China Business Visa (M Visa) for Indian Citizens 2026: Requirements, Fees and Online Application

China Business Visa for Indians - 2026 Quick Answer

Indian passport holders going to mainland China for meetings, factory visits, sourcing or the Canton Fair typically need an M visa, China's business visa. India is not on China's 30-day visa-free list, as compiled by the National Immigration Administration as of 17 February 2026.

The application route is changing right now. Under Embassy notices of 21 and 22 October 2026, from 26 October 2026 the Embassy in New Delhi and the Consulate General in Mumbai accept visa applications directly, and the Kolkata consular district goes to the Embassy for the time being. The New Delhi visa centre has announced it is ceasing operations and took only express applications on 23 October, until noon.

• Visa: M, for commercial and trade activities, including the Canton Fair.
• Route from 26 October 2026: online form first, then the passport at the Embassy or the Consulate General in Mumbai.
• Fee (schedule of 22 October 2026): Rs 2,900 to Rs 8,800, paid by demand draft when you collect the visa.
• Processing: 7 working days regular or 4 express, counted from the day after passport submission.
• Core document: an invitation with a handwritten Chinese signature and the company's official seal.

M Visa vs F Visa - Which One You Need

The Embassy's visa notice of 22 October 2026 defines the two categories business travellers most often confuse:

• M visa: commercial and trade activities, athletes and staff at sports competitions, participants in non-sports events, and Canton Fair participants.
• F visa: exchanges, visits, study tours and other non-commercial activities, with an invitation letter from a relevant entity or individual in China.

Buying, selling, sourcing, factory inspections and contract talks are commercial, so they fit M. A delegation visit or study tour with no trade element sits closer to F. If your plans mix both, we recommend matching the visa to the main purpose and describing that same purpose in the invitation and the cover letter.

Neither visa covers paid work

Under Article 41 of China's Exit and Entry Administration Law, foreigners who work in China need a work permit and a work-type residence permit. Under Article 80, illegal work is fined RMB 5,000 to 20,000, with 5 to 15 days' detention in serious cases. If you will be employed or paid in China, the M visa is the wrong route.

Invitation Letter From a Chinese Company - What It Must Contain

For an M visa, the Embassy lists an invitation letter from the Chinese trade partner or for an exhibition such as the Canton Fair, the inviting entity's business licence, the ID of its legal representative or the inviter, and a cover letter by the applicant. The notice of 22 October 2026 sets three rules for these papers.

1. Endorsed copies of the licence and ID

The Chinese company provides clear copies of its valid business licence, which has to show its scope of business, and of the legal representative's or inviter's ID. Each copy carries a handwritten note in Chinese, not printed, stating that the document is only for the visa application of the named applicant, plus a handwritten Chinese signature and the date.

2. The invitation letter

The letter states the purpose of the visit, carries a handwritten signature in Chinese and bears the company's official seal. A contract seal or a personnel seal is not accepted, so check which seal was used before you upload the scan.

The Chinese Embassy in the United States lists further details that a complete M, F or L invitation usually covers. This is not an Indian requirement, but these points are worth asking your partner to include:

• Your name, gender, date of birth and passport number.
• The reason for the visit, arrival and departure dates, places you will visit, your relationship with the inviter and who pays for the trip.
• The inviter's name, address, telephone number, official seal, legal representative, signature and date.

3. Your cover letter

The cover letter gives your company profile (year of establishment and scope of business), the specific purpose of the trip and the exact length of your stay in China. The Embassy warns that general phrases such as "business visit" or "business meetings" might not be accepted. A line like "inspection of moulded plastic parts at our supplier's factory in Ningbo, eight days in China" gives the officer something concrete.

Canton Fair invitations

The fair's own invitation letter is accepted as an alternative to a letter from a trade partner. The notice does not say whether the endorsed licence and ID copies are also expected with it, so we recommend confirming this with the Embassy or Consulate General before you submit.

Documents Checklist for Indian Applicants

Based on the Embassy notice of 22 October 2026, an M-visa file typically includes the items below. Rules change often, so check the current notice before you upload.

• The online application form, accurate and complete, with your own phone number and email address.
• Your passport, valid for more than 6 months with at least 2 blank visa pages, plus its information page.
• Any previous passport issued in the past 5 years, and an official name-change certificate if the names differ.
• Two recent colour photos, 48 mm x 33 mm, white background, no head covering, taken within the past 6 months.
• Chinese visas you received in the past three years, if any.
• The invitation letter, the endorsed licence and ID copies, and your cover letter.

The consular officer can ask for other supporting documents, which should then be provided promptly.

Bank statements are a tourist-visa rule

The notice asks for 6 months of personal savings statements with an average monthly balance of INR 1 lakh, or a deposit certificate made at least 3 months earlier, only from tourist (L) visa applicants. It is not on the standard M-visa list.

How to Apply - Online Form and Passport Submission at the Embassy or Consulate

These steps follow the Embassy notice signed on 22 October 2026 and apply from 26 October 2026. From that date, new applications go to the Embassy or Consulate General, not to a visa centre.

Step 1: Check where you apply

• Maharashtra and Karnataka: the Consulate General in Mumbai.
• Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal (the Kolkata consular district): temporarily the Embassy in New Delhi.
• All other areas: the Embassy in New Delhi.

Step 2: Apply online

Applicants fill in the Visa Application Form of the People's Republic of China on the consular website of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, linked in the Embassy notice, upload the documents and submit them for online review. No fee is paid at this step. The review time is not published, so we recommend starting well ahead of your travel date.

Step 3: Hand in the passport within 30 days

After approval you receive an email. Within 30 days of it, you take your passport, the form and the supporting documents to the Embassy or Consulate General, and give fingerprints if required.

• Embassy, New Delhi: applications 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, collection 3:00 to 5:30 p.m., Monday to Friday except public holidays.
• Consulate General, Mumbai: collection 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., applications 2:30 to 5:30 p.m., Monday to Friday except public holidays.

Fingerprints

Until 31 December 2026, applicants for short-term visas with a stay of up to 180 days are exempt. Applicants for multiple-entry visas should in principle give fingerprints in person, so a multiple-entry M applicant may be asked. People under 14 or over 70, and anyone fingerprinted with the same passport at the same mission or visa centre within five years, are exempt.

Step 4: Pay and collect

On the date shown on your pick-up slip, you return to pay the visa fee by demand draft and collect the passport.

Applying through an agency

The notice allows applications through a third party or travel agency, with the agency's qualification documents and the agent's ID added to the file. Visarun helps Indian business travellers prepare the online form and check the invitation, the endorsed copies and the cover letter. The decision belongs to the Embassy or Consulate General, and no agency can promise approval.

Fees, Processing Time and Validity

The Embassy's fee schedule for Indian passport holders, posted on 21 October 2026:

• Single entry: Rs 2,900
• Double entry: Rs 4,400
• Six-month multiple entry: Rs 5,900
• Multiple entry of 12 months or more: Rs 8,800
• Express: Rs 1,800 extra, collection in four working days
• Urgent, where available: Rs 2,700 extra, collection in two working days

The Embassy announced in January 2026 that these reduced fees would apply until 31 December 2026, but that notice has since been removed and the October schedule gives no end date, so check the current fee notice if you apply in 2027. The schedule lists no visa-centre service charge on top.

How to pay

Only bank-printed demand drafts are accepted. Cash, personal cheques and handwritten or incomplete drafts are not. The draft is payable to "CHINESE EMBASSY, NEW DELHI" or "CONSULATE GENERAL OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA IN MUMBAI", with your full name, pick-up slip number and phone number written on the back.

Processing time

As of 22 October 2026, regular processing takes 7 working days and express 4, counted from the day after the passport is submitted. The online review comes before that.

Validity, entries and stay

Under Chinese visa rules as described by Chinese consulates abroad, the visa office decides the visa type, number of entries, validity and duration of stay, and may refuse an application. Requesting multiple entries does not mean you will receive them. The Chinese Consulate General in Los Angeles defines the three fields printed on the visa:

• Enter Before: the last date the visa can be used to enter China.
• Entries: how many times you can enter during that validity.
• Duration of Each Stay: the maximum days per visit, counted from the day after entry.

Trade Fairs - Canton Fair and Other Events

The M visa covers Canton Fair participants and people taking part in sports and non-sports events. For those events, the Embassy asks for an invitation letter from the relevant entity in China.

Canton Fair, autumn 2026

The fair is held every spring and autumn in Guangzhou. The 140th session runs in three phases, with breaks on 20-22 and 28-30 October:

• Phase 1: 15-19 October 2026
• Phase 2: 23-27 October 2026
• Phase 3: 31 October to 4 November 2026

Even express processing takes 4 working days after passport submission, on top of the online review. As of 23 October 2026, starting an application for Phase 3 is very tight.

The fair's invitation letter

For the 139th session in spring 2026, according to an announcement from a Chinese commerce ministry office abroad, returning overseas buyers requested the official invitation letter in the Buyer Service System and new buyers applied while completing their buyer badge application. Those dates have passed, but the same system is the first place to check. We found no official spring 2027 dates as of 23 October 2026.

Recent Changes (2025-2026)

• 27 October 2025: direct India-China passenger flights resumed after five years with an IndiGo flight from Kolkata to Guangzhou, according to Al Jazeera.
• 20 November 2025: China's arrival card can be filled in online before travel (NIA website, NIA 12367 app, WeChat or Alipay mini programs). Filling it in online is optional.
• 22 December 2025: the Embassy launched its online visa application system, first run through the New Delhi visa centre's website.
• January 2026: reduced visa fees for Indians extended to 31 December 2026, according to an Embassy notice since removed from its website.
• 20 August 2026: the 240-hour visa-free transit list covers 57 countries, 65 ports and 24 provinces. India is not on it.
• 21 September 2026: online accommodation registration became available nationwide. Hotels register their guests. Travellers staying elsewhere, or their hosts, register within 24 hours of arrival.
• 21-22 October 2026: new fee schedule (demand draft only), new visa notice (7 or 4 working days) and direct acceptance at the Embassy and the Consulate General in Mumbai from 26 October 2026.
• 22 October 2026: the New Delhi visa centre announced it is ceasing operations and set 30 October 2026 as the deadline for sending details for pending 2025-2026 refunds.

Until this switch, New Delhi applicants also paid the visa centre's own non-refundable service fee, listed by the centre as Rs 2,152 regular and Rs 3,172 express. That charge belonged to the old route only.

If your passport was lodged at a visa centre before 26 October, ask that centre how it will be returned. The notices reviewed for this guide do not cover it.

FAQ

Can I still apply at a Chinese visa centre in India?

From 26 October 2026, applications go to the Embassy in New Delhi or the Consulate General in Mumbai after the online review. The New Delhi visa centre announced on 22 October 2026 that it is ceasing operations.

Can Indians visit China visa-free for business?

No. India is not on China's 30-day visa-free list or among the 57 countries eligible for 240-hour visa-free transit, according to the National Immigration Administration lists current in October 2026.

How much does a China business visa cost for Indians?

As of 22 October 2026, Rs 2,900 for single entry, Rs 4,400 for double, Rs 5,900 for six-month multiple and Rs 8,800 for 12 months or more, plus Rs 1,800 for express or, where available, Rs 2,700 for urgent service. Payment is by demand draft at collection.

How long does processing take?

Regular processing takes 7 working days and express 4, counted from the day after passport submission, as of October 2026. The online review comes first.

Do I need bank statements for an M visa?

They are not on the standard M-visa list. The 6-month, INR 1 lakh rule applies to tourist visas, though the officer can request extra documents.

Can I work in China on an M visa?

No. Work needs a work permit and a work-type residence permit. Illegal work is fined RMB 5,000 to 20,000, with detention in serious cases.

Can I extend my stay in China?

The application goes to the local public-security exit and entry office at least 7 days before your permitted stay ends. The total extension cannot exceed the original duration of stay on the visa.

What happens if I overstay?

The law provides a warning and, in serious cases, a fine of RMB 500 per day up to RMB 10,000, or 5 to 15 days' detention. People repatriated for illegal stay or work cannot re-enter China for one to five years.

Why can a China visa be refused?

Grounds include fraud, inability to cover expenses during the stay and failure to submit required information. The visa authority does not have to give reasons, and no refusal statistics for Indian applicants are published.

Can an agency apply on my behalf?

Yes, with the agency's qualification documents and the agent's ID. Visarun can prepare and check your M-visa file, while the decision stays with the Embassy or Consulate General.