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I know that when you submit your visa application you're generally asked for an itinerary, even if it's only the first night and the cities you'll be visiting.

Assuming the application is approved and you now have, for example, a 10 year multiple entry visa for China, can you just show up at the border for the second and following entries?
Or is it necessary to contact an embassy each time you plan to enter?

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Once your ten year multiple visa is issued, you do not need to contact the Chinese Embassy again (until the ten years are up and you need to renew). The embassy's only involvement is determining if you are eligible for the visa.

To enter China on the multiple entry visa there is no additional paperwork "required" (other than any arrival forms they give you on the plane), but it never hurts to have a print out of your eTicket showing exit date and hotel vouchers for your stay (or tour itinerary if on package tour). Immigration officials have the right to ask for proof of your trip arrangements, financial ability to support yourself, etc, before granting you entry.

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  • Sounds right to me! Is this based on personal experience, or a specific source you know of? The embassy's website doesn't mention it as far as I can see.
    – apb
    Sep 18, 2016 at 3:48
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    Work related experience.
    – user13044
    Sep 18, 2016 at 3:54
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    @apb: Chinese embassy websites are very talented at not mentioning lots of information you could well need! (-; For me, an Australian, getting a multiple entry visa in the first place is so hard I have not yet ever managed to get one. But entering the country four times via land borders with double-entry visas was totally painless. I didn't have to show anything.
    – hippietrail
    Sep 18, 2016 at 6:06
  • Second this. We have done subsequent entries on multiple-entry visas more than once. They simply stamp our passports. They're just trying to keep out "undesirables" (especially people like reporters.) Having a long string of visits without trouble we don't even provide tickets when applying for a visa. We do provide the address of relatives but no invitation letter.
    – Loren Pechtel
    May 13, 2017 at 0:00
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This mostly depends on your nationality AND ethnicity.

If you're a citizen of US/UK/Western EU, your visa issuance is typically a formality. Nobody at Chinese border crossing is going to care or ask about your itinerary, unless you come in a "Free Tibet" t-shirt or having a Falun Gong brochure in your hand. This is true for the first and all subsequent crossings. Note that you have to fill up the arrival card where you state your purpose of the visit and "intended address in China", so the typical questions the passport control officer could ask are already answered there. This is my typical experience for 6+ visits to China.

However more than once I've seen persons of likely Indian origin being seriously questioned by the Chinese passport control even when they had the US passport, and they had to show some papers (looked like hotel reservation, but I wasn't sure). So if you happen to be one, have the itinerary ready.

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