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Aim: This study aimed to understand how children and families access early intervention in China., Background: Timely identification and high-quality intervention is expected to prevent and reduce the occurrence and severity of chronic functional impairment for children with disability and is of great significance to individuals and the society. The current study recruited 1129 caregivers of children with disabilities from rural and urban areas of China were recruited to participate in a survey., Results: (a) The first concern about development was raised, usually by the parents, when a child with disabilities was 26 months of age, (b) developmental screening took place 4 months after the first concern and diagnostic evaluation happened 7 months after, (c) the types of early intervention programme varied across urban and rural areas and (d) child and family factors were found associating with age of detection., Conclusions: Findings highlight the concerningly late age of children being identified for early intervention and disparities in services between urban and rural areas in China. Implications are provided for practitioners, policy makers and future research., (© 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)