Announced this week, China will officially allow Saudi Arabian travellers to travel visa-free.

From June 9, 2025, Saudi Arabian national and passport holders will be granted visa-free entry to the country, marking a significant milestone in diplomatic and economic relations between the two nations.

But, this visa-free agreement is (currently) only a temporary policy, and will end on June 8, 2026.

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This visa-free policy has been extended to cover all Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. This news completes China's visa-free coverage for the entire GCC bloc, as the United Arab Emirates and Qatar have enjoyed mutual visa exemptions with China since 2018. Citizens and passport holders of these nations will be able to avail of this visa-free travel to China until June 8, 2026.

The announcement was made by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning, who shared that the initiative would aim to promote greater mobility, cultural exchange, and economic cooperation between China and the Gulf region: “We welcome more friends from GCC countries to embark on a spontaneous trip to China.”

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Beijing China via unsplash weichao-deng

Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry welcomed the decision, highlighting its potential to encourage mutual visits and deepen ties between the two nations. The visa waiver follows discussions at the ASEAN–China–GCC Summit, taking place this month in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where China outlined plans to boost regional cooperation and ease travel barriers as part of its broader diplomatic outreach to the Middle East.

It is hoped that this agreement will extend beyond the agreed one year time frame, as part of the Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 initiative, the Kingdom aims to attract 5 million Chinese tourists annually by the end of the decade.

Travel to China from Saudi

The Kingdom's national carrier, Saudia offers travellers direct flights between Saudi Arabia and China, with four routes in operation. The carrier provides twice-weekly flights from Jeddah’s King Abdulaziz International Airport (JED) and three time weekly flights from Riyadh (RUH) to Guangzhou. In addition, Saudia has recently launched new direct routes from JED and RUH to Beijing Daxing, further expanding its connectivity between the two nations.

Since the summer of 2024, China Southern has operated a twice weekly flight connecting China's Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport to Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport (RUH) using Airbus A330-300 aircraft.

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Visa-free travel to China is available to GCC nationals and passport holders from June 9, 2025 until June 8, 2026.

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