Independent reference

The paperwork of studying in China, checked against the official text

Which channel to apply through, which visa to ask for, and what you must do in the first 24 hours and 30 days after landing — each answer taken from the official rule and linked to it.

Scholarships

How the Chinese Government Scholarship is organised, which body you apply through, and what the official guide says it covers.

ACYLS after the award: placement, confirmation and changing universityExplains how the ACYLS guidebook places applicants among 33 designated Chinese universities and when a change of university, major or length of study is allowed.
ACYLS paperwork: online application, hard copies and the national focal pointThe ACYLS guidebook requires an online application through CGSIS, lists 11 application documents, and sends hard copies to the home-country national focal point or the AUN Secretariat as required.
After you press Submit in the CSC system: revoking, editing and printingStep 6 of two CSC online-application notices bars amendment after submission but allows revoking before the application is processed, and Step 7 covers printing the form.
Arriving on an ACYLS scholarship: visa papers, registration, health verification and airfare claimsAfter an ACYLS award, the programme guidebook sets out the visa, registration, health verification, residence permit and airfare reimbursement papers, with airfare ceilings of 3000 RMB and 6000 RMB as printed.
Chinese Government Scholarship: Which Channel to Apply Through, What It Covers, and the Age LimitsThe CSC application guide sorts the Chinese Government Scholarship into four programme types, each with its own place to apply. Here is where each one is filed, what the scholarship pays, the age and language limits, and the documents the guide lists.
The 13 items of the Chinese Government Scholarship document list and who needs eachThis page lists the thirteen Chinese Government Scholarship application documents in Section VI of the official guide and shows which applicants each item applies to.
International Chinese Language Teachers Scholarship paperwork: online registration, deadlines and materialsThe 2025 guidelines for the International Chinese Language Teachers Scholarship set an applicant deadline and a review deadline for each start month, with the earliest applicant deadline on April 15 for July programmes.
The CSC online application system step by step, as printed in the ACYLS guidebookThis page follows the eight CGSIS steps printed in the ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship guidebook, from account creation to printing the form, and shows where the hard copies go.

Student visas

X1 or X2, the documents each one needs, and the residence permit that follows an X1.

Exactly 180 days of study: X2 or X1? How each official text draws the lineExactly 180 days falls on the short-term side in the Regulations, in Order No. 42 and in the consular instructions' X2 row, and this page quotes each text to show where the line sits.
The JW201 Form: What It Is, Who Issues It and Why It Is Required for a Chinese Student VisaWhat the JW201 form is, who issues it (JW201 for government scholarship and exchange students, JW202 for self-funded), why it appears on the X1 visa material list, and how its copies are handled when you file for your residence permit.
Original or photocopy? How three official pages word the admission notice and JW formThe UK embassy list allows an original or a photocopy of the JW201 or JW202 form, while the consular X1 section and the US embassy row name neither word for it.
Staying longer on an X2 visa: the extension papers in the immigration service guidesArticle 29 of the Exit and Entry Administration Law requires an extension application seven days before the visa's stay expires, and the accumulated extension shall not exceed the original stay in the visa.
Student visa papers at the Chinese embassy in the UK: the embassy's own listThe Chinese embassy in the UK's own page lists the basic papers, the X1 and X2 documents and the application steps for a student visa, with its time stamp of 1 July 2020.
Student visa papers at the Chinese embassy in the United States: the table row by rowThe Chinese embassy in the United States notice (updated September 2025) asks X1 higher education applicants for Form JW201 or JW202 and a photocopy of the Admission Letter. This unofficial summary sets out the X1 and X2 rows as the notice prints them.
X1 and X2 papers in the consular Visa Application InstructionsThe Ministry of Foreign Affairs visa instruction page lists an Admission Letter for both X1 and X2 study visas, and a Form JW201 or JW202 for X1 only.
X1 or X2 Student Visa? The 180-Day Line, the Documents, and the 30-Day Residence Permit DeadlineChina issues the X1 visa for study longer than 180 days and the X2 for 180 days or less. X1 holders then have 30 days after entry to apply for a residence permit. Here is what the law, the regulations and the Chinese Embassy's visa guidance actually require.

After arrival

What has to be done once you land: accommodation registration within 24 hours and, for X1 holders, the residence permit within 30 days.

Accommodation Registration in China: The 24-Hour Rule, and How to Register OnlineIf you stay anywhere other than a hotel in China, you or your host must register with the local police within 24 hours of arrival. The National Immigration Administration has now rolled out online registration nationwide. Here is who registers, through which channels, and when you do not need to register again.
The first weeks after landing: four filings in the order the rules give themFour filings may fall due after arrival in mainland China, each with its own provision and time limit; this page takes them in the order the official texts give them.
Foreign certificates for a residence permit application: translation and legalisation notesSection 12 of the National Immigration Administration's residence permit service guide says that marriage, birth and kinship certificates issued by a foreign authority or notary shall be legalised by the Chinese embassy or consulate in that country, and that foreign-language materials shall be translated into Chinese.
When you graduate, withdraw or leave early: what the school reports and what you should checkThis page explains which official provisions require the school to report the end of a foreign student's studies to the exit and entry authority, and which filings and permit rules can follow. The school's reporting duty under Article 26 of the Regulations is the central rule.
Health verification after arrival: the papers a scholarship notice and Order No. 42 nameFour official texts ask for health papers at different moments, from the scholarship application to the residence permit. This article sets out which paper each text names and when it applies.
Internship paperwork for a student in China: the endorsement on the residence permitArticle 22 of the Regulations says a residence permit for study must specify the location and duration of an off-campus internship before the student takes part, and the Chinese service guide lists the school and internship unit letters and the endorsement application.
Lost or damaged residence permit: the reissue papersIf a residence permit is lost, damaged or stolen, the reissue needs a passport loss report or an embassy or consulate note, or the damaged document, plus a new passport or other international travel document.
New passport or changed details: the 10-day filing for residence permit holdersArticle 33 of China's Exit and Entry Administration Law sets a 10-day deadline to apply for alteration when a registered item on a residence permit changes. This page sets out that provision, the penalty wording in Article 76 and a separate visa rule for new passports.