Updated 15 October 2026. Until 31 December 2026, applicants for any short-term Chinese visa with a stay of up to 180 days give no fingerprints: tourist L, business M (including multiple-entry visas valid for 1 to 5 years), F, X2, Q2, S2 and G. Fingerprints are still taken from applicants for long-term visas D, J1, Q1, S1, X1 and Z, who apply for a residence permit after arriving in China. This follows the notice of the Chinese Embassy in Prague of 24 December 2025; the Chinese embassies in other countries apply the same exemption.
Česká verze: Vízum do Číny bez otisků prstů.
Who is exempt from fingerprints in 2026
All short-term visas with stays of up to 180 days are exempt until 31 December 2026. The number of entries and the validity of the visa do not matter; what counts is the length of a single stay.
- Tourist visa L, single or double entry.
- Business visa M, including multiple-entry visas valid for 1 to 5 years.
- Visa F for exchanges, conferences and lectures.
- Short-term study X2 of up to 180 days.
- Short family visits Q2 and S2.
- Transit visa G and crew visa C.
Regardless of visa type, children under 14, people over 70 and holders of diplomatic passports give no fingerprints. The 240-hour visa-free transit involves no visa application at all.
Who still has to give fingerprints
Applicants for visas D, J1, Q1, S1, X1 and Z must give fingerprints. All of them apply for a residence permit after arriving in China.
- X1: study longer than 180 days.
- Z: work in China.
- Q1 and S1: long-term stay with family.
- J1: resident foreign journalist.
- D: permanent residence.
For these visas, plan a personal visit to the CITS visa centre in Prague. Whether fingerprints you gave earlier can be reused is decided by the visa centre; the current Prague notice says nothing about a five-year validity of older fingerprints.
Fingerprints by visa type
| Visa | Purpose | Fingerprints when applying in 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| L | tourism | no |
| M | business, trade fairs, also multiple entry for 1 to 5 years | no |
| F | exchange, conferences, lectures | no |
| X2 | study up to 180 days | no |
| Q2, S2 | short family visit | no |
| G, C | transit, crew | no |
| X1 | study over 180 days | yes |
| Z | work | yes |
| Q1, S1 | long-term stay with family | yes |
| J1, D | resident journalist, permanent residence | yes |
All visa types are explained in the guide to Chinese visas in the Czech Republic.
Fingerprints at the Chinese border
The exemption covers the visa application, not the entry to China. Chinese border control takes fingerprints from foreigners aged 14 to 70 on arrival, usually at a self-service kiosk before the immigration desk. Nothing needs to be arranged in advance and it does not affect your visa.
What happens after 31 December 2026
The exemption currently runs until 31 December 2026. China has extended it several times since 2023 and widened it to all short-term visas in December 2025, but a further extension is not guaranteed. If you travel in early 2027, check the rules before applying on our page Aktuální podmínky (in Czech), which we update after every notice of the embassy and the CITS visa centre.
Applying without a personal visit
For short-term visas we can submit the application for you, without your personal visit. Send us the signed application, your passport and a photo; we check everything, submit it at the CITS visa centre and return the passport with the visa by EMS courier. Standard processing takes 4 working days from submission. Our online order form is in Czech; you can also simply email us in English at recepce@vizadociny.cz or call +420 296 348 606.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to give fingerprints for a Chinese tourist visa in 2026?
Does the exemption apply to a 5-year multiple-entry business visa?
Who has to give fingerprints for a Chinese visa in 2026?
Do children need to give fingerprints?
Are fingerprints taken at the Chinese border?
How long is the fingerprint exemption valid?
Get your Chinese visa without a trip to Prague
We submit tourist and business visa applications for you, you just send us the documents.