Application timeline for Chinese universities: the order of steps

Order No. 42 sets six steps for an international student applying to a university in China: the admissions brochure, the examination or assessment and the university's decision, a visa applied for before entry, a residence permit within thirty days of entry where the visa requires one, a health check at enrolment, and insurance. Order No. 42 and the Quality Standards are published in Chinese. The English wording on this page is this site's translation of those Chinese texts.

The six steps in order

1. Read the university's admissions brochure. The university publishes its own admissions brochure and admits international students under the conditions and procedures set out in it (Order No. 42, Article 11). Article 11 does not list those conditions itself.

2. Take the examination or assessment, then wait for the decision. The university reviews the entry qualifications and the financial guarantee certificate of each foreign applicant who has applied (Order No. 42, Article 12). The university examines or assesses the applicant. Admission is decided by the university. The university must not admit a student who does not meet the admission conditions (Article 12). Article 12 states no amount for the financial guarantee.

3. Apply for an X1 or X2 visa before you enter China. Apply at a Chinese embassy or consulate in your country of nationality or country of residence, or at another overseas mission entrusted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Order No. 42, Article 35). Apply for X1 or X2 according to your length of study (Article 35). Submit a certificate filed with the education authority and the admission notice issued by the school, along with other related materials (Article 35). In this article, "filed" means filed for the record, not approved. Article 35 does not name the certificate, and it does not say which length of study goes with X1 and which with X2.

4. Apply for a residence permit within thirty days of entry, if your visa says so. Article 36 applies where the study visa states that a residence permit must be obtained after entry. In that case, apply within thirty days from the date of entry (Order No. 42, Article 36). Apply to the exit-entry administration of the public security organ in the place where you intend to live (Article 36). The permit is a residence permit for foreigners studying.

5. Confirm your health record or have a medical examination at enrolment. On enrolment, follow China's health administrative rules and either complete confirmation of the Foreigner's Physical Examination Record with China's health quarantine authority, or undergo a physical examination (Order No. 42, Article 39). Article 39 also says that a student whose examination confirms a serious mental disorder, infectious pulmonary tuberculosis, or another infectious disease that could seriously harm public health, as defined in the Exit and Entry Administration Law, is dealt with by the public security authorities under law.

6. Buy insurance. International students must buy insurance as national rules and the school's requirements set (Order No. 42, Article 40). The school operates an insurance system for all its international students (Article 40). A student who has not bought insurance as required must insure within a set time limit. If the student still has not insured by that deadline, the school does not admit the student (Article 40). Article 40 gives no length for the time limit.

Where the order is fixed and where it is not

Three of the six steps have a stated point in time in Order No. 42. The visa is applied for before entry (Article 35). The residence permit is applied for within thirty days from the date of entry (Article 36). The health check is carried out on enrolment (Article 39). Article 40 names no date or stage at which insurance must be bought. Step 6 appears last because that is the order of the provisions on this page, not because Article 40 sets it.

Dates the texts leave open

Article 11 gives no application deadline. Article 12 gives no date for the examination or for the decision. Article 35 sets no fixed date for the visa application, beyond applying before entry.

Section 2.1 of the Quality Standards for the Higher Education of International Students in China (Trial) says a university should at least publish its application deadlines and method, its entry requirements, its examination or assessment methods, its financial guarantee requirements, its rules on violations, and its admission schedule. The deadlines and the schedule therefore come from each university's own published information.

As a suggestion, not a requirement, check the brochure's deadlines before you plan the visa step, because the visa must be applied for before you enter China.

Sources

• Measures for the Administration of Schools Recruiting and Educating International Students, Order No. 42 (Ministry of Education of the PRC)
• Quality Standards for the Higher Education of International Students in China (Trial) (Ministry of Education of the PRC)

Checked 11 October 2026

This page is an unofficial summary. It is not published by or affiliated with the Ministry of Education, the China Scholarship Council or any university, and it is not legal advice. If the official text and the current notice of the university or authority handling your case differ, the official text and that notice prevail.