Tencent launches payment app to make China travel easier for foreign visitors

Tencent has launched a mobile payment app for foreign visitors to China, allowing them to use overseas bank cards and digital wallets across the WeChat Pay network as the country seeks to make its increasingly cashless economy more accessible to international tourists.

Tencent headquarters in Shenzhen, China

The app, TenPayGo, was launched last week by Tencent's WeChat Pay team. Tencent is one of China's largest technology companies and the operator of WeChat, a widely used platform whose ecosystem includes WeChat Pay, one of the country's major mobile payment services.

The South China Morning Post reported that the app allows international travelers to pay at tens of millions of shops, restaurants, and attractions across China by linking credit cards or digital wallets from their home countries.

It supports seven international card networks, including Visa and Mastercard, and around 60 overseas digital wallets.

The app can be registered with an email address instead of a Chinese phone number, which is commonly required by many services in China.

This allows foreign visitors to sign up without obtaining a local number.

TenPayGo also extends beyond payments. In Shenzhen, foreign visitors can use a QR code within the app to access buses and the metro without a local phone number or physical transport card, according to SCMP.

The app also allows users to order food online and book ride-hailing services, according to the Financial Times.

Using Tencent's artificial intelligence technology, it can instantly translate menus and identify objects by scanning and circling items on a screen. Tencent is also working with local banks to add a tax-refund feature.

The launch comes as international tourism to China gains momentum. There were 22.9 million foreign arrivals in the first half of 2026, up 20% from a year earlier, according to government data cited by the Financial Times.

China has also expanded visa-free entry, now waiving visas for citizens of dozens of countries.