China has added Kyrgyzstan and Vietnam to its 240-hour visa-free transit program, bringing the total number of countries eligible for this policy to 57, immigration authorities announced on Thursday.

Effective from Aug 20, citizens of Kyrgyzstan and Vietnam holding ordinary passports and interline passenger tickets with confirmed dates and itineraries bound for a third country or region may enter China through any of the 65 ports across the country and stay up to 240 hours, or 10 days, without a visa, according to the National Immigration Administration (NIA).

Citizens of these two countries holding ordinary passports will also be eligible for the 30-day visa-free entry policy for Hainan province in South China starting the same day, allowing them to enter the province through Hainan's open ports and stay visa-free for up to 30 days. With these additions, the number of countries covered by this Hainan visa-free policy has increased to 61.

During the visa-free period, travelers are permitted to engage in tourism, business, exchange visits and family visits. However, the two policies do not cover employment, study or journalistic activities, which still require appropriate visas, the NIA said.

These measures are part of China's broader efforts to boost international travel and exchanges.

Reviewer 1: Huang Mengyao

Reviewer 2: Zhang Yanlan

Reviewer 3: Tang Caihong