Affiliate disclosure

How we make money — and what that does not change.

ChinaReady Check is free to use. We earn commissions when readers buy a recommended service through one of our partner links. Commissions never affect our eligibility outputs, policy interpretations, or which itinerary templates we publish.

Networks and direct partnerships we use

We work with three kinds of partners. Each is disclosed below per FTC 16 CFR Part 255 and the equivalent EU UCPD / UK CAP Code rules.

  • Travelpayouts — a travel-affiliate aggregator. When you click a partner link routed via Travelpayouts (currently used for Airalo eSIMs, NordVPN, and select activity providers), a click-attribution cookie is dropped so the partner can credit any resulting booking back to us. Tracking script: tp-em.com/NTI5NjE3.js.
  • Impact (impact.com) — a direct affiliate network where we partner with brands one-by-one (currently in onboarding: ExpressVPN / NordVPN, iVisa, and others). Same click-attribution model as Travelpayouts.
  • Direct partner programs — Wise Partner Program, Klook Affiliate, and any other program we run outside an aggregator. Each is identified inline at the point of link placement.

Every affiliate partner we recommend

  • Set up a China-ready VPN before you fly — NordVPN is one of the most-tested VPNs for China. Install and test before departure — most VPN sites are blocked once you're in mainland. (Estimated commission: $13-36)
  • Get a real China visa via iVisa — If your itinerary doesn't qualify for 240h transit (e.g. round-trip back to origin), iVisa can prepare a standard L tourist visa. (Estimated commission: $10-40)
  • Move money for China travel with Wise — Cheaper than bank wires for paying Chinese hotels in CNY, and the multi-currency card works at many ATMs in China. (Estimated commission: $30-50 first-transfer)
  • Travel medical insurance for China — Chinese public hospitals require cash up front for foreigners and won't bill your home insurer. SafetyWing Nomad Insurance covers medical, evacuation, and trip interruption — buy it before you fly. (Estimated commission: $10-20/policy)
  • China eSIM data plan — Airalo gives you data the moment you land — activate it before takeoff so you can fill the CDAC, ride-share, and translate immediately on arrival. (Estimated commission: $1-8)
  • Book China attractions and tours on Klook — Klook is best for attraction tickets, local tours, and activity bookings after your 240h route is already legal. (Estimated commission: $3-8)
  • Find foreign-passport-friendly hotels — Trip.com lists China hotels with explicit foreign-passport check-in policies. (Estimated commission: $4-12)
  • Book China high-speed rail — 12306 (the official site) does not support foreign cards smoothly. Trip.com is the practical English option. (Estimated commission: $2-8)
  • Pre-book an airport transfer — If you land late or don't want to fight the taxi line, GetYourGuide and Klook both have English-language airport transfer providers. (Estimated commission: $3-8)

How outbound links work

  • All partner links route through /go/[partner] so we measure clicks ourselves and can attach a sub-ID (e.g. marker=529617.itinerary_classic-3-city) telling the affiliate dashboard which page and which CTA produced the click.
  • Links are tagged rel="sponsored noopener" per FTC and Google guidelines.
  • Affiliate placements are always labeled "Sponsored · we may earn a commission".
  • If a partner's affiliate program is not yet approved, the corresponding /go/ route falls back to an internal information page — no opaque redirects, no traffic given away for free.

What commissions never change

  • The eligibility check produces the same YES/NO/EDGE answer regardless of affiliate revenue.
  • We do not move passport countries between "eligible" and "ineligible" based on partner relationships.
  • Itinerary templates are chosen for travel utility, not affiliate density.
  • We do not accept paid placement, sponsored content, or "list inclusion" fees.

Cookies, tracking, and your choice

Affiliate networks use cookies (typically 30-90 day attribution windows) to credit bookings back to us. Specifically:

  • Travelpayouts drops a first-party click ID when you visit, and a third-party cookie when you click through. The cookie contains a click hash, no personal info, expires within 30 days for most partners.
  • Impact and direct partners follow the same model with their own cookies.
  • If you don't want any affiliate cookies, your browser's built-in tracking-protection or any standard cookie-blocking extension (uBlock Origin, Privacy Badger, Brave shields) will block them — the site still works fully without them, we just won't earn commission on your bookings.

For full details on what data we collect and store on our side, see our privacy page. (Short version: we don't store passport, name, or trip details. The eligibility check runs in your browser only.)