my friend is coming to visit and I am trying to buy a sim card for him to use whilst he is in kunming, but at my local phone shop they told me they cannot sell one to me without an id card. is there no way to buy a sim card with just a passport for id？i don't know a chinese friend to buy for me. maybe he can buy one at the airport when he arrives？

Just try another store. You should be able to buy one with just a passport.

www.gokunming.com/en/forums/thread/9920/new_sim_card

i went to a little china mobile shop last week to open a card. They had a guy come over with a scooter and an ipad to open the card, i didnt need my passport. I opened a 2g card with just calling plan.