After landing, follow the "Arrivals" signs; the first stop is the arrivals hall. Most Chinese ports now use an electronic arrival card (via mini-program), but some still use paper - it is handed out on the plane, so bring a pen.
Border control: have your passport and arrival card (if any) ready. Officers may ask simple questions in English or Chinese (purpose? how long? where staying?) - answer truthfully. Fingerprint scanning is routine.
Baggage: after border control, find your carousel on the screen. Customs has a green "nothing to declare" lane and a red "goods to declare" lane - take red if you exceed duty-free allowances or carry items requiring declaration.
Outside the airport: take airport buses, metro or taxis. Set up Alipay or WeChat Pay with a linked card before you go - QR codes run the metro, taxis and shops. Carry a little cash in RMB as backup.
Tips: large airports (Beijing Daxing, Shanghai Pudong, Guangzhou Baiyun) have "one-stop foreigner service centres" for SIM cards, currency exchange and transport help. On a first visit, allow 1.5-2 hours for the whole process.
