China on Tuesday announced a relaxation of its visa-free transit policy, extending the permitted stay for eligible foreign travelers from the original 72 and 144 hours to 240 hours, or 10 days.

Twenty-one more ports of entry will also be added to the list of entry and exit points for travelers with transit visa exemptions, the National Immigration Administration said.

Under the new policy, people from 54 countries, including Russia, Brazil, the UK, the U.S. and Canada, who are transiting through China on their way to a third country or region, may enter China visa-free through any of the 60 open ports in 24 provinces, autonomous regions or municipalities. 

They may stay within designated areas for up to 240 hours. Compared to the previous 72/144-hour transit visa-free policies, the most notable change is that they can now travel across provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities within the permitted areas.

From January to November, the total number of foreign arrivals at ports nationwide reached 29.2 million, a year-on-year increase of 86.2 percent. Of these, 17.4 million entries were under the visa exemption policy, marking a year-on-year increase of 123.3 percent.