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jsteventon
Joined: 08 Jul 2007 Posts: 191
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Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 1:13 am Post subject: Pre-Z visa paperowk within China - again! |
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Does anyone know how long it is now taking companies in China to obtain all the necessary pre-Zvisa paperwork? I am waiting in the UK for that - the company in China put in the application today....
Thanks! |
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North China Laowei
Joined: 08 Apr 2008 Posts: 419
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Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 2:56 am Post subject: See Below |
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First of all, what kind of employment?
In a school? A government school? A private school? A training center? A corporation?
In any case, under a best case scenario, if they know what they are doing, at this particular moment, three weeks.
If they are muddling through, one-to-two months.
If they do not know what they are doing, three months easy. |
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jsteventon
Joined: 08 Jul 2007 Posts: 191
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Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 4:05 am Post subject: Pre-Zvisa |
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Hi
It is in a well-established private school. Thanks for your post - much appreciated. But so difficult to plan with a time-frame of between 3 weeks and 3 months!! |
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hairuo
Joined: 19 Mar 2006 Posts: 473 Location: Somewhere in China
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Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 4:12 am Post subject: |
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| Welcome to China. |
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North China Laowei
Joined: 08 Apr 2008 Posts: 419
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Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 8:48 am Post subject: Re: Pre-Zvisa |
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| jsteventon wrote: |
Hi
It is in a well-established private school. Thanks for your post - much appreciated. But so difficult to plan with a time-frame of between 3 weeks and 3 months!! |
Alright, let's see if we can help you some more.
1. Is it a private school (i.e., primary school, middle school, university) or is it a private school (i.e., language mill, training center, etc.)?
2. I can tell you that the visa process for most private schools is delayed when compared to that of government schools. It's the old-boy network and the ways of the past. Still there is one private school in Zhejiang Province, where the owner is also the Deputy Governor of the Province, and if it is that school, then you should expect your paperwork very quickly.
3. It also depends upon the province. If the school is in Guangdong, meaning Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, or anywhere that depends upon Police Central in Guangzhou, well, at the present time, you should expect interminable delays.
4. If it is Shanghai, it will depend upon other factors, such are your ethnicity, I hate to say it, your university qualifications, your prior teaching experience, etc., etc.
5. If it is Harbin, then things will go rather quickly owing to the dearth of candidates and the benevolence of the bureaucracy up there.
Please tell us more details, without naming the school, like province, kind of institution, something about your own background (do you have a university qualification? do you have two years of demonstrated teaching experience? are you at least 23 years of age? do you expect to be able to readily pass a medical exam?) and that will allow for a more precise answer. |
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jsteventon
Joined: 08 Jul 2007 Posts: 191
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Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 8:57 am Post subject: Pre-Z visa |
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| Thanks for that. OK - it is an international school in Shanghai. I have all the criteria requested - qualifications etc so would fully expect to get the visa eventually - it is just a question of when! |
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Anda

Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 2199 Location: Jiangsu Province
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Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 1:01 pm Post subject: Um |
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Fun and games are here for all. I signed a new contract a couple of months back. My new boss sent paperwork off a week ago and I will go to the local police to get the last stamp needed in a few days. If you have a close starting date then they will move things fast for you otherwise they tend to hold off to the last minute. Most of Asia is the same in this.
So if you have a starting date then expect to be here then as they will need you to start teaching. |
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North China Laowei
Joined: 08 Apr 2008 Posts: 419
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Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 2:29 pm Post subject: Re: Pre-Z visa |
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| jsteventon wrote: |
| Thanks for that. OK - it is an international school in Shanghai. I have all the criteria requested - qualifications etc so would fully expect to get the visa eventually - it is just a question of when! |
Thank you for the answer. There is only question that I didn't ask. Forgive me. I assume that you come from one of the five scheduled and approved countries for ESL jobs in the PRC these days. If you do, and if you meet all of the qualifications of the Shanghai Foreign Experts' Bureau and then the Shanghai PSB (the far more rigorous of the two these days), and please remember that their exigencies may not be yours nor those of the school and that their ultimate selection criteria, at least these days, may not be yours nor those of the school, then in the end if all is in order, I would say "three-to-six" weeks processing time.
If the International School has good relations with the FEB and the PSB, and good relations are everything here in China, then your papers might be processed in as little as five working days. If the International School is viewed neutrality or with hostility by any of these entities, well, I hate to say it, you might get your papers by September.
In the current market in China, meaning given the current visa situation which is nearly catastrophic for some and many, I think it would be better to err on the side of employment with a government school, where all the clout is, or at least with a private school with exceptionally good relations. There are almost twenty-five international schools in Greater Shanghai and another 40 government schools with international departments (by that I mean middle and primary schools only).
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jsteventon
Joined: 08 Jul 2007 Posts: 191
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Posted: Sat Jun 28, 2008 2:04 am Post subject: Pre-Z visa |
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Hi,
Thanks so much for all the helpful information. I am from the UK by the way. ...as you say, it is really out of my hands now - the application has been made...so I just wait. Whatever will be will be! (difficult to make plans though!!) |
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Ariadne
Joined: 16 Jul 2004 Posts: 960
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Posted: Sat Jun 28, 2008 3:42 am Post subject: |
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This is probably a silly question, but did you ask your school how long they thought it would take?
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