Job Discussion Forums

[paulcarr]

Hi People,

My name is Paul Carr. I work in Beijing as an English language teacher in a college. My present work contract ends on the 14th of July and I'm looking for a new job.

Yesterday, I went to a job interview and the man told me that I need to contact my foreign affairs officer in my college to get a release for my job and then they can start the process of renewing my Foreign Experts Certificate and Work visa and so on.

I'm a little confused here. Why do they need a release? I mean I will be released after the July 14th anyway once my present work contract ends. Maybe there was a misunderstanding? Maybe he was thinking I wanted to end my previous job earlier? His English wasn't so good but I think he was also saying I need, at least, a month to get this release.

Also, I'd like to know what is the sequence. What is transferred first? Foreign Experts Certificate first? Then, Work Visa? Then, finally, residence permit? The man I was interviewed with yesterday told me it would take a week to transfer a Foreign Experts Certificate, I think.

Anyway, I'm sure you'll all fed up answering these questions. Thanks for your patience.

Paul Carr

[Mei Sheng]

Paul,

Some of us love you. It is standard practice in China to have such a letter in order to begin working for a new employer. Stone Age mentality I'd say, but it is the way it is.

I recall once being denied entry into Shenzhen proper because I didn't have my passport on me. The other people on the bus had to show their identification proving that they lived in SZ. We were kicked off the bus but eventually snuck in.

Good Luck!!

Paul

[Anda]

You have to get a release stating when you are or have finished your contract with the school�s seal on it. By law I read here that one's employer has to give this, otherwise you would have to tell Foreign Affairs that you are experiencing problems obtaining it.


Your new employer has to get you a new foreign expert certificate as you cannot transfer this certificate from one employer to the next. When you have the Foreign Expert Certificate you can then apply through the main police station in the area that you will work in at your new job for the new visa. Your new employer needs a CV off you and copies of your degrees along with your old foreign expert certificate and passport and the little green card thing. You will also need to do a medical at an approved hospital.

[paulcarr]

[Ger]

A letter of release from employment is like a letter of reference from an employer.

In a release letter, it should state some or all of the following (some facts should not be omitted):
1) the name & address of the school where you worked;
2) the date of the letter;
3) the address where you lived during your employment at the school;
4) the dates during which you worked at the school (from and to dates);
5) the level of students you taught;
6) the subject you taught;
7) the amount of salary you earned;
that you completed your contract with merit and or distinction;
9) that the employer would recommend you to any school;
10) the printed name of the FAO (Chinese characters, pinyin)
11) signature of the FAO (the signature he uses for his bank transactions)
12) the red official stamp or seal of the school.

Request the letter in English and in Chinese too.

[Trish Flurman]

A reference letter and a "letter of release" are different things.

[Anda]

The green card thing is like a discount thing and I don't think it's important but they made such a big show of presenting it to me here where I work that I include a copy of it.


Changing Jobs and Provinces
What is Required


http://www.middlekingdomlife.com/guide/27.htm

You will almost certainly need a Letter of Release. This letter, an official document from your old school must include the school's "chop" (red seal). Copies are generally not acceptable. The Letter of Release states, at a minimum, your inclusive dates of employment and that you have left the school without further obligations. Schools are supposed to provide this letter regardless of the circumstances surrounding your departure (barring, of course, "midnight runners").

Typically, the school will, if deemed appropriate, include material normally found in a letter of reference. If the teacher has done an outstanding job, this normally will be included. If the school has not been satisfied with the teacher's performance, they will normally only include the inclusive dates of employment. Schools are not obligated to provide letters of reference. If you have really good relations with your school, and you want a letter of recommendation, you can ask for one, or ask if they will write your Release Letter early and postdate it. Some schools withhold the Letter of Release for various reasons. In fact, they are legally obligated to provide this letter. However, your ability to use the PSB to pressure them to do this may not always succeed. Still, most schools don't want the PSB involved in their internal affairs and may provide the letter upon such a threat.

Depending on the province and the guanxi established between your school and the PSB, your medical exam may be good for only one year (which is technically what the law stipulates), or for as long as you work for the same employer (one old-timer, at a public middle school, received only one physical exam in the five years that he worked there, while other teachers at a local private school, in the same province and just down the road, had to go through this procedure every year). If you are moving to a new school, and it's been more than one year since your last physical exam, you will typically be required to have it completed and returned before you actually move to your new school and/or province. The medical exam belongs, technically, to whomever paid for it. It costs about 290 RMB (costs may vary by location). However, your school may not release this to you. Some government auditors use the original medical exam results as an auditing tool to verify that former FTs were legally processed. The school is then required to keep the original exam results. If this is the case, ask your FAO to make a color copy of the exam results. Many schools will accept this.

Your Foreign Expert Certificate (FEC) belongs to the school and should be returned to them upon departure. You should always be working on a fully legal Z-visa that also doubles as your Foreign Residency Permit (FRP). When you go to a new school, you should be clear, early on, that you will not accept anything less than an extension of your current FRP. Verify with existing teachers that they are working on a legal working visa.

You should coordinate between your outgoing school and your new school to have your documents sent to the new school before you finish your contract so as to provide the new school with at least seven working days to extend your current visa. If you are unable to do this, then your school may convert your visa to an L-visa (tourist visa) before you leave. This may require your new school to send you to Hong Kong to get a new Z-visa. It takes about seven to ten days (five to seven working days) to process a visa. If your new school cannot do the job in that time frame, or thereabouts, it is likely that they really don't have the power to hire FTs.




http://beijing.usembassy-china.org.cn/teach.html

When teaching in China, it is possible to switch employers; however, this can be a difficult process. In order to switch employers, the Resident Permit (Green or Red Book) needs to be transferred from the old employer to the new employer. Leaving an employer before a contract is up requires a �Letter of Release� from the employer. This letter authorizes other schools or institutions to register someone with the government and enables the teacher to transfer the Resident Permit (further information on the �Letter of Release� appears in the Contracts section of this guide). Please be advised that due to the complex nature of this process, further questions should be addressed to the local Public Security Bureau when in China, or to the Chinese Embassy or Consulates in the United States.



http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=60300




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[Lorean]

[Moon Over Parma]

The "letter of release" is not really a letter at all. It is a form. I am currently working on converting a pdf file of a sample release form so I can post a link here for anyone who wants to know what it looks like. It isn't a letter by any conventional sense. It does require the school's red stamp and in some cases your FAO and department head need to fill it out. In others, the vice president of your university and the FAO need to fill it out. The official, red stamp is the most important part of the letter. As others have stated, it asks for your name, status, current employer, future employer, RP info, etc. You must have a job lined up for this release to apply. If you do not then the school you are departing from will not have to sign anything.

Here is the form. Click to enlarge it.

I do not have software that allows for pdf to jpeg conversion so I had to use a demo version of a program to do it, hence the watermark. The school you want to work for should provide the form to you. If not, then they are clearly not helping you.

[GeminiTiger]

I've never had a letter of release or a green book. I have only used my reference letters each year to be approved for my new residence permit.
I guess it depends on where you are...

[arioch36]

The green Book? Are we talking about the old residence permit card that was phased out 3 years ago (now the reidence permit is put in the passport.

I also don't know what the the green book is.

A release letter is often not needed to switch jobs .. unless... you need it

[Teatime of Soul]

A Letter of Release is required and shows you have no outstanding obligations to your school.

More recently, in addition, a Letter of Reference is required that remarks upon the character of the FT's service and the FT as well, (vis-a-vis suitability to teach in China).

How widespread this has become, I do not know, although I understand it to be a requirement across the board.

Our FAO was told that the govt. did not want vague endorsements as Letters of Reference, they wanted honest appraisals.

Like everything, your mileage may vary.