The traveller’s exact question
What do I have to declare at Chinese Customs, and what happens if I choose the wrong channel?
Run the direction-specific table before the channel. Then check the two exceptions that change the consequence: RMB cash has a hard cap, and some money or equipment needs a Customs-endorsed record for a later crossing. Customs may inspect baggage in either channel.
If nothing requires declaration, you may use green without a declaration form. If a declaration is required or you are unsure, use red. Complete the paper declaration or confirm the electronic data offered at the port before Customs takes inspection measures; electronic filing is not promised at every port.
Apply the specific allowance, not one rule for every boundary
The service guide's personal-use duty-free allowances include RMB 5,000 for resident travellers' overseas purchases and RMB 2,000 for non-resident travellers' articles remaining in China. Personal use, reasonable quantity, item-specific exceptions and other declaration conditions still apply. Neither an exact amount nor nationality alone decides the channel or resident status.
Order No. 276 defines “exceeds” as excluding equality within that order; do not extend that definition to every separate cash, alcohol or tobacco rule. Our editorial precaution for an unresolved boundary is to ask Customs before choosing a channel. When a declaration is required or you are unsure, choose red.
Separate rule: the exchange-control section says RMB 20,000 is the maximum allowed in either direction. The exceeding part is prohibited.
Entering China: practical declaration checks
These tables explain common passenger cases. Also declare goods contaminated by, or posing a risk of spreading, a quarantinable infectious disease; on departure, blood, tissue, pathogens and biological materials affecting public-health safety; temporary-entry or temporary-exit baggage requiring written registration; and any other baggage subject to written declaration. Use the current official declaration list before choosing a channel. Declaration does not make prohibited goods admissible.
For tobacco and alcohol, match your traveller category against the Customs allowance explanation; the tobacco options are alternatives, not allowances to add together.
Match resident status and the item's destination. Row 1 concerns resident travellers' overseas purchases; row 2 concerns non-resident travellers' articles intended to remain in China. Do not infer resident status from nationality alone. Ask Customs if your category is unclear.
| # | What you carry | Amount or condition to check | What changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Personal-use articles acquired overseas by resident travellers | RMB 5,000 | The duty-free allowance includes RMB 5,000, subject to personal use, reasonable quantity and item-specific exceptions. Above it, duty may apply; other declaration conditions still matter. |
| 2 | Personal-use articles intended to remain in China, carried by non-resident travellers | RMB 2,000 | The duty-free allowance includes RMB 2,000, subject to personal use, reasonable quantity and item-specific exceptions. Above it, declare; the allowance alone does not decide the channel. |
| 3 | Alcohol and tobacco | General allowance reference: one tobacco option — 400 cigarettes OR 20 cigars OR 500 g cut tobacco; alcohol above 12% ABV: 1.5 litres. Different limits apply to arrivals from Hong Kong/Macao and frequent travellers. Minors and crew must confirm their applicable category. | Our editorial precaution at an unresolved quantity boundary is to ask Customs before choosing a channel. If the applicable allowance or traveller category is unclear, choose red. |
| 4 | Cash | RMB 20,000 cap; foreign cash depends on ordinary or repeat-crossing rules | For an ordinary inbound crossing, foreign cash has no amount cap, but more than USD 5,000 equivalent must be declared. Different rules apply if you cross more than once in a day or more than once within 15 days: do not use the ordinary USD 5,000 line to decide your declaration or later exit. Give Customs the cash total and your crossing dates before choosing a channel; choose red if unsure. Keep the latest inbound declaration record required for any later outbound use. |
| 5 | Animals and plants, their products, microbes, biological products, human tissue, blood or blood products | Any | Product-specific quarantine and health rules still apply. |
| 6 | Radio transmitters, radio receivers or communication-security equipment | Any | Customs handles the item under the current restriction rules. |
| 7 | Other articles prohibited or restricted by Chinese law | Any | Do not assume declaration makes a prohibited article admissible. |
| 8 | Goods of commercial value, samples or advertisements | Any | This guide does not calculate commercial duty or import procedures. |
| 9 | Unaccompanied baggage | Any | Declare it at entry and follow the separate-transport procedure. |
Leaving China: practical declaration checks
| # | What you carry | Amount or condition to check | What changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Camera, video camera, laptop or other trip necessity taken out by a resident traveller and intended to be brought back to China | Temporary-exit registration: confirm with Customs | Before departure, ask Customs whether written registration and any guarantee are required for temporary exit and re-entry. Follow the format offered at the port; if registered, retain the Customs-endorsed record for your return. |
| 2 | Cash | RMB 20,000 cap; foreign cash depends on the latest entry record and total amount | If your foreign cash does not exceed the amount recorded at your latest entry, ask Customs to verify that record for departure. If you have no usable record or carry more than it records, the ordinary rule depends on the total foreign cash you will take out: up to USD 5,000 equivalent needs no Carrying Certificate; above USD 5,000 and up to USD 10,000 requires the authorized-bank certificate route; above USD 10,000 requires the foreign-exchange authority route and its applicable conditions. These ordinary branches do not cover same-day or short-period repeat crossings. Before departure, give Customs or your authorized bank the total amount, latest entry record and crossing dates; obtain the required confirmation or documents. Do not assume a certificate for only the difference is sufficient. |
| 3 | Gold, silver and other precious metals | Any | Customs applies current export controls. |
| 4 | Cultural relics, endangered animals or plants and their products, biological species resources | Any | A declaration is not a substitute for required permission. |
| 5 | Radio transmitters, radio receivers or communication-security equipment | Any | Customs applies current export controls. |
| 6 | Other articles prohibited or restricted from export | Any | Ask before the channel when classification is unclear. |
| 7 | Goods of commercial value, samples or advertisements | Any | Commercial procedures sit outside this passenger guide. |
Declare in the port's format; keep the endorsed record
Follow the format offered at the port; where electronic declaration is offered, confirm the data as Customs directs. For these later-crossing procedures, ask which Customs-endorsed record is required and retain it. Confirm the paper format and any copies required with Customs before filing; an arbitrary online confirmation is not proof that a foreign-currency exit document is valid.
For temporary entry or exit, Order No. 276, Article 13 provides for written registration, a guarantee as required under the applicable rules, and release with Customs endorsement; Customs uses the endorsed record when the items cross back. The current declaration notice, No. 43 of 2025 sets the paper or offered electronic procedure. Confirm with Customs whether registration and any guarantee apply to your equipment; this is not a requirement imposed here on every traveller.
Foreign cash you intend to take out later
- When
- You enter with foreign cash and intend to carry it out later. Confirm the applicable ordinary or repeat-crossing declaration rule before choosing a channel.
- Action
- Use the declaration format offered at the port. Ask Customs which record of your latest inbound foreign-currency declaration is required for your later foreign-currency exit and retain that record; do not assume any electronic confirmation is equivalent.
- Keep it for
- If your foreign cash does not exceed the amount recorded at your latest entry, ask Customs to verify that record for departure. If you have no usable record or carry more than it records, the ordinary rule depends on the total foreign cash you will take out: up to USD 5,000 equivalent needs no Carrying Certificate; above USD 5,000 and up to USD 10,000 requires the authorized-bank certificate route; above USD 10,000 requires the foreign-exchange authority route and its applicable conditions. These ordinary branches do not cover same-day or short-period repeat crossings. Before departure, give Customs or your authorized bank the total amount, latest entry record and crossing dates; obtain the required confirmation or documents. Do not assume a certificate for only the difference is sufficient.
Personal trip equipment you intend to bring back
- When
- You are a resident traveller leaving China with personal travel equipment and intend to re-enter with it. Ask Customs whether temporary-exit written registration and any guarantee are required for your case.
- Action
- Use the declaration format offered at the port and complete the registration and any guarantee Customs requires for your case. If electronic declaration is offered, confirm the data with Customs and ask which endorsed record is needed for your return; an ordinary online confirmation is not automatically equivalent.
- Keep it for
- If registered, keep the Customs-endorsed record for re-entry and present it when bringing the equipment back. Registration does not guarantee clearance of an item subject to other restrictions.
RMB 20,000 is a cap, not a declaration threshold
The Shenzhen Port Office explains that each traveller may carry no more than RMB 20,000 per crossing in either direction. Reduce any excess before travel; declaring it does not establish permission to carry it.
RMB cash: a hard ceiling of 20,000 yuan in either direction. Reduce an amount above it before travel.
Foreign currency: For an ordinary inbound crossing, foreign cash has no amount cap, but more than USD 5,000 equivalent must be declared. Different rules apply if you cross more than once in a day or more than once within 15 days: do not use the ordinary USD 5,000 line to decide your declaration or later exit. Give Customs the cash total and your crossing dates before choosing a channel; choose red if unsure. Keep the latest inbound declaration record required for any later outbound use.
Travelling with children: confirm the declaration procedure
For a child travelling with adults, ask Customs how the declaration should be completed and have the accompanying adult handle any goods that must be declared. Do not assume that a child's age exempts the goods or determines the current form requirement. Age does not make prohibited items permissible. With nothing requiring declaration, travellers may use green without a form; choose red and ask Customs if your case is unclear.
Prohibited and restricted items — check the stated exceptions
- Weapons, imitation weapons, ammunition and explosives.
- Counterfeit currency and securities.
- Deadly poisons and addictive narcotic or psychotropic substances outside a valid medical route.
- Animals, plants or products carrying dangerous pathogens or pests.
- Animal-source traditional medicinal materials are on the prohibited-entry list. A prescription alone does not override that rule. The list states an exception where the relevant Chinese authority has approved entry and the exporting country or region has issued the required official quarantine certificate. Unless that specific approval-and-certificate route is established, do not pack the item; ask Customs before travel with the exact ingredients.
- Food, medicine or other articles from an epidemic area when harmful or capable of spreading disease.
- Everything prohibited from import.
- Material involving state secrets.
- Valuable cultural relics and other relics prohibited from export.
- Endangered or precious animals and plants, including specimens, seeds and reproductive material.
Live animals are prohibited except dogs and cats as pets. Pet quarantine and document requirements are a separate decision.
Bringing medication — use the active ingredient, not the brand name
Do not use a domestic prescription duration as your border allowance. For narcotic and Category I psychotropic medicine, Article 44 directs Customs to apply the personal-use and reasonable-quantity principle for entry and exit. Carry the diagnosis record, patient identification and prescription as supporting evidence and proactively declare for Customs review. For Category II medicine or an ingredient whose Chinese classification you have not confirmed, the permitted quantity remains unresolved here: bring the generic ingredient name and medical record, ask Customs about that exact medicine before travel, and declare for on-site review. The separate certificate for medical personnel carrying stock is not the ordinary-patient route.
Ordinary personal-use medicine
- Branch
- No narcotic or psychotropic controlled ingredient identified.
- Quantity rule
- The cited rules require personal use and a reasonable quantity; they do not establish one universal border day limit for every medicine.
- Documents and action
- Before packing, identify the generic active ingredient and check its Chinese control category. Keep original packaging and bring the prescription or diagnosis record as practical supporting evidence. If classification or quantity is unclear, ask Customs before travel and choose red for unresolved declaration questions. This guide does not determine whether your particular ingredient or quantity is admissible.
Narcotic or Category I psychotropic medicine
- Branch
- The patient needs the medicine for treatment.
- Quantity rule
- The cross-border clause gives no fixed numerical passenger limit. Customs applies the personal-use and reasonable-quantity principle.
- Documents and action
- Carry the medical institution's diagnosis certificate, the patient's identity document and the prescription as evidence, and proactively declare it for on-site review.
Category II psychotropic or unclassified ingredient
- Branch
- The medicine falls in Category II, or you have not confirmed its Chinese control classification.
- Quantity rule
- The permitted quantity remains unresolved here until the Chinese control classification and the applicable Customs treatment are confirmed.
- Documents and action
- Bring the generic ingredient name and medical record, ask Customs about that exact medicine before travel, and declare for on-site review. Do not use a domestic prescription duration as your border allowance.
Animal-source traditional medicine
- Branch
- The remedy or ingredient is made from an animal product.
- Quantity rule
- Animal-source traditional medicinal materials are on the prohibited-entry list. A prescription alone does not override that rule.
- Documents and action
- Animal-source traditional medicinal materials are on the prohibited-entry list. A prescription alone does not override that rule. The list states an exception where the relevant Chinese authority has approved entry and the exporting country or region has issued the required official quarantine certificate. Unless that specific approval-and-certificate route is established, do not pack the item; ask Customs before travel with the exact ingredients.
Classification boundary: a brand name is not enough. If you cannot confirm the active ingredient against China's current narcotic and psychotropic schedules, carry the supporting medical record and ask Customs before the channel. The separate certificate for medical personnel carrying small stocks is not the ordinary-patient route.
“Biological product” no longer answers the passenger question
The old one-course wording appeared in two regulations. Order No. 276 repealed the old carried-items quarantine measures from 1 April 2025, and Order No. 281 repealed the old special-items regulation from 1 August 2026. The current decision is classification first—not whether a label merely says biological product.
Managed in China as a drug, veterinary drug or medical device
- Branch
- A biological product is placed in one of these regulated product categories under Chinese rules.
- What the current rule does
- Order No. 281 expressly excludes it from the special-goods quarantine regime.
- Action
- Use the applicable medicine, veterinary-drug or medical-device route. Do not infer that exclusion from Order No. 281 means unrestricted passenger entry; this page does not provide a product-classification lookup.
Non-drug blood, tissue, pathogen or biological material
- Branch
- The item concerns public-health safety and is not managed as a drug, veterinary drug or medical device.
- What the current rule does
- Order No. 281 requires the applicant to seek approval from the direct Customs office at the applicant's location before shipment. A natural person cannot be the applicant for a pathogen or an item that may contain one.
- Action
- Do not arrive expecting a passenger one-course exemption. If carried without an approval document, Customs temporarily withholds release; approval obtained within seven days can lead to inspection and release, otherwise the inbound item is returned or destroyed.
Do not use the seven-day hold as a planning route. It is a last opportunity to obtain an approval document after Customs has withheld release, not permission to arrive first and sort it out later.
Seven worked cases
These cases apply the official rules. At the crossing, declare goods or cash in the required channel and ask Customs when classification is unclear.
Case 1 — DEFAULT — ordinary tourist, nothing unusual
- Conditions
- Two-week trip · USD 2,000 cash · personal clothing and one phone
- Result
- No listed category applies, so use green. Customs may still inspect the baggage; inspection does not mean the channel was wrong.
- Boundary
- Customs may request records or inspect goods after the channel choice.
Case 2 — FAILURE — the gift that stays behind
- Conditions
- Non-resident traveller · RMB 3,000 gift for a friend · item will remain in China
- Result
- Use red. The non-resident allowance for articles remaining in China is RMB 2,000; the RMB 5,000 allowance concerns resident travellers' overseas purchases. Nationality alone does not establish either category.
- Boundary
- This page does not calculate the duty payable on the gift.
Case 3 — REVERSAL — the laptop you will take home
- Conditions
- Non-resident traveller · RMB 12,000 laptop going home after the trip · concern about the RMB 2,000 allowance
- Result
- The RMB 2,000 allowance concerns articles intended to remain in China, so it does not settle the temporary laptop's declaration requirements. Ask Customs about temporary-entry records. Separately, a resident traveller taking personal equipment out and back should ask Customs whether temporary-exit written registration and any guarantee are required. Follow the port's format and, if registered, retain the Customs-endorsed record for return.
- Boundary
- Direction and intended destination change the result; price alone does not decide it.
Case 4 — FAILURE — RMB 30,000 in cash
- Conditions
- Traveller assumes any amount is allowed once declared
- Result
- Reduce the RMB before travel. RMB 20,000 is the maximum allowed in either direction; the excess is prohibited rather than cured by declaration.
- Boundary
- For an ordinary inbound crossing, foreign cash has no amount cap, but more than USD 5,000 equivalent must be declared. Different rules apply if you cross more than once in a day or more than once within 15 days: do not use the ordinary USD 5,000 line to decide your declaration or later exit. Give Customs the cash total and your crossing dates before choosing a channel; choose red if unsure. Keep the latest inbound declaration record required for any later outbound use.
Case 5 — EDGE — the family with a 14-year-old
- Conditions
- Family of three · one child aged 14 travelling with adults
- Result
- Ask Customs how the declaration should be completed for a child travelling with adults. The accompanying adult must handle goods that need declaring; do not use the child's age to decide the current form requirement. If unsure which channel to use, choose red and ask Customs.
- Boundary
- The child's age is a fact of this example, not an exemption for the goods or permission to carry prohibited articles.
Case 6 — EDGE — bringing the dog
- Conditions
- Traveller wants to enter with one pet dog
- Result
- Dogs and cats are excepted from the passenger guide's live-animal prohibition, but the pet still has separate quarantine and document requirements.
- Boundary
- This page does not complete the pet-import decision; verify quarantine rules before booking.
Case 7 — FAILURE — carrying a human tissue sample for a laboratory
- Conditions
- The sample is not managed as a medicine or medical device · no pre-departure approval document
- Result
- Do not treat this as ordinary baggage. Order No. 281 covers non-drug human tissue and requires pre-departure approval. Without it, Customs temporarily withholds release; if approval is not obtained within seven days, the item is returned or destroyed.
- Boundary
- If the item contains or may contain a pathogen, a natural person cannot be the approval applicant. The regulation publishes no tourist-specific overseas shortcut.
Failure recovery
R1 — You are already in the green channel and realise a category applies.
- Trigger
- You remember the gift, cash, equipment or another declarable item.
- First action
- Tell a Customs officer immediately. Required written declaration must be completed before Customs takes inspection measures; remaining inside the channel is not a grace period.
- Alternative
- If you have already exited the channel, approach the Customs office rather than leaving the airport.
- Escalation
- Ask Customs how to proceed. Voluntary disclosure does not guarantee exemption from liability or cure an earlier failure to declare.
R2 — You are carrying more RMB than the cap.
- Trigger
- Your cash is above RMB 20,000.
- First action
- Reduce the amount before travel; declaration does not legalise the excess.
- Alternative
- Use a lawful bank or foreign-exchange instrument. Foreign cash follows a declaration rule rather than the RMB hard cap.
- Escalation
- Ask an authorised bank, the foreign-exchange authority or Customs before travelling with a larger sum.
R3 — You want to take foreign currency out but did not declare it on entry.
- Trigger
- Departure with foreign cash and no endorsed entry record, or a recorded amount below what you now carry.
- First action
- If your foreign cash does not exceed the amount recorded at your latest entry, ask Customs to verify that record for departure. Otherwise, use the total amount you will take out to select the applicable branch.
- Alternative
- For ordinary crossings without a usable entry record or above its recorded amount: up to USD 5,000 equivalent needs no Carrying Certificate; above USD 5,000 and up to USD 10,000 uses the authorized-bank certificate route; above USD 10,000 uses the foreign-exchange authority route and its applicable conditions.
- Escalation
- Same-day and short-period repeat crossings have different rules. Before departure, give Customs or your authorized bank the total amount, latest entry record and crossing dates. Do not assume a certificate for only the difference is sufficient.
R4 — You are not sure which channel applies.
- Trigger
- The source wording conflicts, the ingredient is unclear or your item does not fit a clean category.
- First action
- Choose red.
- Alternative
- Ask a Customs officer before entering either channel.
- Escalation
- Red is a declaration route, not a penalty. Do not use green to test an unresolved interpretation.
R5 — You cannot tell whether a biological item is a medicine or special material.
- Trigger
- The label says biological product, cell, tissue, blood product or sample, but the Chinese regulatory category is unclear.
- First action
- Ask the manufacturer, receiving institution or sponsor for the product's Chinese regulatory classification before packing it.
- Alternative
- Contact Customs with the exact item, ingredients, intended use and destination before shipment; do not rely on the old one-course wording.
- Escalation
- If classification or required approval is still unresolved, do not carry the item as passenger baggage.
What this page cannot settle for you
- The Chinese control classification of a branded medicine without its active ingredient.
- Whether a biological product is managed in China as a drug, veterinary drug, medical device or non-drug special material.
- The duty payable on a specific item or the current commercial import procedure.
- Pet quarantine and veterinary-document requirements.
- Whether an officer will accept a particular document or quantity after on-site review.
Source-integrity note: this page uses the national Customs service guide for passenger procedures, the English State Council guide for red/green channels, current 2026 allowance material attributed to Chongqing Customs, the Shenzhen Port Office for the RMB cap, SAFE for foreign-cash rules, Article 44 for controlled medicine and the official animal-product list with its approval-and-certificate exception.
Your entry check
- Run the table for your direction and resident status; ask Customs if the category is unclear
- Apply the specific allowance and all other conditions; choose red when declaration is required or you are unsure
- Reduce RMB cash to 20,000 or below
- Complete the port's paper or offered electronic declaration before Customs takes inspection measures. For a later crossing, ask Customs which endorsed record is required and keep it; confirm the port's paper format rather than assuming a fixed copy count
- Use a medicine's active ingredient and carry supporting medical documents
- For blood, tissue, pathogens or biological products, establish whether China manages the item as a drug, veterinary drug or medical device before packing it
Common questions
What should I do at exactly USD 5,000 or RMB 2,000?
The personal-use allowance for a non-resident's articles remaining in China includes RMB 2,000, with all other conditions and item-specific exceptions still applicable. This is not automatic green-channel permission. For an ordinary inbound crossing, foreign cash has no amount cap, but more than USD 5,000 equivalent must be declared. Different rules apply if you cross more than once in a day or more than once within 15 days: do not use the ordinary USD 5,000 line to decide your declaration or later exit. Give Customs the cash total and your crossing dates before choosing a channel; choose red if unsure. Keep the latest inbound declaration record required for any later outbound use.
Can I bring more than RMB 20,000 if I declare it?
No. The cited exchange-control rule says RMB 20,000 is the limit in either direction and the exceeding part is prohibited.
How should I check the permitted quantity of prescription medicine?
Do not use a domestic prescription duration as your border allowance. For narcotic and Category I psychotropic medicine, Article 44 directs Customs to apply the personal-use and reasonable-quantity principle for entry and exit. Carry the diagnosis record, patient identification and prescription as supporting evidence and proactively declare for Customs review. For Category II medicine or an ingredient whose Chinese classification you have not confirmed, the permitted quantity remains unresolved here: bring the generic ingredient name and medical record, ask Customs about that exact medicine before travel, and declare for on-site review. The separate certificate for medical personnel carrying stock is not the ordinary-patient route.
Does the green channel mean my bag cannot be checked?
No. Customs may inspect baggage regardless of the chosen channel.
Can I rely on the old one-course allowance for a biological product?
No. Orders No. 276 and 281 repealed the two old regulations that contained that wording. If China manages the item as a drug, veterinary drug or medical device, Order No. 281 does not govern it and the product-specific route applies. If it is covered non-drug blood, tissue, pathogen or biological material, pre-departure approval may be required; arrival without approval can lead to temporary non-release and, if approval is not obtained within seven days, return or destruction.
Last checked
We checked the claims displayed on this page against the linked official sources. Recheck sooner if a country list, threshold or filing channel changes.
Official sources
Sources checked 6 September 2026.
National service guide for inward/outward passenger baggageGeneral Administration of Customs ↗Red and green channels for Customs clearanceState Council of the People's Republic of China ↗2026 inbound tobacco and alcohol duty-free allowanceChongqing Municipal Government / Chongqing Customs ↗RMB cash cap and foreign-currency declaration guidanceShenzhen Port Office ↗Foreign-currency cash entry/exit rules — Articles 2–6State Administration of Foreign Exchange ↗Regulations on Narcotic and Psychotropic Drugs — current Article 44State Administration for Market Regulation ↗Announcement No. 470 — prohibited animal and plant productsMinistry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs + General Administration of Customs ↗Order No. 276 — current baggage rules and repeal of the old carried-items quarantine measuresGeneral Administration of Customs ↗Order No. 281 — special goods and items quarantine rules effective 1 August 2026General Administration of Customs / State Council Gazette ↗