Dormitory, rented flat or hotel: who files a student's accommodation registration

The short answer

Where you sleep decides who files. In a hotel, the hotel registers your accommodation and passes the information to the public security organs (Exit and Entry Administration Law, Article 39). In any other dwelling, the Law puts the duty on the foreigner or on the person who accommodates them, within 24 hours of arrival. If you are an international student living outside the school dormitory, the Measures under Ministry of Education Order No. 42 place that duty on you (Article 24).

Staying in a hotel

The Law is explicit. Where foreigners stay in hotels in China, the hotels shall register their accommodation under the regulations on public security administration of the hotel industry and submit the foreigners' accommodation registration information to the public security organs where the hotels are located (Law, Article 39). There is nothing for you to file in that case.

A rented flat, or a room in someone's home

Article 39's second paragraph covers "domiciles other than hotels": the foreigners, or the persons who accommodate them, shall go through the registration formalities with the public security organs in the place of residence within 24 hours after arrival.

The National Immigration Administration describes how this works on its nationwide online service. Registration may be completed online either by the foreigner or by the person accommodating them. Because hosts are generally more familiar with the residence, the NIA says the initial registration should be completed with the host's assistance, to keep the information accurate. It names two situations in which the foreigner may register independently:

• the foreigner has previously registered through the NIA Government Service Platform and needs to register again at the same residence;
• the foreigner resides at a self-owned residence.

The accommodation host may be either a Chinese citizen or a foreigner.

Off-campus students

Article 24 of the Measures for the Administration of Schools Recruiting and Educating International Students (Ministry of Education, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Public Security, Order No. 42) requires higher education institutions to provide international students with accommodation and other necessary living facilities, and to establish and publish rules for their use. International students who live outside school dormitories shall promptly go to the public security department of their place of residence and complete the registration. The English wording of Article 24 here is this site's translation of the published Chinese text; the Chinese text is the one that counts.

Note the difference in wording: Article 24 says "promptly" and does not repeat a 24-hour period. The 24-hour period quoted above comes from the Law, not from Order No. 42.

And the school dormitory?

None of these texts answers that directly. Article 39 distinguishes hotels from other dwellings; the NIA's policy interpretation does not mention students or dormitories; Article 24 of Order No. 42 addresses students who live outside the dormitory. So ask your school's international student office who files for you and whether they file on your behalf — that is the only reliable way to settle it, and it is a question about your school's own procedure, not one the official texts settle.

Questions people ask

Can my landlord register me?

Yes. The Law allows the person who accommodates you to do it, and the NIA says the accommodation host may be a Chinese citizen or a foreigner, and that the first registration should be done with the host's help.

Do I register myself if I own the flat?

Yes. The NIA lists residence at a self-owned residence as one of the two cases where the foreigner may register independently.

Does moving to a new address mean a new registration?

The NIA's two independent-registration cases cover registering again at the same residence after registering through the NIA Government Service Platform. Beyond that, Article 39 ties registration to the public security organs of the place of residence, so a new place of residence means a new registration there. For other changes affecting your status, see the after-arrival page.

Sources

• Exit and Entry Administration Law of the People's Republic of China — National Immigration Administration
• Policy Interpretation of the Nationwide Implementation of the Online Accommodation Registration Service — National Immigration Administration
• Measures for the Administration of Schools Recruiting and Educating International Students, Order No. 42 — Ministry of Education

Checked 11 October 2026

This page is an unofficial summary of the official texts named above; it is not legal or immigration advice and is not published by the National Immigration Administration, the Ministry of Education or any other body named here, and where the official text or the instructions of the visa office or exit-entry office handling your case differ, theirs prevail.