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    Student visa guide

    China student visa 2026: cost, requirements and how to apply

    The X1 study visa for courses over 180 days, converted after arrival into a residence permit for study costs $67 in fees nobody can skip, up to $255 if every situational extra applies.

    By Global Admissions Editorial · Checked against 4 official sources

    How much does a China student visa cost in 2026?

    Applying for a student visa in China on the X1 study visa plus a residence permit for study costs $67 in fees you cannot skip: X1 visa fee (single entry, set per nationality) ($8) and Residence permit for study, up to one year ($59). Situational extras (X1 visa fee tier, Indian passport holders (single entry), X1 visa fee tier, Bangladeshi passport holders (single entry), residence permit for study, one to three years and express processing at the mission) add up to $188 more. Tuition, living costs and proof-of-funds sit outside this total. All amounts are US dollars, last checked August 2026.

    X1 study visa for courses over 180 days, converted after arrival into a residence permit for study cost breakdown

    Every line the China application puts on your card, in US dollars, as of August 2026.

    X1 visa fee (single entry, set per nationality)$8
    Each mission prices the passport in front of it; the floor among our encoded tiers is NGN 10,500 in Nigeria, with the Indian and Bangladeshi tiers listed below Chinese Embassy in Nigeria: Notice on Extension of Visa-Fee Reduction Policy
    Residence permit for study, up to one year$59
    CNY 400, paid to the exit and entry administration after you arrive National Immigration Administration: Schedule of exit and entry document fees
    Mandatory total$67
    What the X1 study visa for courses over 180 days, converted after arrival into a residence permit for study costs before any optional service.
    Situational extras, only if they apply to you
    X1 visa fee tier, Indian passport holders (single entry)$31
    Replaces the base line, never adds to it: INR 2,900 at Chinese missions in India, the reduced rate running to 31 December 2026 Chinese Embassy in India: FAQs on Applying for Chinese Visa
    X1 visa fee tier, Bangladeshi passport holders (single entry)$20
    Replaces the base line, never adds to it: BDT 2,400 on a Bangladeshi passport; BDT 3,000 on a third-country passport at the same counter Chinese Embassy in Bangladesh: Schedule of consular fees, 14 May 2026
    Residence permit for study, one to three years$118
    CNY 800 where the course length puts the permit past a year National Immigration Administration: Schedule of exit and entry document fees
    Express processing at the mission$19
    INR 1,800 in India; other missions publish their own express and urgent tariffs Chinese Embassy in India: Notice on Extension of Visa-Fee Reduction
    If every extra applied$255
    Worst case. Most applicants pay none or one of these.

    Amounts are US dollars. China bills in its own currency, so the exact charge moves with the exchange rate. The native figures are in the notes column where the fee schedule publishes them.

    Things to watch

    • There is no single Chinese student visa fee. Each mission publishes a tariff for the passport in front of it, so the same X1 costs about USD 8 on a Nigerian passport and about USD 31 on an Indian one.
    • The bigger, and more predictable, cost lands after arrival. The residence permit is CNY 400 for up to a year and CNY 800 for one to three years, set nationally by the 2004 price notice the immigration administration still publishes.
    • Visa application service centers add their own service fee on top of the embassy fee. That charge belongs to the center, is set separately, and is not part of the government tariff.
    • A permit valid more than a year also needs a health certificate from an approved medical body. No national fee is published for it, so budget for the clinic's own price.
    • USD figures convert at the US Treasury reporting rates of exchange for 30 June 2026: USD 1 = CNY 6.785, INR 94.66 and NGN 1,380.08.

    China student visa requirements and documents checklist

    9 documents every applicant provides.

    DocumentWho needs itWhat it involves
    Admission letter from the Chinese schooleveryoneThe original and a photocopy of the admission letter issued by the university or other entity in China. X1 covers study of more than 180 days; a course of 180 days or less takes an X2 visa instead and does not lead to a residence permit. source
    Confirmation Form for Study in China, form JW201 or JW202everyoneYour university issues the JW form alongside the admission letter, and it is the document the mission checks the X1 application against. A photocopy is what the visa center keeps. source
    Passport valid at least six months with two blank visa pageseveryoneExpired passports from the last five years go in as well. If your new passport carries a different name, add the official document that recorded the change. source
    Online application form and its confirmation pageeveryoneThe form is completed on the China Online Visa Application site and printed; the confirmation page with the barcode is what you hand over at the visa center with the passport. source
    Two color passport photographs, 48 mm by 33 mmeveryoneFull face, front view, bare head, taken within the last six months. source
    Ten fingerprints at the visa application centereveryoneApplicants under 14 or over 70, those whose fingerprints were taken at the same mission in the past five years on the same passport, and those with unusable fingers are exempt. source
    Proof of legal status if you apply outside your own countryeveryoneNon-citizens applying at a Chinese mission in a third country submit the original and a copy of their residence, employment or study permission there. source
    School letter stating the length of your courseeveryoneThis is for the residence permit rather than the visa. The exit and entry authorities issue a permit that matches the study period the school states, so a shorter letter means a shorter permit. source
    Health certificate, for any residence permit longer than a yeareveryoneIssued by a local health and quarantine body or a county-level or higher medical institution, confirming you do not have a serious mental disorder, infectious tuberculosis or another infectious disease that would be a major public health risk. source

    How to apply for a China student visa

    1. Get the admission letter and the JW form from your university

      The Chinese institution issues both. Without the JW201 or JW202 the mission will not take an X1 application, so chase the university for it before you book anything.

      source
    2. Fill in the online form and lodge the file at the visa center

      Applications go through the Chinese Visa Application Service Centre covering your area rather than straight to the embassy. In India that means New Delhi, Mumbai or Kolkata depending on where you live.

      source
    3. Give your fingerprints and pay the mission's fee for your nationality

      Ten fingerprints are taken at the center unless you are exempt. The fee is set per nationality at each mission, and a first-time applicant is normally issued a single-entry visa.

      source
    4. Collect the X1 visa, usually on the fourth working day

      A qualified regular application takes about four working days at Chinese missions in India and about three with the express service. The visa center's own VIP service does not change that.

      source
    5. Apply for the residence permit within 30 days of landing

      An X1 is an entry document, not permission to stay for the course. Go to the exit and entry administration of the public security bureau where you will live and apply for the residence permit inside 30 days of entry.

      source
    6. Attend in person and wait up to 15 working days

      You have to lodge the permit application yourself, and the authorities may interview you, telephone you or visit to check the application is genuine. The receipt runs for up to 15 working days, within which the decision is made, and you collect the permit in person.

      source
    7. Get an annotation added before any work-study or internship

      A study residence permit does not by itself allow you to work. Bring consent letters from both your school and the host organization and ask the exit and entry administration to annotate the permit first.

      source

    China student visa processing time

    Chinese missions in India take about four working days over a qualified regular visa application and about three working days over an express one, counted from a complete file.

    Chinese Embassy in India: Notice on Updating Requirements for Chinese Visa Application · checked August 2026

    China student visa work rights, dependants and what comes after

    Work rights

    A study residence permit does not carry work rights on its own. To take on work-study or an off-campus internship you submit letters of consent from both your school and the host organization and have the exit and entry administration add an annotation to the permit.

    sourcecompare all countries

    Dependants

    Family join a student on the private affairs route, which covers a spouse, parents, parents-in-law and children under 18. The residence permit they are issued runs only as long as the student's own permit, so it stops when the course does.

    source

    After graduation

    China has no general post-study stay permit. Staying on to work means moving to a work-category residence permit, which needs a work permit certificate from the human resources and social security or foreign experts authorities plus a letter from the employer. Ordinary hires get up to one year, staff of well-regarded registered employers up to two, and recognized high-level talent up to five.

    sourcecompare all countries

    China student visa requirements for Indian students

    The full China visa guide for Indian students, with the fee in your currency.

    Your visa fee is an Indian rate, not a global one

    Chinese missions in India charge Indian passport holders INR 2,900 for a single-entry visa, INR 4,400 for double entry, INR 5,900 for six-month multiple entry and INR 8,800 for a year or more, plus INR 1,800 if you use the express service.

    source

    The reduced fees were extended to 31 December 2026

    The embassy and consulates in India confirmed in January 2026 that the visa-fee reduction runs to the end of 2026, with the express fee held at INR 1,800 and the urgent fee at INR 2,700.

    source

    Which mission handles you depends on your state

    Maharashtra and Karnataka go to the Consulate-General in Mumbai; Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal go to Kolkata; everywhere else goes to the embassy in New Delhi. Filing at the wrong post means starting again.

    source

    China student visa requirements for Nigerian students

    The full China visa guide for Nigerian students, with the fee in your currency.

    Nigerian passport holders pay a naira tariff

    The embassy in Abuja and the Consulate-General in Lagos charge NGN 10,500 for a single entry, NGN 15,750 for two entries, NGN 21,000 for six-month multiple entry and NGN 31,500 for one-year multiple entry.

    source

    The reduction was extended to 31 December 2026

    The notice of 26 December 2025 kept the reduced naira tariff in place for another year, so a student applying during the 2026 intake pays these rates rather than the older ones.

    source

    China student visa requirements for Bangladeshi students

    The full China visa guide for Bangladeshi students, with the fee in your currency.

    Bangladeshi and third-country passports pay different rates at the same counter

    The embassy in Dhaka charges BDT 2,400 for a single entry on a Bangladeshi passport and BDT 3,000 on a third-country passport, with the same gap running through the double-entry and multiple-entry tiers.

    source

    Speed is a separate purchase

    Regular delivery is the fourth working day at BDT 2,400, express is the third at BDT 5,100 and urgent is the second at BDT 6,400, all for a single-entry visa on a Bangladeshi passport.

    source
    United States
    From $535 all-in
    United Kingdom
    From $1,760 all-in
    Canada
    From $175 all-in
    Australia
    From $2,250 all-in
    Germany
    From $190 all-in
    France
    From $183 all-in

    FAQ

    Frequently asked questions

    How much is the China student visa fee?
    The X1 study visa plus a residence permit for study application charge is $8 (X1 visa fee (single entry, set per nationality)). Add the other mandatory items (Residence permit for study, up to one year $59) and the all-in mandatory total is $67. Optional extras add up to $188 on top.
    Can you work on a China student visa?
    A study residence permit does not carry work rights on its own. To take on work-study or an off-campus internship you submit letters of consent from both your school and the host organization and have the exit and entry administration add an annotation to the permit. Source: National Immigration Administration: Service guide for issuing residence permits to foreigners (August 2026).
    How long does a China student visa take?
    Chinese missions in India take about four working days over a qualified regular visa application and about three working days over an express one, counted from a complete file. Source: Chinese Embassy in India: Notice on Updating Requirements for Chinese Visa Application (August 2026).
    Can you bring your family on a China student visa?
    Family join a student on the private affairs route, which covers a spouse, parents, parents-in-law and children under 18. The residence permit they are issued runs only as long as the student's own permit, so it stops when the course does. Source: National Immigration Administration: Service guide for issuing residence permits to foreigners (August 2026).
    What's not included in the X1 study visa plus a residence permit for study fee?
    Tuition, living costs and the money you have to show in your account are separate from the fees on this page. Use our cost-of-study calculator at /tools/cost-calculator for a complete budget.
    When are these fees due?
    Application and biometric fees are paid before submission. Health surcharges (UK IHS, Australian OSHC) are paid as part of the visa application. Some fees (Anmeldung in Germany, OFII in France) are paid after arrival.

    Official sources

    Last verified August 2026.