Before leaving the country, send your itinerary, lodging and travel companions to a family member and agree how often to check in
- High value
- Evidence C
- Buys life
- Free
- Takes minutes
- No willpower
In plain words
If you lose contact abroad, your family can turn to the embassy or consulate, which will tell them how to report to the police locally and will press the case once it is registered. This assumes someone in China knows where you should be and when you should be in touch. Sending the flight number, address, travel companions' phone numbers and how often you agreed to check in to one family member is enough.
- Cost
-
Free. Send one message before you leave.
- What you get
-
When a Chinese citizen's whereabouts are unknown abroad, relatives can ask the diplomatic mission abroad for help. The regulations say: "the diplomatic mission abroad shall provide the local way to report to the police and other information for getting help." After the local police register the case, the embassy or consulate will urge them to handle it promptly. Whether this help can start depends on whether anyone in China knows where you were supposed to be and when you were supposed to be in touch.
- Notes
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Writing down four things is enough: the flight number, the address of your lodging, the names and phone numbers of your travel companions, and the agreed contact frequency. If you are going somewhere with poor signal or poor public safety, also spell out "how long without news before reporting to the police." All of the help procedures above can begin only if a family member knows your itinerary.
- Evidence grade
- C : The author's experience or common practice, without direct literature.
- Sources
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- 国务院 (2023). 领事保护与协助条例（国令第 763 号）. https://www.gov.cn/zhengce/zhengceku/202307/content_6891761.htm（第十三条）
- 作者经验，无直接文献
Translated from the Chinese original. Original book, section 21, tip 11. Content may be out of date and rules differ by place. When you actually deal with an agency, a doctor or a court, follow what local officials, doctors and lawyers tell you. Disclaimer