These are the national short codes and are free to dial from any phone, including a phone without a SIM card. Operators may not speak English — have your location in Chinese ready, or ask a bystander to speak for you.
What to say in the first ten seconds
Show this screen to whoever is helping you. It works when your pronunciation does not.
我需要帮助。
Wǒ xūyào bāngzhù.
I need help.
我的位置是……
Wǒ de wèizhì shì…
My location is… (show the map or the hotel card)
请帮我叫警察 / 救护车。
Qǐng bāng wǒ jiào jǐngchá / jiùhùchē.
Please call the police / an ambulance for me.
我不会说中文。
Wǒ bú huì shuō Zhōngwén.
I don't speak Chinese.
Lost or stolen passport
This is the emergency that ends trips. Work through it in order — skipping a step usually means a second trip across town.
- Report it to the police (110 or the nearest station). You need the written report (报案证明) — every later step asks for it. Bring any copy of your passport and your visa or entry stamp.
- Contact your embassy or consulate. Most can issue an emergency travel document, usually within one to three working days. Book online if they allow it; bring photos and the police report. Find yours through your foreign ministry's official list rather than a search result.
- Go to the local exit-entry administration (出入境管理局) to have your exit formalities regularised. Your new document needs an exit stamp or permit before you can leave.
- Tell your airline and hotel. Some carriers refuse boarding without a valid document matching the booking; a rebooking fee is better than being turned away at the gate.
- Freeze what was in it. Cards, phone, transit passes — do this in parallel, not after.
Keep a passport copy somewhere else
A photo of the photo page, the entry stamp and your visa, stored in cloud storage and in your email drafts, turns a four-day ordeal into a two-day one. Do this before you fly.
Medical emergencies and paying for them
| Where to go | When | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Public hospital, international or VIP department | Anything urgent in a major city | English-speaking staff, shorter waits, higher fees. Ask for 国际部 (international department) at reception. |
| International clinic | Non-emergency, insurance direct-billing | Most expensive; usually deals directly with travel insurers. |
| Public hospital, general department | Minor issues, budget matters | Cheap and competent; registration queues are long and little English is spoken. |
| Pharmacy (药店) | Colds, stomach trouble, minor cuts | Staff can advise on common medicines. Show symptoms with a translation app. |
- Payment is usually upfront. Public hospitals ask for a deposit before treatment. Keep a card that works and a few hundred yuan in cash.
- Get itemised receipts and a diagnosis note (诊断证明) for your insurer. Photograph everything before you leave the building.
- Call your insurer's assistance line before treatment if you are not in immediate danger — it changes what they will reimburse.
Scams: the scripts, and the exits
| Script | Where | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| "Your English is so good — let's get tea / see my art gallery" | Wangfujing, Nanjing Road, Bund, major squares | Keep walking. Do not follow anyone into a building. The bill arrives at the end, with company. |
| "Taxi? The meter is broken / the queue is closed" | Airport and railway arrivals halls | Walk to the official rank or open DiDi. Never follow a solicitor. |
| "The public bus to the Great Wall isn't running today" | Bus stations near major sights | It is running. Buy at the official counter or use the app. |
| "Free" bracelet, tea, or photograph, then a demand for money | Tourist streets, temples | Refuse, put it back in their hand, walk away. Do not negotiate. |
| Fake ticket seller at a sold-out attraction | Forbidden City, Terracotta Army | Only buy through official channels; same-day tickets are often unavailable by design. |
If money has already changed hands, a police report is still worth filing — it is required for most insurance claims, and it is the only document that creates any chance of recovery.
Lost phone
- Suspend the SIM with your home carrier (use a web portal from another device).
- Remote-lock and wipe, and sign out of payment wallets.
- Change the password on your main email — it is the recovery route for everything else.
- Buy a cheap local phone and a prepaid SIM, then reinstall Alipay. Your account still exists; you will need SMS to the old number, which is why step 1 matters.
Your embassy: what it can and cannot do
Travellers arrive at an embassy expecting more than consulates can deliver, and lose a day finding that out. This is the honest split.
| They can | They cannot |
|---|---|
| Issue an emergency travel document so you can fly home | Issue a normal passport on the spot — that takes weeks and happens at home |
| Contact your family, your insurer, or a hospital on your behalf | Pay your medical bill, your hotel, or your new ticket |
| Give you a list of local lawyers, doctors and interpreters | Recommend one, or vouch for their quality |
| Visit you if you are detained, and explain the local legal process | Get you out of detention, or intervene in a Chinese legal case |
| Replace a lost passport faster if you have a police report and photos | Replace money, cards, a phone, or a visa for a third country |
Why this page has no embassy phone numbers
Numbers and addresses change, and a wrong number in an emergency is worse than no number. Use your own foreign ministry's official list — not a search result, not a blog, not us. Save the address of your nearest embassy and its after-hours line before you fly, on paper as well as on your phone.
Several governments also run free trip registration, which puts your details in reach if something happens: STEP for US citizens (step.state.gov), consular assistance for UK citizens (gov.uk), Smartraveller for Australians (smartraveller.gov.au), and Registration of Canadians Abroad (travel.gc.ca). If your country offers one, use it — it takes five minutes.
A practical substitution for a phone list: before you fly, screenshot your embassy's address in Chinese characters and save it in an offline folder. Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu hold most embassies and consulates; if you are elsewhere, ask the hotel reception to call the local foreign affairs office, which is the route most Chinese hosts will take anyway.
Last reviewed 2026-11-06 — rules and prices in China change often. Confirm critical details in the app or on the official site before you rely on them.
Official sources used for this guide
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