai → Auckland) at check-in in Casablanca?

Regarding the transit visa for China:
I’ve read that in order to be granted a 24-hour transit visa and be allowed to leave the airport, travelers are required to present:
-A confirmed onward ticket, and
-A boarding pass with a confirmed seat for the next flight.

Could you please confirm if this information is correct?

In our case, we are unsure whether we will receive the boarding pass for the Shanghai → Auckland flight at check-in in Casablanca. If we do not receive it:
1. Can we obtain this boarding pass at the transit desk in Shanghai Pudong Airport?

2. What are the exact steps, documents, and requirements to obtain the 24-hour transit visa upon arrival?

3. Is there a specific counter we should approach before heading to immigration or passport control?

Thank you very much for your assistance.

Best regards,

Reply

Answers (4)

Answered by Borut | Nov. 02, 2025 23:54

1 0 Reply

Part 1:

Mohamed, you did not inform us whether you will fly on a single (through) ticket that was bought as such during your booking process or you have booked two separate tickets? This is very important detail although you should not worry about your eligibility for 24 hour visa free transit eligibility because it is your itinerary that makes you eligible for 24 hour visa free transit and you do not need any kind of visa as far as the China is concerned.

If you have bought your entire journey under a single ticket (one booking) you will almost certainly receive 3 boarding passes in Casablanca, but even if that does not happen, it does not change anything regarding your 24 hour visa free transit eligibility. I checked your itinerary and it is obvious that you will transfer in Shanghai from TK026 to NZ288 with a total transit time of 21 hours and 5 minutes. It is clearly written that it is possible that you may need to collect and re-check your luggage. Basically, when you perform check-in in Casablanca you will then receive the final answer. Everything else would be a speculation from our side. I will repeat, it is irrelevant whether your luggage will be tagged all the way to Auckland or whether you will have to collect and re-check it Shanghai, it does not change the fact that you remain eligible for 24 hour visa free transit. This is the most important detail.

1 0 Reply

Answered by Borut | Nov. 03, 2025 00:06

1 0 Reply

Part 2:

So, when you land in Shanghai, here is what will you do:
- You will fill out arrival card and you will tick the box - transit on it
- You will after that proceed to fingerprinting machine where you will perform fingerprinting
- You will approach 24/240 hour visa free transit counter where you will apply for a temporary entry permit (this is not a visa, but just a permit that allows you to exit the airport during your transit time)
- You will present your flight tickets, your arrival card, fingerprinting confirmation and your hotel booking if you plan to stay in a hotel during the night. If you do not plan to stay at the hotel during the night, you will skip this detail. By the way, this is all free of any charge.
- After a short check, you will be granted a temporary entry permit and you will head to the immigration and then to the city to enjoy your time on your own.
- If your luggage is not tagged all the way to Auckland, you will be granted a temporary entry permit for sure because you will have to collect and re-check it and for that purpose the immigration authorities will grant you a permit to perform those formalities. However, if your luggage is tagged all the way to Auckland, there is a small risk that the authorities could deny a temporary entry permit because this permit is not a right, but more like a bonus. In that case you would have to stay within the airport transit area. This will hardly happen especially if you book a hotel stay.

I hope I have clarified the entire situation and answered on the majority of your questions. You can be totally relaxed, I strongly advise you to book a hotel in advance and to arrive in Shanghai with such a confirmation because it will be quite hard to wait the entire time at the airport especially since your transit time is during the night. In any case, the most important detail is that you do not need a visa because you will be covered by 24 hour visa free transit. I wish you a very nice journey.

1 0 Reply

Answered by Mohamed | Nov. 03, 2025 21:25

0 0 Reply

Thank you Borut for you informative reply. I really appreciate it :)
I've already booked a hotel nearby the airport.
The tickets are confirmed and were purchased from Expedia as one booking. However, we don't have seat numbers or confirmed seats. I'm not sure if we can the boarding pass for Shanghai - Auckland from Casablanca airport or will need to check with the transfer/transit desk at Shanghai airport? Will this affect our application for the transit permit?

Best regards.

0 0 Reply

Answered by Borut | Nov. 05, 2025 16:47

1 0 Reply

The term "confirmed seat" is an outdated and quite clumsy wording for just one detail that is called - a confirmed ticket. In other words this is a requirement placed in order to prevent attempts by some travelers to travel on a stand-by ticket. So, when you have bought your entire journey, you have your confirmed ticket and that means that you are fine with "confirmed seat" requirement. To simplify, you should not bother yourself about this detail any more.

If you do not receive all the boarding passes and if you will have to collect and re-check your luggage and that is indeed a realistic possibility, trust me, that would be ideal. Why? Because the immigration authorities will simply have to grant you a temporary entry permit because this is the only way how could you reach your luggage in order to re-check it to your final destination. In any case, you will know this detail at the moment of your check-in in Casablanca and not before that.

Also, you should not bother yourself what and how it will happen because this is all out of your reach. The most important detail is that you will travel all the way to Auckland absolutely visa free being it with a luggage collection in Shanghai or without it. Also, I hope and I am quite positive that you will be granted a temporary entry permit upon your landing even if your luggage is tagged all the way to Auckland. Fingers crossed :)

1 0 Reply

See more answers...

Related Questions: