Entry papers versus hospital papers
| Topic | What to confirm | Who owns it |
|---|---|---|
| Entry permission | Current notice for your passport | Immigration authority and your embassy |
| Facility letter | Whether they asked for one, and the date on it | The licensed facility |
| DragonTrail task | Which documents you want carried or checked for completeness | Written coordination quote |
| Companion | Their own passport and entry rule | The companion, not the patient’s file |
A hospital slot is not permission to cross the border. Check entry rules for your passport before you pay for flights you cannot change.
Do we have permission to enter before we book the appointment week?
Start with the National Immigration Administration and the Chinese embassy or consulate that accepts your passport. Rules differ by nationality, by how long you stay, and by whether you are only transiting. A page on this site cannot tell you that you may enter. Last reviewed 28 October 2026, and the notice can move after that date.
Hainan has published entry arrangements that are narrower than a visa for the whole country. Read the current Hainan English pages and the immigration notice together. Do not copy a number of visa-free days from an old article into a flight booking. A medical appointment in Boao does not widen those rules.
Facilities sometimes issue a letter or an invitation for their own file. That letter can help a visa application or a hotel. It is not a visa, and it does not bind the officer at the border. Visa document assistance is a checklist and courier task for papers you already hold. DragonTrail does not grant visas.
The name on the passport, the ticket, and the hospital registration should match character for character. A companion needs their own passport and their own permission to enter, even when they never see a clinician. Put the entry decision before a non-refundable clinical deposit. The getting there page is about airports after you already know you can travel.
What to write down
- Passport expiry and blank pages your embassy asks for
- The immigration notice that matches your nationality and dates
- Whether a facility letter is required, and who signs it
- Companion passports, including a child traveling as a visitor rather than as a patient
- A refund rule on flights if the entry file is refused
Related coordination
These links leave the travel-guide article for the medical desk or for a sibling guide. They do not replace the primary sources below.
Sources and last review
Last reviewed 28 October 2026. Immigration rules, customs notices, hospital instructions, and insurance letters change. Read the primary source for your passport and your facility. Counsel, the facility, and any supplier have not signed this page.
Ways to sequence the preparation
These are preparation steps, not a clinical timetable and not a fixed tour departure.
Read the notice
Time fit: Before flights
Match the immigration page to your passport and dates. Stop if the notice does not cover the stay.
- Visas and entry
- Read the notice
Why choose it: Match the immigration page to your passport and dates. Stop if the notice does not cover the stay.
Collect the letter
Time fit: If the facility asked
Ask the international office whether a letter is required and which name it must use.
- Visas and entry
- Collect the letter
Why choose it: Ask the international office whether a letter is required and which name it must use.
Land with time
Time fit: Arrival day
Do not put a clinic morning on the same day as immigration and a long transfer.
- Visas and entry
- Land with time
Why choose it: Do not put a clinic morning on the same day as immigration and a long transfer.
Ask the owner of the fact
Use the primary source and the facility before you treat this article as permission to travel or to receive care.
Related planning
Questions people ask
- No. Immigration authorities decide entry. We can help organize documents you already have. We do not grant, speed, or guarantee a visa.
- No. Keep the invitation if the facility or the embassy asked for it, and still follow the immigration notice for your passport.
- No. Check the current Hainan notice and the national rule. An appointment is a reason for travel, not an entry stamp.
- After you know the entry rule that applies to you, or on a ticket you can change if that rule is still open. We do not tell you to ignore a consular warning.
Talk to the medical desk
The medical desk coordinates logistics after a facility has its own plan. It does not diagnose, quote a treatment, or decide entry.
