China's Hainan trials program to streamline payments for foreigners

People shop at Haikou International Duty-Free Shopping Complex in Haikou, south China's Hainan Province, Feb. 11, 2024. (Xinhua/Guo Cheng)

HAIKOU, March 4 (Xinhua) -- South China's Hainan Province has started public testing of a program designed to resolve payment issues for foreign nationals visiting China.

The program, which opened to 238,000 businesses on Friday, has seen significant participation from renowned tourist attractions in Hainan. This includes businesses in sectors such as catering, accommodation, travel and entertainment.

Registered businesses can download an application from their Android smartphones with NFC capability and use the device to handle transactions via VISA and Mastercard cards issued overseas. Additionally, it supports Apple Pay or other electronic wallets connected to VISA or Mastercard services.

During the Spring Festival holiday, Hainan welcomed more than 9.5 million tourists, generating total tourism revenue of over 15 billion yuan (about 2.11 billion U.S. dollars) over the eight days -- an increase of 48.8 percent and 62.7 percent year on year respectively.