The Shanghai International Travel Healthcare Center, Explained

The Shanghai International Travel Healthcare Center (上海国际旅行卫生保健中心) is where foreigners in Shanghai complete the mandatory visa medical exam for a work or long-term residence permit. The exam site is at 15 Jinbang Road, Changning District, intake runs weekday mornings (about 8:00–11:00), booking is via the center's WeChat account about two weeks ahead, published basic fees are ¥1,446–2,096 by age, and the stamped certificate is ready in about four working days.

What the Shanghai ITHC is — and who has to go

Every major Chinese city has an International Travel Healthcare Center, a customs-affiliated clinic network that exists for entry-exit health checks rather than everyday medicine. Shanghai's is the designated venue for the Foreigner Physical Examination Record — the fixed screening required when you convert a work (Z) visa into a residence permit, and for many long-term study and family stays. If you're new to the requirement itself, start with our overview of the China visa medical exam: who needs it, the 体检表 form, and what's tested. If you're staying in Shanghai for a year or more, plan on this visit within roughly 30 days of arrival — your employer's HR or university will confirm the exact deadline.

The center also handles the outbound side — exam panels for emigration and vaccination certificates (including yellow-fever) for travel out of China — which is why you'll see both foreigners and Chinese nationals in the queue.

Location, hours, and booking

Changning is west of central Shanghai; the site is a short taxi from Loushanguan Road or Zhongshan Park metro stations. Mornings are the working window because the exam is done fasting — arrive early, clear the paperwork desk, and you'll move through the stations faster.

What it costs

Shanghai publishes age-tiered basic fees for the entry health check — noticeably higher than smaller-city centers, where the same exam can run a few hundred yuan (see the national picture in the visa-medical guide). As 2026 planning figures from the city's official English guide:

The 18–24 band is higher because the panel differs slightly for that group. Extra items (additional vaccinations, express handling where offered) are billed on top. Fees change without notice — treat the table as a budget anchor and confirm the current schedule inside the WeChat booking flow.

Documents and exam-day checklist

• Passport — original plus photocopies of the photo page, your visa or visa-free entry page, and any info-update pages.
• Photos — three recent 2-inch (passport-size) bareheaded photos.
• Fasting — no food from the night before; water is fine.
• Practicalities — wear easy-to-change clothing without metal for the chest X-ray; bring your booking confirmation; payment at the cashier (bring a card that works in China or mobile pay).

The circuit itself is assembly-line efficient: registration, then station to station — height/weight and blood pressure, physician check, bloods, chest X-ray, ECG, abdominal ultrasound — typically done within about an hour once you start. Staff at the foreigner windows handle the process daily and the forms are bilingual, but the experience is procedural rather than consultative.

Collecting your certificate

Results are compiled into the stamped health certificate in about four working days. Collection is at the certificate window with your ID and exam receipt. The certificate is what your employer submits with the residence-permit application — check its validity window (typically six months) against your filing date, and photograph every page before handing it over.

While you're at it: the exam is not a checkup

The ITHC visit is a compliance screen, not an assessment of your health — it won't look at cardiac risk, cancer screening beyond a chest X-ray, or anything your home doctor can act on. Many new arrivals pair the visa medical with a real comprehensive checkup in Shanghai the same week — you're already fasting and already in one of China's two strongest hospital cities. See what a proper package costs in the Shanghai & Beijing package guide, and how to get results in English.

Frequently asked questions