In Joiner’s Interpersonal Theory of Suicide, those who are planning to die by suicide have to overcome their fear of death in addition to acquiring the capacity for self-harm. The present study sought to examine this proposal in a sample of 1,145 university students in China. Those who had planned to dye by suicide in the past had less death anxiety than non-suicidal students and those who had suicidal ideation or made attempts at suicide in the past. The implications of this result were discussed.