TL;DR — the 30-second version If you work in China on a Work Permit, part of your salary already pays for basic medical insurance (yīliáo bǎoxiǎn, “medical insurance”). It covers local public hospitals, and you cannot opt out. Most expats add one private layer on top — an international plan like Cigna, Allianz Care, or…
TL;DR: the 30-second version Only two Chinese holidays shut the whole country down: Spring Festival (about eight days around mid-February 2026) and National Day (Oct 1–8). The mid-size ones — Qingming, Labor Day, Dragon Boat, Mid-Autumn — close banks and government offices but barely touch shops or delivery. Retail “holidays” like Double 11 close nothing….
TL;DR: the 30-second version No referral, no family doctor, no month of waiting. Find a hospital with a physical examination center (tijian zhongxin), bring your passport, show up on a weekday morning with an empty stomach, and pick a package off the price list. Most land between roughly 300 and 800 RMB (about 40 to…
TL;DR — the 30-second version Every winter, right on schedule, the city you live in starts closing in a quiet order: the noodle shop first, then the barbershop, then the pharmacy that never closes. Chinese New Year is the biggest annual shutdown in the country, and the only real surprise for expats is how early…
The 2026 China public holiday dates for foreigners: what closes, when to book trains and hotels, and the expat checklist for each long break.
