Mainland China Train Policies
Ticket Issuing Policies
| Ticket Booking Time | Ticket Issuing Time |
|---|---|
| 05:00–23:30 (GMT+8) | Issued within 30 minutes |
| 23:30–05:00 (GMT+8) | Before 05:30 the next day (GMT+8) |
Notes: Due to the random allocation of tickets in online booking, we cannot guarantee the successful reservation of the specific type of sleeper berth (upper or lower) you requested. Adjacent seats/berths are usually provided for bookings, and we will try our best to reserve adjacent seats for you. Thank you for your understanding.
Change Policy
What are the ticket change rules?
What can be changed: Departure date, train number, seat class, and arrival station. Please note that according to Railway Administration regulations, the arrival station can only be changed 48 hours or more before departure. Changes cannot be made within 48 hours.
What cannot be changed: Departure station (except for intra-city stations), name, ID document, ID document type, etc. If there is a name error on your ticket, it cannot be modified through ticket changes.
Each ticket can only be changed once. Once a ticket has been successfully changed, it cannot be changed again.
Tickets that have been changed after the train has departed cannot be refunded.
Tickets that have been printed for reimbursement and purchased using cash payment can only be changed at a station ticket window, and you will need to return your paper ticket.
If your ticket was issued by 12306 China Railway, changes cannot be made between 23:30 each Tuesday and 05:00 the next day. Change requests submitted during this period will be processed after 05:00 on Wednesday.
If the fare of the new ticket is higher than the original ticket, the full fare will be charged and the original fare will be refunded after the new ticket has been issued. If the fare of the new ticket is lower than the original ticket, the difference will be refunded. A change fee of CNY 15 per passenger will be charged.
Changes to China train tickets must be made at least 90 minutes before 24:00 on the day of departure. For tickets with Hong Kong West Kowloon as the departure or arrival station, changes must be made at least 90 minutes before departure. Changes can be made to other trains within the presale period, which is 15 days (including the day of departure).
If the train is canceled, please request a refund within 30 days of the scheduled departure date. If you have not collected your ticket, you can request a refund online. If you have collected your ticket, please take the ticket and the government-issued ID used to book the ticket to the station to request a refund.
When can tickets be changed?
| Change Request Time From Original Departure Time | New Train Time | Change Fee |
|---|---|---|
| 48 hours or more before departure | Within the advance booking period | Free |
| Less than 48 hours before departure | Before the original ticket departure date (including the same day) | Free |
| More than 24 hours and less than 48 hours before departure | On the day after the original ticket departure date and onwards | 5% of ticket price |
| Less than 24 hours before departure | On the day after the original ticket departure date and onwards | 15% of ticket price |
| Before 22:00 on the day of departure | On the original ticket departure date | Free |
| Before 22:00 on the day of departure | On the day after the original ticket departure date and onwards | 40% |
| After 24:00 on the day of departure | Cannot be changed | - |
*The change fee is calculated based on the price of the new or original ticket (depending on whichever ticket has the lower price).
How are new ticket prices calculated?
If your ticket was issued by a manual assistant, Trip.com will charge a manual change fee of CNY 15 per person. If your ticket was directly issued from the official 12306 China Railway website, no manual change fee will be charged. If the original ticket is changed less than 48 hours before departure or on the original departure day before 24:00, and the new ticket is for the day after the original departure date or onwards, the Railway Administration will charge a certain percentage as the change fee.
New ticket price = Original ticket price: No Railway Administration processing fee will be charged.
New ticket price < Original ticket price: The Railway Administration refund fee will be deducted from the price difference amount. The remaining amount will then be refunded to your original account of payment.
New ticket price > Original ticket price: You will need to pay for your new ticket. The price for your original ticket will be refunded directly to your original account of payment.
When will I receive my refund?
For changes made online, your refund will generally be returned to your original account of payment within 7–10 working days.
For changes made at the station, your refund will generally be returned to your original account of payment within 7–20 working days.
What is the change refund fee?
New ticket price < Original ticket price: The price difference will be refunded. A refund fee will also be charged for the difference in price amount. The refund fee amount will follow the existing refund fee standards.
New ticket price > Original ticket price: The original ticket amount will be refunded, and no refund fee will be charged. The new ticket price will need to be paid in full.
If a train ticket is changed within 7 days of the departure time to a train departing 8 days or more from the change ticket time, and the same ticket is later refunded, a 5% refund fee will apply.
If a train ticket is changed within 48 hours to 8 days from the departure time to a train departing 8 days or more from the change ticket time, and the same ticket is later refunded more than 8 days before the new train departure time, a 5% refund fee will apply.
| Change Request Time From Original Departure Time | Refund Fee for Change Requests With Price Difference |
|---|---|
| 8 days or more before departure | None |
| 48 hours to 7 days before departure | 5% of ticket price |
| 24 to 48 hours before departure | 10% of ticket price |
| Less than 24 hours before departure | 20% of ticket price |
Ticket Refund Policy
How can I request a ticket refund?
Before departure: You can request a ticket refund in the Trip.com app.
After departure: Tickets cannot be refunded. On the day of departure, you can change to another train on the same day for free, or you can change to a future train. If no changes are made on the day of departure, the ticket will become void.
If you already have a paper ticket for reimbursement: You can first request a ticket refund in the Trip.com app and then, within 180 days, bring your original ID used at the time of booking to the station ticket window to complete the refund process and return your paper ticket for reimbursement. Only then can the Railway Authority issue a refund.
Train tickets in mainland China cannot be refunded later than 210 minutes before the train departure. For tickets to or from Hong Kong West Kowloon, the refund deadline is 10 minutes before departure.
How are refund fees calculated?
If your ticket was issued by a manual assistant, Trip.com will charge a CNY 15 manual change fee per person. If your ticket was directly issued from the official 12306 China Railway website, no manual change fee will be charged.
| Refund Request Time | Refund Fee |
|---|---|
| 8 days or more before departure | None |
| 48 hours to 7 days before departure | 5% of ticket price |
| 24 to 48 hours before departure | 10% of ticket price |
| Less than 24 hours before departure | 20% of ticket price |
Reimbursement Policy
After booking, an e-receipt will be sent to your email.
In accordance with China's National Railway Administration requirements, if, after a ticket change or destination station change, the ticket departure date falls within the Spring Festival travel period (Jan 14, 2025–Feb 22, 2025), 20% of the ticket fare will be charged for refunds.
