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New passport or changed details: the 10-day filing for residence permit holders

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If a registered item on your residence permit changes, Article 33 of the Exit and Entry Administration Law says the holder "shall, within 10 days from the date of change," apply for alteration. The passport number is one of the registered items listed in Article 33, so a change to it falls under that duty. Article 76 covers a foreigner who does not complete the alteration formalities, and sets a warning with a possible fine.

The registered items in Article 33

Article 33 lists the registered items of a foreign residence permit as:

  • name
  • sex
  • date of birth
  • reason for residence and duration of residence of the holder
  • date and place of issuance
  • passport number or other international travel documents number

The 10-day duty

The English text of Article 33, published by the National Immigration Administration, reads:

"Where the registered item in a foreigner's residence permit has changed, the holder shall, within 10 days from the date of change, apply to the exit/entry administration of public security organ under the local people's government at or above the county level in the place of residence for going through the formalities for alteration."

The sentence sets four points:

  • The trigger is a change to a registered item.
  • The time limit is 10 days from the date of change.
  • The office is the exit/entry administration of public security organ under the local people's government at or above the county level in your place of residence.
  • The action is going through the formalities for alteration.

The penalty wording in Article 76

Article 76 begins: "Under any of the following circumstances, a warning shall be given, and a fine of not more than RMB 2,000 yuan may also be imposed:"

Item (4) of Article 76 reads: "Foreigners fail to go through the formalities for altering registration in accordance with the relevant regulations when there is any change in the registered items in their residence permits;"

Item (4) refers to "the relevant regulations" and names no time limit. The 10-day period appears in Article 33, not in item (4).

The service guide on changed registered items

The following passage is in Chinese in the National Immigration Administration's service guide for issuing, extending, replacing and reissuing foreigners' residence permits. The English below is this site's translation.

Item (三), headed by the guide as the extension and replacement of residence permits, reads in English:

"For an application to extend the period of stay, or where a registered item on the residence permit has changed, the applicant shall submit the relevant supporting materials, or the basic personal information and the supporting materials for a change in the reason for residence, in accordance with the clauses above. The period of stay may be extended, and the residence permit may be replaced."

Item (三) refers to "the clauses above" in the same section. Those clauses are not quoted here. Item (三) names no time limit and lists no specific supporting materials.

A new passport for a visa holder

This is a visa rule. It comes from item h of the English service guide on visa extension, change and reissuance, published by the National Immigration Administration. It is a separate passage from Article 33 and from item (三).

Item h reads: "A foreigner who starts using a new passport because the original one is about to expire or is running out of visa pages may apply for a change of visa by submitting the original passport for the latest entry or relevant certificates issued by the embassy or consulate of the applicant's country in China specifying that the original passport has been withdrawn."

Item h also says that a visa "consistent with the original visas in type, validity period of entry, duration of stay and the remaining valid entry times may be issued," and that "the entry times of the new visa will be decided in accordance with the remaining valid entry times of the original visa."

Item h names two situations: the original passport is about to expire, or it is running out of visa pages.

Suggestion, not a rule

Write down the date your passport or another registered detail changed. Article 33 counts the 10 days from that date.

Item (三) does not list the supporting materials. Check the current notice of the exit/entry administration office in your place of residence for the documents it asks for.

Sources

Checked 10 and 11 October 2026

This page is an unofficial summary. It is not published by or affiliated with the Ministry of Education, the China Scholarship Council, the National Immigration Administration, any embassy or any university, and it is not legal advice. The official text and the current notice of the office handling your case prevail if they differ.