What changed on 21 September 2026?
China's National Immigration Administration (NIA) rolled out online accommodation registration nationwide for foreigners staying outside hotels on 21 September 2026.
The registration deadline is within 24 hours of moving into the accommodation. Arrange this with your host when planning your stay. Official announcement.
Find your registration route
Hotels handle registration for their guests. For a commercial homestay or serviced apartment, confirm the applicable route with the property and local authority; the booking label alone does not settle its classification.
Use this chart to identify who can handle registration when it is required. It does not assess repeat-registration exemptions for returning residents.
First stay, repeat stay, or your own home?
- First registration at someone else's non-hotel home: the NIA guidance says your host should assist with registration.
- Registering again at the same address: you can register yourself if you previously registered at that address through the NIA platform. The repeat-registration guide sends the verification code to the host's registered phone number when you stay in someone else's home, so you may still need their help.
- A home owned by you or your spouse: you can register yourself under the own-home route.
This guide focuses on registration responsibilities for these stays. For rules covering a return to an established residence, check the NIA policy explanation for those conditions.
Use an official online channel
The official options are the NIA government service website, the 移民局12367 app, or its WeChat or Alipay mini program.
Open the accommodation-registration module under services for foreigners (外国人服务 → 住宿登记), complete account registration and authentication, then follow the instructions. See the official channel guidance.
Foreign-phone-number support, available languages and the exact screens have not been tested for this guide. If you cannot complete the process online, use the help options below.
What should you prepare with your host?
For host-assisted registration, the official guide includes the guest's identity-document details page and the full accommodation address.
Requirements vary with the host's identity. For an overseas host registering guests at that address for the first time, the guide also lists property-ownership proof or a purchase contract; a spouse-owned home additionally requires a marriage certificate. Follow the section of the host-registration guide that applies to the host.
If the host cannot assist, or the housing arrangement does not fit the guide, ask the local authority for help with your specific case.
Check your registration record
After completing registration, open 登记记录查询 to view your record.
The official guidance says records from this system do not need to be printed. You can show the electronic record when handling visa or permit matters or during an inspection. If you need a paper accommodation-registration form, collect it from the local police station shown in the electronic record.
See the official guides to finding your record and using the electronic record.
If online registration is difficult
Call 12367, consult the official registration guide, or seek assistance at the local public-security exit-entry service office or police station where you are staying. The in-person registration channel remains available, and online registration has the same legal effect as registration completed at the police station.
Before your stay: agree with your host who will help with registration, and keep the full address and identity-document details ready. The online option does not change the 24-hour deadline for non-hotel accommodation.
Sources captured: 23 September 2026. This guide does not promise a processing time or a successful online application for every device or account.