When your company decides to expand to China, you'll need to look at all the different visa types and determine which work best for your employees. For example, do they need a...
Read MoreWhen your company decides to expand to China, you'll need to look at all the different visa types and determine which work best for your employees. For example, do they need a permanent residence visa, work permit, or both? What details and documents do they require to apply for a residence permit? All of these questions, along with several others, are important to ensure that you're staying compliant and can work quickly.
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When your company decides to expand to China, you’ll need to look at all the different visa types and determine which work best for your employees. For example, do they need a permanent residence visa, work permit, or both? What details and documents do they require to apply for a residence permit? All of these questions, along with several others, are important to ensure that you’re staying compliant and can work quickly.
China uses abbreviations with letters and numbers to designate certain visa types. For example:
Other letters to watch for include “C” for chuányuán, or crew, “L” for lǎowài, or foreigner/tourist, and “G” for guòjìng, or transit.
The requirements to get a work visa can vary based on the type of visa. However, most Chinese visa applications need a passport, photograph, health certificate, and official employment license from the Chinese authorities.
As of June 6, 2022, China has waived the special invitation letter requirement for work visas.
All foreigners with a visa must comply with the Chinese Exit-Entry Administration Law and register with the Public Security Bureau (PSB). They must do so within 24 hours of arriving in the country. Here’s how each of your employees can comply:
After registering, your employee will get an approved Registration Form of Temporary Residence. This form can help when they’re trying to obtain a permanent Chinese residence permit.
Applying for a work visa in China requires going to the closest Chinese Visa Application Service Center or Chinese embassy. Your employee will need to provide basic documents. China also scores work permit applications based on the value the applicant brings to the country with factors such as salary, qualifications, work experience, age, Mandarin proficiency, and more. Depending on how high an applicant scores, they may get additional benefits. We recommend applying for a visa about one month before planning to enter China.
Many of your employees will apply for Z visas and need to obtain a Chinese Residence Permit within 30 days of arriving in China. They must apply for this permit by:
When your employees submit their working visa application form, they can state how many entries they want — single, double, or multiple. This number will show how often and in which time period they can enter China. For example, returning from a visit to Macao or Hong Kong is counted as a new entry, requiring a double-entry or multiple-entry visa. If your employees don’t plan to go abroad while in China, a single-entry visa will work for them and cost less.
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At this moment, Globalization Partners does not offer support processing work visas or permits in this particular location.
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