by ZHANG Qiannan

China's inbound travel and shopping are rebounding sharply as easier visa-free entry and expanding duty-free services draw more overseas visitors.

Visa-free arrivals reached 20.89 million in the first nine months of 2025, up more than 50% from a year earlier, while tax-refund sales — purchases made by departing foreign travelers — almost doubled, Vice Minister of Commerce SHENG Qiuping told a State Council Information Office briefing on Tuesday ahead of the China International Import Expo (CIIE).

"On overseas social media, 'coming to China with empty suitcases' has become a trend," Sheng said, adding that broader visa-free access and simpler refund procedures are helping attract international shoppers.

The CIIE, first held in 2018, has become one of the world's largest import-oriented trade fairs and a key showcase for China's consumer market. The eighth edition will run in Shanghai from Nov. 5 to 10.

China's commerce ministry is scheduled to launch a nationwide "Shop in China" campaign on Nov. 5, combining relaxed entry rules with tax-refund incentives and shopping festivals to spur consumption. Building on the initiative, Shanghai will use the expo period to showcase its consumer revival, staging a "Consumption Carnival" across dining, retail and cross-border shopping, while also piloting AI-driven and other digital retail projects.

HUA Yuan, Secretary-General of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee, said the city has hosted more than 2,000 product launches and added 787 new first stores this year. Online retail sales rose 12.7% to 3.27 trillion yuan (about US$460 billion) in the first nine months, and live-commerce transactions jumped 23.6% to 369 billion yuan.

Shanghai is also expanding its "ticket-code" digital voucher platform — a QR-based system linking event tickets to shopping discounts — to the import expo, aiming to make spending easier for visitors.

Inbound tourism has strengthened and is approaching pre-pandemic levels. The city received 6.3 million overseas visitors between January and September, with tourism spending up nearly 30%. Cultural exhibitions have drawn about 40 million attendees, including 2.77 million for the "Ancient Egyptian Civilization" show.

More than 110 sports events have been held this year, and box-office revenue for major performances rose 8.5%, according to Hua. The rebound in travel and services spending is adding some momentum to China’s broader recovery.