Reissue after loss: replacing a visa or residence permit when a passport is lost in China

Reissue (补发) is the replacement of a visa or residence document that has been lost, damaged, destroyed, stolen or robbed. For visas, Article 11 of the Regulations on Administration of the Entry and Exit of Foreigners (State Council Decree No. 637) sets the procedure. For residence documents, the reissue item is in the National Immigration Administration's service guides. For the wider system, see Visas and residence.

Definition

Article 11 of the Regulations reads: "Where the visa of a foreigner in China is lost, damaged, destroyed, stolen or robbed, the applicant shall, in a timely manner, apply to the exit and entry administration authority of the public security organ of the local people's government at or above the county level in the place of his or her stay for reissuance of the visa." (English text published by the National Immigration Administration.)

What the official text says

Two of the Chinese guides cited below are in Chinese only. The English wording here is this site's translation of the Chinese text.

Regulations, Article 11 (visa). Article 11 gives no time limit. It says "in a timely manner."

Regulations, Article 23 (leaving China). Article 23 covers a different case. A foreigner who has no valid passport or other international travel document, because of loss, damage, destruction, theft, robbery or other reasons, and who cannot get the document reissued by the relevant institution of his or her own country stationed in China, may apply for exit formalities to the exit and entry administration authority in the place of stay or residence. Article 23 concerns exit formalities. It names no visa or residence permit.

National Immigration Administration, visa service guide (Chinese). Item (4), "Documents required to apply for reissue of a visa", applies to a foreigner who has entered China and whose visa is lost, damaged or stolen. The guide lists three cases:

• Lost or stolen visa: a passport loss report, or a note from the applicant's home-country embassy or consulate in China, together with a new valid passport or other international travel document.
• Damaged visa: the damaged passport, or a note from the home-country embassy or consulate in China, together with a new valid passport or other international travel document.
• Lost, stolen or damaged group visa: a certificate letter from the local receiving travel agency and a copy of the group visa.

The guide says a visa "may be reissued" with the same type, entry validity, period of stay and remaining valid entries as the original visa.

National Immigration Administration, residence permit service guide (Chinese). Item (四), "Application for reissue of residence documents (申请居留证件的补发)", states that when a foreigner's residence document is lost, damaged or stolen, the applicant shall submit a passport loss report or a note from the home-country embassy or consulate in China, or present the damaged document, together with a new passport or other international travel document. The item says a residence document "may be reissued."

National Immigration Administration, residence permit service guide (English). Section 4, "Application for Re-issuance of Residence Permit," uses the same structure. It says the applicant "shall submit" a passport loss report or a note from the embassy or consulate, "or the damaged passport and the new passport or other international travel documents," and that "a residence permit may be re-issued."

Embassy of the PRC in the United Kingdom, Part Seven, Q16. The embassy's answer to "What should I do if I lose my passport whilst in China?" is that the person should report to the local Chinese public security authority as soon as possible. The answer also says the person should apply for a new passport or international travel document from the home-country embassy or consulate in China before applying to that public security authority for re-issuance of a visa. This is that embassy's statement. This entry does not treat it as a rule for other missions.

Related terms

• Visa
• Residence permit
• Passport
• Travel document
• Exit formalities
• Group visa
• Exit and entry administration authority

Sources

• Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Administration of the Entry and Exit of Foreigners (English text), National Immigration Administration
• National Immigration Administration service guide for extension, change and reissue of foreigners' visas (Chinese), National Immigration Administration
• National Immigration Administration service guide for issuing, extending, replacing and reissuing foreigners' residence permits (Chinese), National Immigration Administration
• Service Guide on residence permits for foreigners (English), National Immigration Administration
• Embassy of the PRC in the United Kingdom, Part Seven: FAQs and Answers, Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the United Kingdom

Checked 10 October 2026 and 11 October 2026.

This entry is an unofficial summary, is not legal or immigration advice, and is not published by the bodies named. The official text and the instructions of the body handling your case prevail if they differ.