If you lose a passport, phone or bank card in China, first get somewhere safe and tell a trusted person where you are. Then follow the relevant steps below. Protecting an account, replacing a passport and completing Chinese immigration formalities are separate tasks.
Choose the problem you need to solve
If there is immediate danger or a suspected crime requiring police help, call 110. For a medical emergency, call 120. Give your location in Chinese if you can, or ask a nearby staff member to help. For an item left in a hotel, vehicle or station, start with that operator's staff or lost-property service.
| What is missing | Start with | Keep next |
|---|---|---|
| Passport | Local police or public security bureau, then your consulate. | The loss report, case reference and instructions for replacement. |
| Phone | A trusted device and your phone's recovery service. | Account protection, your mobile carrier and payment providers. |
| Bank card | Your card issuer's official app or saved telephone number. | Confirmation that the card is blocked and a way to pay tonight. |
If several items are gone, tell a travelling companion or the hotel desk. Ask for help making calls and keeping a short record. Use another person's device without handing over passwords or leaving an account signed in.
Replace the passport and resolve your exit documents
- Report the loss locally. Ask the police or public security bureau which office handles a foreign passport loss report and what documents to bring. Keep the original report and a copy.
- Contact your own embassy or consulate. Ask how to apply for a replacement passport or emergency travel document. Confirm appointments, photos, identity evidence and any proposed travel route before buying a new flight.
- Contact the local exit-entry administration. This is the immigration office within the local public security bureau, often abbreviated to PSB. A replacement travel document does not automatically settle your Chinese immigration status. Ask what visa reissue, stay or exit formalities apply to you, including if you entered visa-free.
- Update the next bookings. Once the authorities confirm your usable documents, ask the airline, railway ticket issuer and hotel how to update the document number.
Finding the right immigration office
Call 12367 in China and select English for immigration enquiries. Ask which local office handles a lost foreign passport and what documents it needs. This helps you find the correct office; your own consulate still handles the replacement passport.
A passport scan helps explain who you are; do not assume that it, or a police report, will be accepted for boarding or hotel check-in. Processing times depend on the authorities and your circumstances. If departure is close, tell both the consulate and the local exit-entry office.
The entry documents guide explains the information worth keeping before travel. Share any new travel dates with your insurer and ticket issuer.
Protect the phone and the accounts inside it
- Open the device recovery service from a trusted device. For an iPhone, use Find My; for Android, use Google's Find Hub or your manufacturer's recovery service. These depend on your device's settings and service availability. Do not go alone to an unfamiliar location to retrieve a stolen phone.
- Choose the missing device and enable its lost or secure mode. Follow your provider's current prompts. For the iPhone example below, enter a number you can still answer, such as a companion’s number with their agreement, then select Activate. Android uses a different recovery screen; do not try to match its buttons to this image.
On this iPhone screen, enter a reachable number and select Activate. - Contact your mobile carrier. Ask about suspending the missing SIM or eSIM, protecting your number and arranging a replacement. Plan how you will receive bank verification messages.
- Contact your bank and payment providers. Use their official account-security channels to protect the affected accounts. Do not assume a phone's lost mode has frozen Alipay, WeChat Pay or every banking app.
If the recovery service will not load on your connection, do not delay contacting your carrier, bank and payment providers. Ask the hotel for help making the calls.
Never share a passcode or verification code with someone claiming to have found your device. For an Apple device, keep it in Find My to preserve Activation Lock, which helps prevent someone else reactivating it. Remote erasure deletes data and is a separate, irreversible action; read the provider's instructions before choosing it.
Once access is restored, use our connection guide and payment guide to rebuild the essentials.
Block the card and arrange a practical backup
Contact the issuer using its official app or a number you saved before travel. Explain whether the physical card, phone or both are missing. Ask about blocking the card, reviewing transactions, replacement delivery and any emergency cash option available on your account.
Tell the bank about suspicious transactions promptly and follow its dispute instructions. Check what happens to wallet-linked payments when the underlying card is replaced. Use a separately stored card or cash for immediate transport and a meal if you have them. If neither is available, ask the issuer about emergency options and arrange temporary help from a trusted travelling companion. A replacement service can take time.
If a hotel has a deposit or a refund pending on the missing card, tell the hotel and ask the issuer how that transaction will be handled.
Keep the next few hours manageable
Make one record of the time and place of loss, report numbers, people contacted and what each office requested. Keep item receipts, booking changes and necessary replacement expenses together. Your insurer may require specific evidence and notification within a policy deadline.
Then settle tonight: a reachable contact number, a usable way to pay, your hotel address and the next appointment. The insurance checklist covers the records to keep; the hotel guide helps you discuss a changed arrival or identity document.
Before you move on
Questions you may still have
Can I leave China with a replacement passport immediately?
Check with the local exit-entry administration as well as your consulate. A replacement travel document does not automatically resolve Chinese visa, stay or exit formalities.
Does locking my lost phone freeze every payment app?
Do not assume that it does. Contact your bank, Alipay, WeChat Pay and other affected providers through their official security channels.
Can I use a passport scan to board a train or check into a hotel?
A scan may help establish your details, but do not assume it will replace the original document. Ask the operator what documents it can accept in your circumstances.