Job Discussion Forums

[sheeba]

Hi Guys,

Wonder if anybody can offer me some advice.

I know other threads talk about the Z visa but my situation is a little different and I want to know about the situation at present time.

I had a job lined up in Beijing(I even signed the contract) but they took months to get me the documents I need for a Z visa. In the end they said that I'd be better off coming in on a tourist visa and sort it out after that. I said 'no' to that and turned the job down.

I found another job(this time Dalian) and asked them to get me the documents sent for the Z visa which originally they said they would do but now have come back with the same proposition- Can you come here first?(I imagine on a tourist) and then get the Z visa.SO I just can't get the documents sent to me in the UK.

Is this normal? Are many people out there going to China on tourist visas and changing? If I do this am I not risking getting sent back unless I have a return flight ticket with a date on it returning before 3 months after arrival? I'm considering it now because I'm getting a bit annoyed by the fact that I can't seem to get back to China!

Any ideas?

I'm starting to think that going in on a tourist might be the only way even though this is something that I have never wanted to do.

[North China Laowei]

In-province conversions or changes or whatever you would like to call them are not being in Dalian, not at the moment, and not in the near future -- not at least until the end of October.

In-province conversions or changes or whatever you would like to call them are not being done in Beijing, unless of course you or your school has considerable "guanxi" (or however you wish to spell it).

You may or may not be able to get a Z visa in Hong Kong. I would put up a new thread regarding the current Z visa situation in Hong Kong. I hear conflicting reports and universities / colleges in Guangdong which used to send everyone to Hong Kong in the blink of an eye, are now sending teachers to their home countries to get the paperwork done.

Sheeba, there are two provinces that are still open for business, meaning in-province changes are possible but if you want more info, please PM me.

You've been around the Board a long time ...

NCL

[fitzgud]

Ask the Hong Kong Visa office, I did and they said yes of course I could get a visa there. This was about 2 months ago.

[email protected]

[North China Laowei]

[andrew_gz]

[quote="North China Laowei
It's just that in the current situation, two months might as well be 100 years ago/quote]

Not true, the last two months have been the same.

[North China Laowei]

Sheeba,

Forgive me but what a complicated affair this is and you are asking us on the Board here to give you advice on how to skirt PSB regulations, how to enter on a tourist visa, etc., etc. I wonder how long your thread will stay up before it gets pruned.

The 24-hours from time of arrival means at your destination. If you are doing Hong - Kong, Guangzhou, Harbin, etc. within a reasonable period of time (like 72 hours or so), and Harbin is the end game, you will have 24 hours to register with the Entry and Exit folks in Harbin, unless you arrive on a Friday and then you will have until Monday.

You may be asked to produce your initial temporary registration when you apply for a work permit / residence permit while transiting from an L visa to a Z visa to a resident permit. If you cannot produce this temporary registration, the PSB will be quite loathe to entertain your application.

And yes, your girlfriend will have to produce whatever she needs to produce to obtain your registration.

I just don't understand the mess some of these posters put themselves in on this Board, particularly when they are simple, ready solutions available.

NCL

[Russell123]

I went on a tourist visa last time and then had it converted to a Z visa after I got there. I wouldn't do it again, even without the tightening regulations. Unnecessary stress...chances are they just want you there asap because the term is starting, or it saves them some hassle. That's their problem.

According to the consulate website, now you can't even get a tourist visa without proving that you have a return ticket/hotel reservations. Maybe it'll relax now that the olympics are over, but why screw around?

Jobs are easy enough to find in China where they will provide you with a proper Z visa before you leave.

[Russell123]

Oh yeah, a teacher at our school was sent back to the UK in June after going on holiday in Thailand at the end of her contract/visa. She figured she'd just get a tourist visa in HK and then convert it back in China as that's what she'd done before.

That was her story anyway.

[Madame J]

I've been wondering about this myself. What do people tend to do if they look for work *after* entering the country? This is what I'd be doing if I were to take my CELTA in China.