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ChinaMedMap

How Medical Care in China Works for Foreign Patients

Hospital grades, registration, real-name booking, paying before treatment and emergency numbers — the practical steps, from official sources.

By the ChinaMedMap Editorial TeamPublished 21 September 2026Updated 21 September 2026

A quiet waiting area with wooden benches, plants and daylight
Illustrative image

This guide covers logistics, not medical advice. Rules change — check the dates on the sources below and confirm with the hospital or embassy. This page was drafted with AI assistance from the official sources listed and is awaiting final human editorial sign-off.

Hospitals, not family doctors

The official city guides for foreigners describe care in China as hospital-based: you go to a hospital’s outpatient department and register with a department or a named doctor.

Hospitals are graded I to III by scale and function, and classed through periodic accreditation. Grade III, Class A (三级甲等) is the top tier in practice. Accreditation is run by provincial health authorities against national standards. The grade tells you about the institution’s scope — not about an individual doctor, and not about whether it can work with you in English. More detail is on our hospitals page.

The outpatient visit, step by step

The Shanghai and Beijing governments both publish English guidance for foreigners. The flow they describe is:

  1. Register (guahao). Book or queue for a numbered slot with a department or a named doctor, and pay the registration fee. Bring your passport; first-time patients are issued a hospital card.
  2. See the doctor when your number is called.
  3. Pay, then receive. You pay for tests before they are done and for prescriptions before collecting them from the hospital pharmacy.
  4. Admission. For a hospital stay or surgery, expect to pay the anticipated costs in advance.

International medical departments follow the same logic, but each runs its own registration and booking — see the individual hospital profiles.

Booking is real-name

Appointments are tied to an identity document. Beijing’s rules, for example, require a valid ID number when booking and name the passport as an accepted document. City platforms include Beijing 114 and the English-enabled “International Service Beijing” mini-program, and Shanghai’s Suishenban app — for which the Shanghai government notes you may need some basic Chinese.

Payment

A 2024 State Council policy on payment services names hospitals among the key venues that should accept mobile payment, bank cards and cash, and promotes acceptance of overseas cards. For foreign visitors, Alipay and WeChat Pay allow international cards to be linked; the single-transaction limit for overseas users was raised to USD 5,000 and the annual limit to USD 50,000 in 2024. Beijing’s guide lists cash, major international credit cards, UnionPay and mobile payment for the international departments it covers.

None of this guarantees that a particular cashier desk takes your card. Ask the department before you travel, and carry a backup.

Emergencies

The national pre-hospital emergency number is 120. Other numbers: 110 police, 119 fire, 122 traffic accidents. Calls are free. We have not found an official source confirming English-language service on 120, so have a Chinese speaker or your hotel help if you can.

Browse hospitals in China →

Sources

  1. 医院分级管理办法（试行草案）, Ministry of Health, 1989 (reprint)Peking University Health Science Center (reprint of Ministry of Health text) · Chinese · dated 1989-11-29 · retrieved 21 September 2026
  2. 江苏省医院评审办法 (2018)Wuxi Municipal Health Commission · Chinese · dated 2018-07-24 · retrieved 21 September 2026
  3. 《三级医院评审标准（2020年版）》解读State Council (gov.cn) · Chinese · dated 2020-12-28 · retrieved 21 September 2026
  4. Shanghai government — Healthcare guide for foreignersShanghai Municipal Government · English · dated 2026-05-26 · retrieved 21 September 2026
  5. Beijing government — Medical Guide for ForeignersBeijing Municipal Government · English · retrieved 21 September 2026
  6. 京卫医〔2023〕8号 (real-name medical appointments)Beijing Municipal Health Commission · Chinese · dated 2023-01-19 · retrieved 21 September 2026
  7. 国办发〔2024〕10号 关于进一步优化支付服务提升支付便利性的意见State Council General Office · Chinese · dated 2024-03-01 · retrieved 21 September 2026
  8. Payment guide for foreign visitors in ChinaState Council (english.www.gov.cn, carrying Xinhua) · English · dated 2024-04-11 · retrieved 21 September 2026
  9. 院前医疗急救管理办法 (reprint)National Health and Family Planning Commission (reprinted by Beijing Municipal Government) · Chinese · dated 2014-02-01 · retrieved 21 September 2026
  10. Beijing government — emergency numbersBeijing Municipal Government · English · dated 2023-04-12 · retrieved 21 September 2026

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