Locals-only hotels in China fret over rule change to accept foreigners

BEIJING – Hotels in China that currently cater only to locals are worried that a recent rule change that stops them from turning away foreigners will mean more tedious processes, even as they welcome the potential new business.

Hotel operators are no longer allowed to refuse overseas visitors due to a lack of “foreign accommodation qualification”, the Chinese government said in a notice on its website on May 24.

There are no comprehensive statistics on how many hotels will be affected by the new rule, though it is expected to impact the majority of hotels in the country, which currently cater primarily to the booming domestic tourism industry.

The latest change, decided jointly by the police, Commerce Ministry and immigration authority, comes after overseas tourists including those from Britain, Nigeria and Pakistan complained they were rejected for check-in at hotels.

Hotel staff explained that they lacked the capability to send the guests’ particulars to the police or that they “could not enter the information into the system”, the notice said.

Hotels in China are required to register foreign guests with the police within 24 hours of check-in as a means to keep tabs on foreigners, resulting in many operators outrightly refusing to take in overseas tourists due to the hassle.

The notice said the Ministry of Public Security, which refers to the police, will streamline the registration process, but it did not give details.

Staff at hotels in China that advertise they do not accept foreigners said they have yet to receive an official notice informing them of the change.

They told The Straits Times they welcome more business, which they expect the changes to bring, but they are worried about new registration processes that the police will require now that everyone has to comply.

A hotel employee in Xi’an, the capital of north-western Shaanxi province, who gave his name only as Mr Hong, said: “We didn’t apply for a permit to host foreigners before because it was very troublesome.

“If we apply for the permit, the police will tighten checks on us, and we will have to comply with even more standards.”

He said that in Xi’an’s busy Muslim Quarter, a tourist hot spot, “only a couple of hotels accept foreigners”.

“Hopefully, the authorities can do away with the registration of foreign guests with the police entirely or ask for fewer details of foreigners checking in,” he added. 

Details required include clear scans of the passport, visa number and the latest entry stamp into China.

The manager of a hotel in a county in Guizhou province in south-western China, who gave his name only as Mr Bai, said he was concerned that the new rules will mean more paperwork that cannot be avoided by “simply refusing to accept foreigners”, as is the norm now.

He recalled how, when village football in Guizhou became an international hit in 2023, local authorities lifted restrictions to allow foreigners to stay at any hotel or bed-and-breakfast in Rongjiang county. 

At the time, innkeepers needed to only take photos of the foreigners’ passports and their latest entry stamp into China and send them to the local police on Weixin, a messaging app.

“So it all depends on how strict the authorities enforce their checks,” Mr Bai said. “I hope the central authorities can let local officials decide how to implement the changes.”

For now, both Mr Hong and Mr Bai, who declined to give their full names for fear of being seen as defying the new regulations, said they do not plan to start accepting foreigners until they receive official notice.  

The China Hotel Association has so far issued a letter urging all hotels to inform their staff not to turn away foreign guests and to provide them with better services, such as having signage in English.

Dr Liu Simin, a tourism expert at Beijing-based think-tank China Society for Future Studies, told ST that allowing all hotels to take in foreigners could help stem the decline in foreign tourists and boost tourism revenue.

“This rule effectively lowers the cost of travel in China as foreign tourists can now stay at cheaper hotels that were previously only available to locals,” he said.

But he expects the boost to be limited, given the unfavourable global economic conditions.

Trip.com Singapore general manager Edmund Ong said the change will encourage more tourists to visit China.

The change “will further increase accommodation options available to our users wherever they may be from”, he said. “We believe this will have a positive effect on inbound tourism to China.”

Tourists from developed countries have seen their wallets shrink due to inflation. While the Chinese renminbi has weakened, making it cheaper for foreign visitors, currencies in neighbouring Thailand and Japan have depreciated even more, making them more attractive destinations for budget-conscious travellers.

China’s inbound tourism has yet to recover

from the aftermath of its strict Covid-19 curbs, expensive flights following a rebound from the pandemic and tense relations with the US and EU.

Immigration data showed that in 2023, border authorities recorded 35.5 million entries and exits by foreigners, down 63.7 per cent from the 97.7 million in 2019 before the pandemic. 

Allowing foreigners to stay at any hotel of their choosing is the latest step China has taken to encourage foreigners to visit the world’s second-largest economy. This follows Chinese President Xi Jinping’s repeated calls for visitors to see for themselves the “Real China”.

Beijing uses the term “Real China” to counter negative representations of China, including allegations of human rights abuses, in media reports.

During an official visit to France on May 7, Mr Xi announced an extension to its visa-free arrangement to 11 European countries, including Belgium, France and Germany, as well as Malaysia until the end of 2025. 

This will allow tourists from these countries to visit China for up to 15 days without the need for a visa. 

Besides visa relaxations, China has instructed payment providers to make it easier for foreigners to spend money in the country.

Alipay, one of China’s two biggest e-wallets, announced in March that visitors to China can spend up to US$5,000 (S$6,800) in a single transaction – up from the previous US$1,000 – if they register their identities with the operator. 

Those who do not register with the operator can spend up to US$2,000 a year, up from US$500.

Management consultant Adam Duan, 38, a French national living in Shanghai, said he is looking forward to the changes.

“Booking hotels that take in foreigners can be very difficult in the more isolated parts of China,” said Mr Duan. “I’ve been relying on my Chinese friends to book hotels at these places and sneaking into the rooms afterwards.

“I’m glad those days will soon be over.”