In December 2009, the State Council issued the notice Several Opinions on Promoting the Construction and Development of the Hainan International Tourism Island.

The plan to develop Hainan into an international tourist destination was being upgraded to a national strategy.

Under the policy, tourists from 23 countries who are traveling with a tour group of five or more people and organized by a travel agency based in Hainan may travel in the province visa-free for up to 15 days. The policy was revised in August 2010 to include tourists from more countries.

The countries are: Australia, Austria, Britain, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the Philippines, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Ukraine, and the United States.

Groups of two or more people from Germany, South Korea and Russia whose travel arrangements were made by a Hainan travel agency may travel visa-free for up to 21 days.

The policy has significantly strengthened Hainan's cooperation and exchanges with other countries in science, culture and trade. It also benefits overseas tourists who spend their vacations on the island resort.

More than 46,500 people from 26 countries visited Hainan in 2014 through the vias-free policy, according to the entry and exit administration bureau of the Hainan provincial department of public security.

(China Daily 03/26/2015 page12)