| Visa Types | |
|---|---|
| Mar 14, 2007 16:47 |   |
 | I currently have 3 to 5 different visas in my passport and have learnt some info on the way. I will list my knowledge and experiences but I know that some people have different experiences. The rules are certainly not applied consistently. As a tourist you apply for the L visa. The Chinese travel agent I use in Sydney assures me that 3 months is the maximum that can be given though you can get dual or multiple entry each entry being a maximum of 3 months and a total amximum of 1 year. I know Jabarootoo said you can always get 3 months outside China but my agent says this is not the case and they sometimes give you less even when you request 3 months. There is some provison for renewal inside China but I have not expereinced this. If you are planning to work and the work is approved you get a Z visa, maximum duration 1 year. The prospective employer must supply various documentation, not all of them get approval. You must supply documentation to prove your skills and in theory pass a medical before entering China (there are workarounds). within 14 days your employer must request a temporay residence permit and when issued (in your passport) the Z visa is cancelled! Assuming you do not seek a new Z visa you can apply for a limited tourist visa maximum duration 14 days which is NOT renewable. So you have to go to HK or somewhere to get a full tourist visa. Sometimes you can get a Z visa from within China, though I was told this is not supposed to happen! If you plan to operate a business you apply for an F visa and a medical is required. I was employed in a language centre as a teacher and worked on an F visa. Some people tell me this is not officially allowed and is being clamped down on...but I guess it depends if you have the right contacts. It seems that the F visa is the catch-all visa which can be issued when you dont fit into other categories provided you know the right people! There is a student visa for genuine students. There are transit visas for people who are transiting for between 1 and 7 days. In Beijing airport there seems to be no transfer system, you exit into the main public area and then re-enter the next gate! I got a stamped entry permit, though this seemed to confuse some other officials! I hope to work in China again soon but I will not apply for a Z visa externally as the medicals are ridiculously expensive compared with what I will earn in China and they sometimes demand you retake them when you arrive! But this is reasonable for me because I am going early and am happy to travel as a tourist should the application fail! Please add your experiences. |
| Mar 14, 2007 23:57 | #1 |
| Re Z visas: The medical does not have to happen outside China. It has to happen before you get the residence permit. If it's done outside China, it will probably need to be checked by the relevant hospital/clinic in whichever town your working in. Also, Z visas can be extended. And yes, the rules are not applied consistently. I used a visa agent in Beijing to renew an L visa. He took my passport to Baoding to do that, apparently cos it's easier there. The same agent got a friend of mine an F visa, issued in Qingdao for the same reason. The agents go to whereever is easiest. There are also visa agents in Hong Kong performing similar services, although if you have the proper documentation, you're better off going to the visa office yourself. |
| Mar 15, 2007 09:24 | #2 |
| Yes, Medicals are ususally performed here at the designated Health Centre for incoming foreigners and outgoing Nationals and usually cost around Y400. A Recidency Permit should be issues within 30days of entering the country. This effectively cancels the Z visa and can now be renewed indefinately if you stay with the same work unit. |
| Mar 15, 2007 09:26 | #3 |
| PS The residency permit is issued in our passports instead of the little green booklet that was issued in the past. |
| Mar 15, 2007 22:12 | #4 |
| I miss that little green booklet. Now my passport is getting cluttered with page-size sticker after page-size sticker. Also, you can renew your residence permit if you change work unit- just make sure you do that before it expires. Did that just last summer moving from Tianjin to Beijing, got here with I think two weeks to spare, no problem. |
| Mar 16, 2007 12:58 | #5 |
| My expereince and friends is that officially you need a medical check outside China, I was told I could not be issued a Z visa without the medical certificate. I was temporarily in the Uk and was not happy to pay the price, so I filled in the form myself, and got a relo to sign it. What China insists on is that you produce the chest x-rays in China. if you don't have them you have to go through the whole medical... so that's what I happily did! Little green booklet? last year |I was issued a little red booklet to accompany the residency permit in my passport. I now have half a passport of full page stickers, it's fun at immigration as they search for the right one! |
| Mar 16, 2007 13:00 | #6 |
| A question: if you are on an F visa does this supposed to be traded in for a residency permit same as for Z visa? (When I was on one I didnt have this, but then the whole thing was an under the counter arrangement!) |
| Mar 16, 2007 22:04 | #7 |
| The little red booklet is either your foreign experts certificate or an alien employment certificate. They're a slightly different shade of red. They're simply proof that you are legally entitled to work in China. Also, the foreign expert certificate has a handy little page for changing a certain portion of your salary (I believe 70% is the standard) to foreign currency. They started phasing out the little green booklet about 2 and a half years ago, which explains why you will have never seen one. There's something weird going on with the healthcheck. Anybody who tells you it must be done outside China is full of sh*t (excuse me, but strong language seems appropriate) even if they are the staff of the Chinese embassy. In New Zealand they'll give you the health check form (exactly the same one they use in China), but I'd be very surprised if they denied you a Z visa if you didn't produce it with your visa application. In North America and Hong Kong they will neither provide the form or ask for it when you apply. The health check must be done before you get your residence permit, that's all, and all cities in China should have a designated clinic for that purpose. If you want to save yourself some money and have a valid health certificate, get your visa in Hong Kong (if you show up at the visa office at 9am when it opens, you should be able to get your visa by midday- for a little extra, of course, but you'll be able to get to Shenzhen for lunch, and then on to your destination....) and then do the health check on the mainland- your work unit should pay the cost of your healthcheck. If you're worried about the "quality" of Chinese hospitals, do the health check in Beijing- the designated clinic is definitely up to Western standards and it's amazingly efficient. Don't eat breakfast before you go (Chinese hospitals are strange like that- they like your blood test to show zero blood sugar for some reason), but show up bright and early, you should be able to get through in half an hour or an hour max, then wander round the corner to Maccas for sustenance. Just make sure you get there well before 10am- that's about the time it starts to get crowded. I've seen the clinics in Tianjin and Hong Kong and I'm very glad that in both places my health certificate was quickly approved and I didn't need to have any tests done in either place- although in Tianjin that required quite a fight because my Beijing-issued certificate had a fancy modern holographic stamp instead of the old fashioned ordinary red stamp. As soon as the director saw it, though, I was home and hosed- un-poked and un-prodded, much to my relief. And if you do do the health check outside China, it's quite likely you'll have to go to the designated clinic to have it checked over anyway. Just remember to take your chest x-rays and ECG printout with you. |
| Mar 17, 2007 02:16 | #8 |
| Better to visit-- http://www.china-embassy.org/ Chinese Govt. web site. Every thing there. |
| Mar 17, 2007 04:33 | #9 |
| The problem Lionpower is that what is written in official places isn't necessarily what happens. Each province and office applies rules its own way, as Chris Waugh said. That is why I think we need to keep athread going on this so that we share experiences. Thank goodness for Hong Kong: a part of China that isn't part of China! It seems to be the answer to most visa issues. |
| Mar 18, 2007 02:07 | #10 |
| I second that. Hong Kong is a beautiful place, and by far the best place to go for a Chinese visa. |
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