Originally Posted by
MSPeconomist
THIS IS FALSE FOR ALMOST ALL NATIONALITIES. Genuine transit in mainland China or HKG does NOT require a visa and, in fact, China rarely offers "transit visas." In fact, HKG doesn't require visas for USA citizens unless one is staying for a long period, planning to work, etc.
My parents, who are both US citizens, were denied boarding on a EWR-PVG flight connecting to I believe SIN or some other destination in Southeast Asia because they did not have the appropriate paperwork for China even though they were just changing flights and they had the tickets to prove it