Overstaying a student visa or residence permit in China: what counts and what Article 78 provides

An overstay is staying in China past the duration written on your visa, stay permit or residence permit. Under the Regulations on the Entry and Exit of Foreigners (State Council Decree No. 637), Article 25, that is the first of four circumstances in which a foreigner is deemed to be residing in China illegally. The penalty provision is Article 78 of the Exit and Entry Administration Law: a warning, and where circumstances are serious, a fine of RMB 500 per day capped at RMB 10,000 in total, or detention of not less than five and not more than 15 days.

What counts as illegal residence

Regulations, Article 25 lists four circumstances. Exceeding the duration on the visa, stay permit or residence permit is only one of them.

Regulations, Article 25	Circumstance
(1)	Stay or residence exceeds the duration specified in the visa, stay permit or residence permit
(2)	Overstaying the visa-free period and failing to obtain a stay permit or residence permit
(3)	Activities go beyond the restricted area of stay or residence
(4)	Other circumstances where foreigners reside illegally

Point (1) is the one that catches people who simply run out of time: the count is against the duration printed on the document you hold, not against any other date.

The duty to leave before the duration expires

Law, Article 37 states two duties together: foreigners shall not engage in activities not corresponding to the purpose of stay or residence, and shall leave China prior to the expiry of the prescribed duration of stay or residence.

Law, Article 38 adds that foreigners who have reached 16 and stay or reside in China shall carry their passport or other international travel document, or their stay or residence permit, and accept inspection by public security organs. Foreigners who reside in China shall submit their residence permit, within the prescribed time limit, to the public security organ under the local people's government at or above county level in the place of residence for examination.

What Article 78 provides

Law, Article 78 reads as follows.

• Illegal residence brings a warning.
• Where circumstances are serious: a fine of RMB 500 yuan per day, capped at RMB 10,000 yuan in total, or detention of not less than five days and not more than 15 days.
• Where guardians or other persons responsible for guardianship fail to perform the guardian obligation and a foreigner below 16 resides in China illegally as a result, those guardians or obligated persons shall be given a warning and may also be fined not more than RMB 1,000 yuan.

Two things follow from the wording. The fine is calculated per day and is capped, so RMB 10,000 is the ceiling stated in the text, not a typical amount. And the day-fine and the detention are alternatives in the text, not cumulative additions.

Nothing in Article 78, or in any other text used here, creates a grace period. No number of tolerated days appears in the Law or the Regulations, and this page will not supply one.

When it goes further than a fine

Two other articles can follow from illegal residence, and they are separate from Article 78.

Law, Article 81 provides that a foreigner who engages in activities not corresponding to the purposes of stay or residence, or otherwise violates Chinese laws or regulations so as to be no longer eligible to stay or reside, may be ordered to exit China within a time limit; where the violation is serious but does not constitute a crime, the Ministry of Public Security may deport them, its decision being final, and a deported foreigner may not enter China for 10 years from the date of deportation.

Law, Article 62 lists the circumstances in which a foreigner may be repatriated, including "(3) Illegally reside or work in China", alongside being ordered to exit within a prescribed time limit and failing to do so, being involved in circumstances in which entry is not allowed, and needing repatriation for breach of this Law or other laws or administrative regulations. Repatriated persons shall not be allowed to enter China for one to five years, counting from the date of repatriation.

The texts do not say which of these consequences applies in a given case, and they do not describe any threshold — days, amounts or categories — that separates a warning from a serious case. This page does not state what usually happens.

What one embassy page says about duration of stay

The Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the United Kingdom, in its own visa guide for mainland China, states that the duration of stay specified in a visa is the period the holder is allowed to stay in China after each entry and that it begins from the next day of entry. That page also states that overstay in China violates the Exit and Entry Administration Law, the Regulations on the Entry and Exit of Foreigners and other relevant laws and regulations, and could result in a fine or other penalty.

That is that embassy's statement, on its own page. Other missions publish their own pages, and the rules above come from the Law and the Regulations themselves.

Questions people ask

Does the count start on the day I entered?

The UK embassy page states that the duration of stay begins from the next day of entry. The Law and the Regulations used here do not state a counting rule for the duration of stay, so treat the embassy statement as that mission's own guidance.

Is there a grace period after my permit expires?

None is stated. The Law, Article 37 requires leaving before the expiry of the prescribed duration, and Regulations, Article 25(1) defines illegal residence as exceeding that duration. Neither text provides extra days.

Can an overstay affect whether I can come back?

Yes, in the terms the Law sets: a deported foreigner may not enter China for 10 years from the date of deportation (Law, Article 81), and a repatriated person may not enter for one to five years from the date of repatriation (Law, Article 62).

What happens to a guardian if a student under 16 overstays?

Under Law, Article 78, a guardian or other person responsible for guardianship who fails to perform the guardian obligation and causes a foreigner below 16 to reside illegally shall be given a warning and may also be fined not more than RMB 1,000.

Sources

• Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Administration of the Entry and Exit of Foreigners — National Immigration Administration
• Exit and Entry Administration Law of the People's Republic of China — National Immigration Administration
• Embassy of the PRC in the United Kingdom — Part One: Visa for China (Mainland only) — Ministry of Foreign Affairs mission

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 it, those prevail.