Lost your passport in China: the steps in the rules

If a visa is lost, Article 11 of the Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Administration of the Entry and Exit of Foreigners (State Council Decree No. 637) says the applicant shall, in a timely manner, apply for reissuance of the visa to the exit and entry administration authority of the public security organ in the place of stay. Article 23 of the same Regulations covers a foreigner who has no valid passport and cannot have it reissued by his or her country's institution in China; that foreigner may apply for exit formalities. For a lost residence permit, the National Immigration Administration's service guide on residence permits lists the documents to submit.

See also X1 or X2 on this site.

Lost visa: Article 11

Article 11 applies where the visa of a foreigner in China is lost, damaged, destroyed, stolen or robbed. The applicant applies for reissuance of the visa 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. Article 11 refers to the visa only.

Passport gone, no reissue from the home mission: Article 23

Article 23 covers a foreigner who does not hold a valid passport or other international travel documents, because of loss, damage, destruction, theft, robbery or other reasons. It applies when that foreigner cannot get the passport or documents reissued by the relevant institution of his or her own country stationed in China. Such a foreigner may apply for exit formalities to the exit and entry administration authority in the place of stay or residence.

Lost residence permit: the service guide

Two service guides from the National Immigration Administration cover reissue of a residence permit. The Chinese text is in Chinese; the English wording below is this site's translation of the Chinese text.

Item 4 of the Chinese guide (申请居留证件的补发, application for reissue of residence permit) says that when a residence permit is lost, damaged, or stolen, the holder shall submit one of the following: a passport loss report certificate, a note from the embassy or consulate in China of the holder's country, or the damaged document. The holder shall also submit the new passport or another international travel document. A residence permit may be reissued.

Item 4 of the English version on the Administration's English site uses similar terms. It says the applicant shall submit a certification for passport loss report or a note from the embassy or consulate, or the damaged passport, together with the new passport or other international travel documents. It says a residence permit may be re-issued.

Order of steps in the UK embassy's answer

The Embassy of the PRC in the United Kingdom gives this order in its answer to Q16 of its FAQ. The embassy presents it as its own statement, not as a rule for all missions.

1. Report the loss to the local Chinese public security authority as soon as possible (Embassy of the PRC in the UK, Q16).
2. Apply for a new passport or another international travel document from the embassy or consulate of your home country in China (Embassy of the PRC in the UK, Q16).
3. Apply to the public security authority for reissuance of the visa, after the step before (Embassy of the PRC in the UK, Q16; Article 11).

Sources

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

Checked 11 October 2026.

This page is an unofficial summary, is not legal or immigration advice, and is not published by the bodies named; if the official text or the instructions of the body handling your case differ from this page, the official text and those instructions prevail.