China has announced the introduction of a one-year visa-free regime for Russian citizens, a move unveiled in the immediate aftermath of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Beijing. The high-level gathering, which concluded on Monday with more than 20 world leaders present, underscored China’s ambition to shape a new global security and economic order in the age of Trump 2.0. Against this backdrop, the visa-free measure symbolises both practical cooperation and a deepening of Sino-Russian ties.
From 15 September 2025 until 14 September 2026, Russian citizens holding ordinary passports will be able to enter China without a visa for stays of up to 30 days. The decision was confirmed by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun, who said the policy was intended to “facilitate mutual travel between citizens of China and other countries”. Russians will be permitted visa-free entry for tourism, business, visiting relatives or friends, and exchange visits.
👋🇨🇳🇷🇺Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson on #China–#Russia relations: China expands #visa waiver, granting Russia ordinary passport holders #VisaFree entry for up to 30 days for business, tourism, family visits, exchanges, or transit from September 15, 2025, to September 14,… https://t.co/HR0uX8EyTR pic.twitter.com/jGDpx0exxJ
— ShanghaiEye🚀official (@ShanghaiEye) September 2, 2025
A strategic backdrop
The timing of the announcement is significant. The SCO, founded in 2001 by China, Russia and four Central Asian nations, has grown to ten member states and now positions itself as a central platform for the Global South. The Beijing summit closed with a joint declaration pledging a deepened strategic alliance among its members. By tying the visa-free initiative to this context, China has sent a clear signal that people-to-people exchanges are part of its broader vision for a more integrated non-Western order.
Welcome to the real multipolar world!
— Shen Shiwei 沈诗伟 (@shen_shiwei) August 31, 2025
🇺🇳A strong support for the U.N.-centered international system.
Tianjin is poised to host the largest-ever #SCO summit.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) family photo, with a 26-nation family spanning Asia, Europe and Africa. pic.twitter.com/jaVWbwheez
Building on earlier travel agreements
The visa-free arrangement builds on existing travel cooperation between China and Russia. In August 2023, the two countries reinstated their visa-free group travel programme, which had been suspended during the pandemic. The effect was immediate: tourist flows surged, with Russian President Vladimir Putin noting that mutual visits rose 2.5 times in 2024, reaching 2.8 million people.
Until now, individual Russian travellers were still required to apply for visas. Transit rules had become slightly more flexible — from December 2024, Russians were allowed up to 10 days of visa-free transit. The new one-year trial represents the most generous easing to date, offering stays of up to 30 days without prior paperwork.
Ties strengthened at the highest level
The announcement followed bilateral talks between Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin on the margins of the SCO summit. The two leaders presented their countries’ partnership as resilient “in the face of international changes”. Xi reaffirmed that Beijing was willing to work with Moscow to contribute to a “fairer and smarter system of global governance”.
Alongside the visa-free announcement, agreements were signed on major energy projects, including the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline and the Soyuz–Vostok transit route through Mongolia. The project is projected to deliver up to 50 billion cubic metres of Russian gas annually to China for 30 years. Beijing has also recently imported liquefied natural gas from Russia’s Arctic LNG 2 project, despite international sanctions, further underlining the depth of cooperation.
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived at the Meijiang International Center in Tianjin Sunday where he was welcomed by Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. pic.twitter.com/dJyQTj1I9J
— The Associated Press (@AP) September 1, 2025
Part of a broader visa-free strategy
The arrangement with Russia complements a wider strategy to liberalise entry to China. Since late 2023, Beijing has significantly expanded its list of visa-free countries, doubling it to 75 nations. Citizens of France, Germany, Italy, Spain, most of the EU, and countries across Latin America and the Middle East now enjoy 30-day visa-free entry.
The results have been dramatic. In 2024, 20 million foreign visitors entered China without visas, accounting for one-third of all international arrivals. Visa-free entries doubled year-on-year, while travel platforms such as Trip.com reported twice as many bookings to China in early 2025 compared with the year before.
Commercial responses have been positive, and international bodies such as the World Travel and Tourism Council describe China as “one of the world’s most dynamic Travel & Tourism markets”. The country is expected to generate record revenues of ¥13.7 trillion in 2025 and support over 83 million jobs in the sector.
✈️ #China 🇨🇳 has announced visa-free entry for citizens of #Russia 🇷🇺 from September 15 in a strategic move to deepen ties & counter Western sanctions.
— Shafek Koreshe (@shafeKoreshe) September 2, 2025
China can expect a potential 30-40% increase in Russian #tourism, following a meeting between Presidents Xi Jinping and… pic.twitter.com/ucnCZKu1jO
Russia joins a select group
Until now, Russia had been absent from this expanding list of countries. By opening its doors, Beijing is extending the same facilitation to a close strategic partner, highlighting what Guo Jiakun called the importance of “contacts between people” in strengthening bilateral ties.
Although the measure is technically a trial, its political and symbolic weight suggests it could become permanent if successful. For ordinary Russians, it will mean unprecedented access to one of the world’s fastest-growing travel markets. For China, it represents another step in consolidating its leadership in the Global South and positioning itself as a hub for cultural, economic, and political exchange.
