BEIJING, July 10 (Xinhua) -- Currently, foreign nationals from 54 countries are eligible for the 72/144-hour transit visa-free policies that are effective at 38 ports in 18 provincial-level regions across China.

China recorded 14.64 million inbound trips made by foreigners in the first half of this year, up 152.7 percent year on year, following measures introduced since January, the National Immigration Administration (NIA) announced on July 5.

According to NIA, the number of visa-free entries made by foreigners exceeded 8.54 million from January to June, accounting for 52 percent of the inbound trips and representing a year-on-year surge of 190.1 percent.