Before you arriveBefore obtaining the following, your prospective employer will require you to provide a CV (in English or Chinese), copies of your passport, original passport-sized photos on white background, letters of reference from past employers, and copies of your degrees/qualifications.
1. (a)
Foreign Expert Work License (专家来华工作许可) or (b)
Alien Employment License (就业许可). Your employer applies for
either one of these and then forwards it to you. The former is issued by the China State Administration of Foreign Expert Affairs
(SAFEA) and is for teachers and certain other professionals. The latter is issued by the China Ministry of Labor and Social Security and
is for all other occupations. Prior to issuance of the Foreign Expert's Certificate, you will be required to complete an online exam:
evaluation.safea.gov.cn/login.php. This is only necessary for the Foreign Expert's Certificate but not the Alien Employment Permit.
Both documents are temporary certificates that serve as proof until you are issued with a proper employment permit (a passport-like
booklet) in mainland China.
2.
Invitation Letter of Duly Authorized Unit. (被授权单位邀请函 Bèi shòuquán dānwèi yāoqǐng hán). This is a pre-approval document
issued by a Chinese Government agency to the employer and forwarded to you.
3.
Employer Letter of Invitation. This is a simple invitation letter from the school itself.
4.
Police Clearance Certificate. (无犯罪记录证明 wú fànzuì jìlù zhèngmíng). A growing number of cities in China are requiring
foreigners to obtain a police clearance certificate from their previous place of residence. You may be required to obtain this certificate
in the future; however, at present, this is not implemented in Hefei. See
http://lawandborder.com/police-clearance-letters-for-foreign-workers-in-china/5.
Physical Examination of Foreigner. (外国人体格检查记录 wàiguó rén tǐgé jiǎnchá jìlù). Download this form and take it to your
local doctor. Have all these tests done before you come. (You are usually not reimbursed for the cost of this) See
http://www.fmprc.gov.cn/ce/cemx/chn/lsfw1/qz/bgxz/P020080730081360164063.pdf
6.
Resident Permit Application Form (外国人签证证件申请表 wàiguó rén qiānzhèng zhèngjiàn shēnqǐng biǎo) You can download it
here (fifth listing down):
http://www.bjgaj.gov.cn/web/bgpdAction.do?method=downloadBorder 7.
Z Visa. Your employer will send 1(a)/1(b), 2 and 3 to your home country. When they arrive, take them together with the
completed application form, completed physical examination, and police clearance (if necessary) to your local Chinese consulate. Pay a
fee, and you will receive a Z visa in your passport. Your Z visa allows you to enter China once only for the purpose of employment. It
is cancelled immediately by customs upon your arrival.
After you arrive1.
Health Examination Certificate. (健康检查证明书 Jiànkāng jiǎnchá zhèngmíng shū). As soon as you arrive, your employer will take
you to a hospital approved by Anhui Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine. There, you will have the same medical tests as you had
before you arrived. Usually, your employer will reimburse you for the Chinese medical tests. The costs of these medical tests is about
RMB375.
2.
Alien Employment Permit. (外国人就业证 Wàiguó rén jiùyè zhèng). Your employer will then take you to the Hefei Municipal
Government to apply for your proper Alien Work Permit. This is a passport-like booklet that is your permission to work in China. It is
renewed every year.
3.
Foreign Expert Certificate. (外国人专家证 Wàiguó rén Zhuānjiā zhèng). The Foreign Expert's Certificate functions in basically the
same way as the Alien Employment Permit but is issued to certain professionals, including teachers of ESL and other subjects.
Depending on your job, you will receive one or the other, but not both. Like the Alien Employment Permit, it is a passport-like
booklet that is your permission to work in China. It is renewed every year.
4.
Residence Permit. (居留证件 Jūliú zhèngjiàn). When you have your medical certificate + work permit/expert certificate, your
employer will take you to the Hefei Public Security Bureau Exit-Entry Administration to apply for your Residence Permit. This is your
permission to live in China. It usually costs about RMB400 and takes about 10 working days to process. You need to leave your
passport at the Bureau for this period of time. The permit is affixed in your passport and is renewed every year.
5.
Accommodation Registration. (住宿登记 Zhùsù dēngjì) . Once you have moved into a new apartment, your employer will take
you down to the local police station and register you. The blue Registration of Accommodation Form is given to you. If you change
address, you must re-register at the local police station. Also note that if you leave China, you must go to the local police station
immediately upon your return and fill out a form notifying them that you have returned. This is not optional.
NOTE: If you can, try hard to keep all your original documents in your possession. In particular, never allow your employer to retain your passport or original academic certificates -- this is a deal-breaker. Quite often, ESL employers may seek to withhold your Alien Employment Permit, Foreign Expert Certificate, or Health Certificate for various reasons. This is not an uncommon practice but shouldn't be tolerated. It does give them leverage to make it harder for you to change employer. Some chain schools might even send your certificate/permit to a head office for safekeeping, and it can be a pain in the ass getting it back in a timely manner at the end of your contract. If your employer is intransigent about holding onto these, it's not necessarily a deal-breaker issue; however, at least get a photocopy of your permits. With or without your Employment Certificate, your school would still need to formally release you from your contract and provide a letter of release before you could properly change employer. If you accompany your employer when they apply for and pick up each of your permits, you can see the process and take possession of your stuff immediately, rather than have to chase stuff down later.
NOTE: It now takes a good two weeks to obtain or renew a Resident's Permit in Hefei. During this time, you are required to leave your passport at the Bureau. This may be inconvenient for people who must travel for business etc., so maybe consider getting a duplicate passport from your embassy.
Tourist visas, business visas, and work permitsAn employer may try to bring you to China on a tourist or business visa for the purposes of teaching English. You will be told that you can convert to a residence permit + work permit once you arrive and that it's no big deal.
*You are strongly advised not to do this*. Working in a salaried ESL job on a tourist or business visa is illegal. Also, you
cannot convert to a residence permit + work permit within mainland China. This process involves leaving China (often to Hong Kong, Mongolia, or back to your home country) and then re-entering. Despite any assurances the employer gives you, they almost certainly don't have a special way of circumventing this process. (See this advice from an immigration lawyer:
http://lawandborder.com/faq-new-china-visa-law/ section 12)
**Note. As at Sep. 2015 the visa rules for Shanghai have been relaxed. Now you
can convert from another visa onto a residence permit without having to leave China, but this is only applicable if you're being employed in Shanghai.
business visa:
The person entering China on this visa
can engage in business activities resulting in financial benefit but
cannot work for a salary.
tourist visa:
The person entering China on this visa
cannot engage in any activities, directly or indirectly, that result in any form of financial benefit.
The reason some employers or recruitment agencies try to take this path is because they are not legally licensed to employ foreigners. Obtaining this license costs them money, involves hassle and paperwork, takes time, and also sometimes
guangxi. The company must prove they have been in operation for 2 years and have at least 1 million RMB in assets. Some training schools even open their doors before they have obtained the proper licences or insurances. It also means they must meet certain obligations to provide suitable accommodation and benefits. You know that an employer is properly licensed to hire you by the simple fact that they can sponsor you for a Z visa *
prior* to your arrival in China. As part of this process, they are required to show you a contract and provide a copy of this contract to the local labor bureau. This means you know the terms of your employment clearly before you get here.
If they are not willing to do this, you know they are cutting corners or unscrupulous. The reason I write this is that many new foreigners coming to China, especially to teach ESL, are not aware of or clear about this visa-conversion requirement and just want a straightforward, no-nonsense experience. People can get caught by surprise when they arrive here to work only to find they're not legally permitted to do so and need to leave mainland China again to get legal.
Working on an incorrect visa has the following risks:
1. You have very little recourse in any pay, accommodation or other dispute you may have with your employer.
2. If caught, you will be fined, recorded, and likely made to leave the country.
3. Others have leverage over you because you are working illegally. Anyone can report you at any time for any spurious reason.
4. You can be fired on the whim of the employer (say, if business is down or they get a few unhappy students)
5. You may luck out and work for a year on your tourist visa without any hassles. However, let's say after a year you want to stay on in
China (maybe move city and change employer). Other legit schools will require you to have the correct permit. This means that at
some stage, you're going to have to leave China in order to get it. No employer is going to pay your travel and application expenses
to do this.
Having said all this, there a few very limited exceptions. In one or two specific circumstances, it may be feasible to come to China on an L or F visa for the purpose of looking for work. e.g. Maybe your CV is being rejected because of age or race discrimination. So maybe getting on the ground first, speaking to employers face-to-face, asking around, networking etc. might open more doors for you. Or perhaps you really want to get here and do some traveling first and look around at different locations and schools before choosing somewhere to stay for a while. These are plausible reasons.
However, be informed that if you come to China on an L or F visa and intend to work here legally, you will have to leave mainland China at some stage in order to convert to a resident permit + work permit.Here's another thing...A chain school may have many branches across China, but only one of these branches (the head office) is registered because it saves the school significant money. This is classic corner-cutting. The school may be able to help you with legitimate Z visa, residence permit and work permit, but these are only valid for the jurisdiction that covers the registered branch. i.e., Once you leave the province of the head office to work in one of the branches in another province, your permits are invalid and you are working illegally. So confirm that your permits will be processed in the same city as the school you'll be teaching in.
Relevant Offices in HefeiHefei Public Security Bureau Exit-Entry Administration (合肥市公安局出入境管理局)
This is where you (accompanied by your employer) apply for you Resident Permit and where it is processed. It is where you can make any enquiries related to visas.
YaoSu Big Market Complex, 2588 Nanjing Rd, Bin Hu district, Corner of Huizhou Ave. and Nanjing Rd
滨湖新区南京路2588号, 徽州大道与南京路交口要素大市场B区2、3层办公
Ph: (0551)62624550
You can get there easily on fast bus number 1, called kuai yi 快一, which leaves from Dazhonglou 大钟楼北公交车站 bus stop on Huizhou dadao 徽州大道. It takes about 15-20mins to get there, and the stop is called 要素大市场东.
Anhui International Travel Health Care Center (安徽国际旅行卫生保健中心)
A place where you can get your Certificate of Health Examination for International Traveler
367 Wuhu Rd (芜湖路367号)
Ph: (0551) 62856526
105 Hospital Health Examination Center (一0五医院-健康体检中心)
Another place where you can get your Certificate of Health Examination for International Traveler
424 Changjiang Rd, 105 Hospital (长江西路424号一0五医院)
Ph: (0551) 65763566
Hefei Labor and Social Security Bureau (合肥市劳动和社会保障局 主办)
Where you get your Alien Employment Permit. The requirements are outlined here (in Chinese):
http://www.ahhfld.gov.cn/n1105/n32819/n169035/n169434/n169691/5421319.htmlHefei City Administration Center (next to Swan Lake). 100 East Rd, 3rd District, processing hall on 2nd floor
(合肥市东流路 (在天鹅湖). 100号政务中心三区办证大厅2楼)
Ph: (0551) 3537037
Anhui Bureau of Foreign Experts Affairs (i.e. SAFEA) (安徽省外国专家局)
Where you get a Foreign Expert's Certificate
333 Changjiang Rd, Provincial Human Resources and Social Security Department building, 4th floor
长江中路333号省人力资源和社会保障厅东四楼
Ph: (0551) 62653950
http://anhui.caiep.org/ (for Anhui)
http://www.safea.gov.cn/ (For all of China)
Author
Topic: Visa Process and Documents (Updated Jun 2015) (Read 11079 times)