2015 China Visa Requirements For Foreign Teachers & Expat Employees...

And this update for short-term employment visas came into effect on 1 Jan 2015


Foreigners considered as having short-term employment in China are required to obtain short-term work certificates from the relevant authorities

Based on RenSheBuFa [2014] No. 78 (“Notice 78”), foreigners who perform one of the following activities in China for less than 90 days will be considered as having short-term employment in China and are required to obtain a short-term work certificate:

* Technical, R&D, management or consulting etc. supports/works for the cooperative entity in China
* Conducting training as requested by any sports association in China (including coaches and athletes)
* Film production (including advertisement and documentary)
* Fashion shows (including car model, plane advertisement etc.)
* Foreign commercial performance or shows
* Others activities as determined by the Human Resources and Social Security Department

Clarification on certain activities that are not considered as short-term employment in China

The notice clarifies that certain activities will not be considered involving short-term employment for foreigners if the duration is less than 90 days and they will only be required to obtain a business visa for their visits to China.

These activities include:

1 Providing maintenance, installation, testing, disassembly, coaching and training etc. to customers relating to sales of machine or equipment
2 Conducting coaching, inspection and investigation for the project in China
3 Performing short-term work activities for subsidiaries, branches or representative offices in China
4 Participating in sports events/tournament/games (including athletes, coaches, doctors, assistant and related staff)
5 Providing volunteer works in China without remuneration or remuneration is paid by overseas organization
6 Any performance/show that is not specified on the approval document by the in-charge Cultural Authority as “foreign commercial performance or show”

Notice 78 also clarifies that foreigners who perform activities 1 to 4 listed above on a short-term basis will be required to obtain a category M visa for their visits to China while a category F visa will be sufficient for those foreigners who will conduct activities 5 and 6 in China. Foreigners who will conduct activities listed above except items 4 and 6 for more than 90 days in China are required to go through the standard process to get the normal work authorization in China.

Application process for short-term employment of foreigners in China
Foreigners who are considered to have short-term employment in China will need to go through the following procedures with the required documents before they can carry out the approved activities in China:

Application of employment license and work certificate
Application of Letter of Invitation (“LOI”)
Application of single entry category Z visa
Application of work type residence permit
Foreigners with short-term employment will generally need to obtain an employment license and work certificate from the local Human Resources and Social Security Bureau. For those foreigners who will a conduct foreign cultural performance or show in China, the organizing unit will need to get approval from the local Cultural Bureau. The local Cultural Bureau shall, in accordance with the relevant regulations, provide feedback in 20 days upon accepting the application. Once it is approved, the wording of “foreign commercial performance” will be indicated on the approval document.

Foreigners who expect to work in China for less than 30 days can reside and work in China based on the valid period indicated on the work certificate and single category Z visa.

For those foreigners who will work in China for more than 30 days but less than 90 days, they should apply for a “90 days” work type residence permit from the local Public Security Bureau.

Source: http://www.ey.com/GL/en/Services/Tax/Hu … employment