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China student visa cost: the law, the US embassy fee table and where other missions state theirs

Unofficial summary · Sources checked

Article 92 of the Law, the US embassy's fee notice, Section V of the UK embassy's Part Two page and Section IX of the residence permit service guide name no fee called "X1" or "X2". The Exit and Entry Administration Law only says that fees are paid under the relevant regulations (Law, Article 92); the amount is whatever the mission taking your application publishes, and one of them — the Chinese Embassy in the United States — prices by citizenship and number of entries. After you arrive in China, the residence permit for study carries its own separate charge in yuan.

What the law says

Article 92 of the Exit and Entry Administration Law of the People's Republic of China states that foreigners who apply for exit/entry documents such as visas, or foreigner stay or residence permits, or who apply for extension or alteration of documents, shall pay visa fees or document fees in accordance with relevant regulations. Article 93 sets the Law's commencement: it came into force on 1 July 2013.

Article 92 speaks of "foreigners", not of students, and prints no amount. So the answer to "how much does a student visa cost" is not in the Law. It is in the fee notice of the embassy or consulate that receives your application, and in the fee schedule of the exit-entry administration office that issues the residence permit after you enter China.

Where the visa figure actually comes from

The Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the United States publishes its fees in a notice dated 29 December 2025. The notice reads: "To facilitate people-to-people exchanges, the Chinese Embassy and Consulates-General in the US will continue to reduce the visa fees until December 31, 2026. The reduced fees are as follows:"

Regular Visa Service Fees

Number of Entry U.S. Citizen Non-U.S. Citizen*
Single Entry $140 $23
Double Entries $34
Multiple Entries for 6 Months $45
Multiple Entries for 12 Months or more $68
J1/J2 $171

Two things about that table matter for a student. First, it has no X1 or X2 line: it is organised by number of entries and by citizenship, so your fee depends on the entries your visa is issued for, not on the fact that you are going to study. Second, in the notice's text a U.S. citizen figure ($140) is printed only against the Single Entry row, which may reflect how the table is laid out on the page; this page does not assume what the U.S. citizen fee is for the other rows.

The notice adds two notes. Note 1: "Visa fees for certain non-U.S. Citizens vary from the list above. Please check with the Visa Office for details." Note 2: "For an express service, there is an additional fee of $25 per visa." The figures are in US dollars as printed; this page does not convert them into yuan or any other currency.

The embassy's own requirements page (updated September 2025) gives no fee figure at all — it links to the separate fees notice. That page also states that payment at on-site pick-up is accepted by credit card (Master or Visa card only), money order or cashier's check. The fee notice is issued by the Chinese Embassy and Consulates-General in the US and the requirements page is the Embassy's; this page does not give the requirements of any other mission.

The United Kingdom: a formula, and no figure on this page

The Chinese Embassy in the United Kingdom states the composition of the charge rather than a number. Section V of its "How to Apply for a Visa for China (Mainland only)" page says: "For details, please see the latest notice on visa fees on the embassy website," and gives the total:

Total charge of an individual visa application = visa fee + service fee (charged by Chinese Visa Application Service Center) + express fee (if you need express service).

A separate notice from the Embassy and Consulates in the UK states that, to facilitate people-to-people exchanges, they "will continue to reduce the visa fees until December 31, 2026." This page gives no UK figure. Read the latest notice on the embassy website for the current amounts.

This page gives no fee for any other country.

After arrival: the residence permit fee

The residence permit is a separate document from the visa, and it is charged separately by the exit-entry administration. Section nine of the National Immigration Administration's service guide for issuing, extending, replacing and reissuing foreigners' residence permits gives the basis as the National Development and Reform Commission and Ministry of Finance notice 发改价格〔2004〕2230号, and the standards as three bands by validity (the English wording here is this site's translation of the Chinese text):

  • residence permit with a validity of less than one year: 400 yuan;
  • residence permit with a validity of one year (inclusive) to less than three years: 800 yuan;
  • residence permit with a validity of three years (inclusive) to five years (inclusive): 1,000 yuan.

The guide prints no date of its own, so confirm the amount with the exit-entry office that takes your application. The visa fee and this document fee are two different charges: Law, Article 92 covers both visas and stay or residence permits under the same duty to pay fees. For the steps around the permit itself, see the guide on the residence permit for study after arrival.

Questions people ask

Does the law set a fee for an X1 or X2 visa?

No. Law, Article 92 requires applicants for visas and for stay or residence permits to pay visa fees or document fees under the relevant regulations, but the Law names no X1 or X2 category and prints no amount. The amount comes from the mission's own fee notice.

Is the US table the price of a student visa?

It is the price of a visa with a given number of entries for a person of a given citizenship. The table in the embassy's fee notice has no X1 or X2 line, and in the notice's text a U.S. citizen figure is printed only against the Single Entry row. The notice also says that fees for certain non-U.S. citizens vary from the list and that express service costs an extra $25 per visa.

How much is the UK fee?

This page gives none. The embassy states the formula — visa fee plus the Chinese Visa Application Service Center service fee plus an express fee if used — and says the reduced fees continue until 31 December 2026; it does not give an amount on this page.

Do I pay again after I arrive in China?

Yes, for the residence permit. The National Immigration Administration's service guide sets 400 yuan for a permit valid for less than one year, 800 yuan for one year to less than three years, and 1,000 yuan for three to five years. Those are the amounts printed in the national guide; confirm the current charge with the local exit-entry office.

Do the US figures apply at every Chinese mission?

The notice is issued by the Chinese Embassy and Consulates-General in the United States. This page gives no fee for any other mission, so check the fee notice of the mission that will take your application.

Sources

Checked 11 October 2026

This page is an unofficial summary, is not legal or immigration advice, is not published by the bodies named above, and where the official text or the instructions of the visa office or exit-entry office handling your case differ from what is written here, theirs prevail.

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