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Section

Student visas

X1 or X2, the documents each one needs, and the residence permit that follows an X1.

Guides in this section

  • Exactly 180 days of study: X2 or X1? How each official text draws the lineExactly 180 days falls on the short-term side in the Regulations, in Order No. 42 and in the consular instructions' X2 row, and this page quotes each text to show where the line sits.
  • The JW201 Form: What It Is, Who Issues It and Why It Is Required for a Chinese Student VisaWhat the JW201 form is, who issues it (JW201 for government scholarship and exchange students, JW202 for self-funded), why it appears on the X1 visa material list, and how its copies are handled when you file for your residence permit.
  • Original or photocopy? How three official pages word the admission notice and JW formThe UK embassy list allows an original or a photocopy of the JW201 or JW202 form, while the consular X1 section and the US embassy row name neither word for it.
  • Staying longer on an X2 visa: the extension papers in the immigration service guidesArticle 29 of the Exit and Entry Administration Law requires an extension application seven days before the visa's stay expires, and the accumulated extension shall not exceed the original stay in the visa.
  • Student visa papers at the Chinese embassy in the UK: the embassy's own listThe Chinese embassy in the UK's own page lists the basic papers, the X1 and X2 documents and the application steps for a student visa, with its time stamp of 1 July 2020.
  • Student visa papers at the Chinese embassy in the United States: the table row by rowThe Chinese embassy in the United States notice (updated September 2025) asks X1 higher education applicants for Form JW201 or JW202 and a photocopy of the Admission Letter. This unofficial summary sets out the X1 and X2 rows as the notice prints them.
  • X1 and X2 papers in the consular Visa Application InstructionsThe Ministry of Foreign Affairs visa instruction page lists an Admission Letter for both X1 and X2 study visas, and a Form JW201 or JW202 for X1 only.
  • X1 or X2 Student Visa? The 180-Day Line, the Documents, and the 30-Day Residence Permit DeadlineChina issues the X1 visa for study longer than 180 days and the X2 for 180 days or less. X1 holders then have 30 days after entry to apply for a residence permit. Here is what the law, the regulations and the Chinese Embassy's visa guidance actually require.

The official pages this section relies on

  1. NIA — Exit and Entry Administration Law (English)en.nia.gov.cn
  2. NIA — Regulations on Administration of the Entry and Exit of Foreigners (English)en.nia.gov.cn
  3. Chinese Embassy in the UK — Visa for China (visa categories)gb.china-embassy.gov.cn