Hainan Free Trade Port Records 1.65 Million Entries and Exits in Six Months Since Customs Closure
Hainan Free Trade Port has recorded 1.654 million entries and exits in the six months since its full island-wide customs closure operation began on December 18, 2025, according to data released by the Haikou General Station of Exit-Entry Border Inspection. The figure represents a 31.2% year-on-year increase, with foreign nationals accounting for 913,000 of those movements — a surge of 36.1% compared to the same period last year.
A Milestone for China’s Boldest Trade Experiment
The six-month milestone, reported by Xinhua News on June 19, 2026, marks a significant vote of confidence in China’s ambitious plan to transform the tropical island province into the world’s largest free trade port by 2035. The customs closure — which establishes Hainan as a special customs supervision area operating under a “first-line opening, second-line control” framework — represents the most far-reaching trade liberalization experiment in China’s modern history.
Rao Jun (饶俊), Deputy Director of the Border Inspection Division at the Haikou General Station, attributed the growth to Hainan’s visa-free policy framework, which now allows citizens from 86 countries to enter the island with ordinary passports. “Since the launch of the full island customs closure operation of the Hainan Free Trade Port, Hainan has maintained the country’s most favorable visa-free policy system,” Rao said.
Visa-Free Access and Air Connectivity Drive Growth
Hainan’s visa-free regime is among the most liberal in China, encompassing bilateral mutual visa exemptions, unilateral visa exemptions, a 59-country 30-day visa-free entry program, 144-hour visa-free transit for tour groups from Hong Kong and Macau, 240-hour transit visa-free, and a 15-day cruise tour group visa-free policy. This layered approach has made the island one of China’s most accessible destinations for international travelers.
Complementing the visa regime is a rapidly expanding aviation network. Hainan now operates 92 international and regional passenger air routes connecting to Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, Europe, Oceania, and beyond, as People’s Daily reported in January 2026. Direct flights from Belarus launched in October 2025 have further eased access for European travelers.
The top source countries for inbound visitors during the period were Russia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore, according to the border inspection data.
Sustained Momentum Since Day One
The six-month figures build on strong early indicators. In the first month after customs closure alone, Hainan recorded 186,000 foreign entries and exits — a 46% year-on-year increase — with 87,000 foreign tourists entering visa-free, representing a remarkable 64% growth, as China Youth reported in January 2026.
Tourists on the ground have confirmed the trend. Malika, a tourist from Moscow visiting Sanya, told Xinhua: “We wanted to have a sea holiday, and also to see a bit of China. Sanya was amazing and I liked it very much.” Anton, a tourist from Belarus visiting with his family for the second time, praised the convenience: “The visa-free policy is very convenient, and we can stay in Hainan for up to 30 days.”
Shifting Tourism Patterns and Deeper Engagement
Beyond the raw numbers, the quality of tourism is evolving. Vitaliy, a Russian tour guide who has worked in Hainan for eight years, has observed a growing number of tourists from European countries including the UK, France, and Germany since 2025. These visitors stay longer, and their interests have shifted from traditional sightseeing to in-depth experiences such as surfing and traditional Chinese medicine therapy.
This observation is backed by official data: in 2025, Hainan received over 1.5 million inbound overnight tourists, up 35.2% year on year, with tourist arrivals from the UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland all achieving double-digit growth.
The upgraded duty-free policy, which expanded its beneficiary range to include outbound travelers from November 1, 2025, has further enhanced the appeal, making duty-free shopping a key part of the visitor experience.
Infrastructure and Service Upgrades
Hainan has established 29 tourism promotion offices across 18 countries and regions to market the destination. By the end of 2026, the province plans to have five-language signage — Chinese, English, Russian, Japanese, and Korean — at high-grade scenic spots and hotels, and aims to train 10,000 international tourism service personnel to eliminate communication barriers.
The Bigger Picture: A Free Trade Port in the Making
The customs closure framework itself provides the structural foundation for these policies. Under the “first-line opening” principle, approximately 74% of tariff lines — roughly 6,600 items — now enjoy zero tariffs when entering Hainan from abroad, up from just 21% pre-closure, according to ChinaBizInsight. The “second-line control” regulates goods moving between Hainan and mainland China, with a key exception: encouraged-industry enterprises that add more than 30% value through processing can export finished products to the mainland duty-free.
What to Watch Next
The next major milestone will be the one-year anniversary of the customs closure in December 2026, which will provide a fuller picture of whether the initial surge in traffic can be sustained. Key questions remain: How will cargo and trade volumes evolve under the new customs regime? Can Hainan compete with established regional hubs like Singapore and Dubai? And will the growth in visitor numbers translate into the broader economic transformation that Beijing envisions?
For now, the six-month data offers compelling evidence that the Hainan Free Trade Port experiment is off to a strong start — attracting not just more visitors, but higher-quality, longer-staying travelers who are engaging with the island in deeper ways than ever before.