SHOPPING · BATTERIES
Can you bring power banks from China on a plane? Usually yes, but power banks, portable chargers, and spare lithium batteries are airline-sensitive items. Buy only products with clear capacity markings and pack them for security screening.
Power banks normally belong in carry-on luggage, not checked luggage. Capacity, labeling, terminal protection, and airline limits matter. Start with the current FAA PackSafe guidance and IATA lithium battery guidance, then confirm your airline rule.
Two limits now decide most cases. You may carry a maximum of two power banks per person, and recharging a power bank on board is prohibited; both come from ICAO Addendum No. 1 and took effect on 27 March 2026. Separately, power banks flying on domestic routes inside China need a CCC (3C) mark.
Sources: FAA lithium battery PackSafe, IATA lithium battery guidance, ICAO power bank restrictions, and CAAC notice on CCC markings.
RECENT RULE CHANGES
Both changes below are recent enough that older packing lists still miss them. If a guide does not mention a count limit or a 3C mark, it predates current rules.
27 March 2026
Addendum No. 1 to the ICAO Technical Instructions adds three restrictions: you may not recharge a power bank on board an aircraft, each person may carry no more than two power banks, and using a power bank to charge a device in flight is discouraged. ICAO states the two-power-bank limit is absolute. It applies regardless of how many spare batteries you also carry, or how much capacity they hold.
28 June 2025
The Civil Aviation Administration of China prohibits power banks without a CCC marking, with unclear markings, or from recalled models and batches on domestic flights. Screening staff check the mark, and airports are required to provide places to voluntarily discard or temporarily store a power bank that does not comply.
Airlines and screening staff work in watt-hours (Wh). Shops in China often advertise milliamp-hours (mAh), so convert before you buy.
| Rated energy | What it means for boarding | Typical capacity |
|---|---|---|
| 100 Wh or less | Carry-on only, marking must be clear. No airline approval needed. | Up to roughly 27,000 mAh |
| Over 100 Wh up to 160 Wh | Carry-on only, and you need airline approval before departure. | Roughly 27,000 to 43,000 mAh |
| Over 160 Wh | Not permitted in passenger baggage. | Above roughly 43,000 mAh |
The conversion is Wh = mAh x volts / 1000. Power banks are usually rated at 3.7 V, which is why a 20,000 mAh unit lands near 74 Wh. If the printed Wh and the mAh figure disagree, trust the printed Wh, because that is the number security will check.
Above 100 Wh you also need airline approval before departure, and that approval is separate from the two-unit limit. A single large power bank still counts as one of your two.
BEFORE YOU FLY
Visitors who search power-bank rules are usually close to departure. Use this same checkpoint to lock the trip basics: mobile data for verification, payment setup, and a passport-friendly first-night hotel.
If you are checking power-bank rules, you are probably close to departure. Also confirm eSIM use in China and Travel apps before departure while you are still fixing luggage details.
Prepare Alipay and WeChat Pay before airport Wi-Fi becomes your only option.
Open payment guide ->Install data before landing so SMS verification, maps, and ride apps can work immediately.
Check Trip.com eSIM ->Choose a hotel that can register a foreign passport before you arrive late.
Find foreign-passport hotels ->Small, clearly marked consumer power banks bought from known brands.
Large-capacity power stations, drone batteries, camera batteries, and anything above ordinary phone-charging size.
Unmarked, damaged, swollen, counterfeit, or no-brand batteries.
Usually no. Treat a power bank as a spare lithium battery and keep it in carry-on luggage unless your airline publishes a different rule.
Check that the Wh rating or capacity is clearly printed, the brand looks legitimate, the casing is not damaged, and the size fits your airline's limit.
Small consumer power banks with clear labels are normally easier to carry, but airline and airport screening rules still apply.
Two per person. ICAO added this limit in Addendum No. 1, effective 27 March 2026, and describes it as absolute: it holds regardless of how many spare batteries you also carry or their capacity. Confirm with your airline, since an operator can apply stricter rules.
No. Since 27 March 2026 the ICAO Technical Instructions prohibit recharging a power bank on board. Charging your phone from a power bank in flight is not prohibited but is discouraged. Cabin crew may still carry and use power banks for aircraft operational needs.
For domestic flights inside China, yes. Since 28 June 2025 CAAC has prohibited power banks without a CCC (3C) marking, with unclear markings, or from recalled models and batches. If you are flying internationally out of China, the destination and transit rules still apply, so treat the mark as a useful check either way.
Wh equals mAh multiplied by volts, divided by 1000. Power banks are usually rated at 3.7 V, so a 20,000 mAh unit is about 74 Wh and a 27,000 mAh unit is about 100 Wh. Use the Wh figure printed on the case when there is one, because that is what screening staff read.
Use the same pre-flight check to prepare mobile data, Alipay or WeChat Pay, and a first-night hotel that can register a foreign passport.