Job Discussion Forums

dakelei · Joined: 17 May 2009 Posts: 351 Location: USA

I'm dealing with an agent in China who swears he has procured a Z visa for several of his African clients. I find this a bit difficult to believe. Am I being too cynical?

Blistering Zanazilz · Joined: 06 Jan 2018 Posts: 180

dakelei · Joined: 17 May 2009 Posts: 351 Location: USA

I do because I want to know if he's full of, um, stuff.

Non Sequitur · Joined: 23 May 2010 Posts: 4724 Location: China

Blistering Zanazilz · Joined: 06 Jan 2018 Posts: 180

Non Sequitur · Joined: 23 May 2010 Posts: 4724 Location: China

Blistering Zanazilz · Joined: 06 Jan 2018 Posts: 180

Non Sequitur · Joined: 23 May 2010 Posts: 4724 Location: China

Yep
Best
NS

dakelei · Joined: 17 May 2009 Posts: 351 Location: USA

I'm not African. It has always been my understanding that only "native speakers" can get a Z visa. (In some instances that includes South Africa.) This particular agent was not referring to South Africans and my BS detector went off. Like just about everyone else I've dealt with on Z visa issues I can't quite tell if he can be trusted. That's why I asked. Apologies to all if I wasn't specific enough.

Elicit · Joined: 12 May 2010 Posts: 244

It is possible for any nationality to get an English teaching Z visa and new FEC card.

If one was to read the guidelines for applicants wishing to obtain the latest FEC, a loophole is apparent. Don’t have the paperwork to post here, but I have read the related application notes along with a non native speaker friend who successfully landed a FEC. Basically, our interpretation was that passport holders from the listed countries are preferred and employers are encouraged strongly, advised, recommended etc. to recruit them.

However, if the role cannot be filled by a preferred candidate for a number of reasons then anyone is fair game. Reasons for hiring non natives in this personal case were lack of qualified native speakers to take up the position. Perhaps another may be location, although that’s just a guess. It boils down to if the school/recruiter wants to get into interpretation of the application guidelines with the issuing authorities and if they are prepared to claim there was no other preferred candidate available.

Non Sequitur · Joined: 23 May 2010 Posts: 4724 Location: China

Exactly.
Do schools go outside the preferred nationality list or do students miss out?

jimpellow · Joined: 12 Oct 2007 Posts: 913

dakelei · Joined: 17 May 2009 Posts: 351 Location: USA

I'm right now questioning whether the process is worth it. I have already spent 11 years in China but I left in 2014, vowing, as many of us do, never to return. I'm a tad sheepish to even admit I'm thinking of returning but a combination of factors is pushing me in that direction. What is happening, in my opinion, is China, as it typically does, is overreacting. I completely understand them wanting to make sure folks have valid diplomas but the "authentication" process is bordering on the absurd. Doing it oneself takes several trips to several offices, sometimes in different states. Agents will help but it's $200 a pop. Then you need to do the same thing for the criminal check, for an additional $200. Then one often needs to use an agent to get the visa itself once everything else is ready. That can easily cost a few hundred more bucks. And of course one might need to lay out money for the medical check, which is really annoying because the Chinese government often doesn't "accept" it anyway. Along with the money is also the time factor. Since you can never be completely sure when everything will be completed booking a flight becomes a crap shoot and then you need to quit your job here in the USA and tie everything up. You might end up quitting your job too soon and be stuck with no income while waiting for everything to process. It's pretty crazy. Does China even really WANT foreign teachers? I'm beginning to believe no.

Non Sequitur · Joined: 23 May 2010 Posts: 4724 Location: China

Kalkstein · Joined: 25 Aug 2016 Posts: 80

It's absolutely a requirement now to have a passport for one of those countries. Our FAO was given the documentation directly from the burea and it dictates we can't hire non-natives to teach English under any circumstances to teach English.

The answer to the original question is difficult to answer because the fact remains he could have procured the visas illegally or he might be lying. The only way to know is to talk to the African people who attained visas for. It's also impossible to know when he got those visas and the rules change every year. This was easy years ago, now it's nearly impossible (at least in my province).