Job Discussion Forums

[Gabber1981]

Hey there! I am not entirely new to the China thing, but I haven't been in awhile, so I am a little rough around the edges. I was wondering if some of you seasoned folks wouldn't mind giving me some of your advice.

I signed a contract with a university in the Shandong Province. The contract begins March 15th. The school has provided my recruiter(I know, I know, no need to tell me that I could have done better on my own) with a work permit, but they still haven't obtained the visa notice. My recruiter said that she should have the visa notice next week and then she will send off for my visa and then organize the plane ticket to get there.

I know that the Chinese New Year is about to start, and that if I don't get the visa notice next week, I am going to have to wait until China resumes herself.

I currently have a half decent job here in the States, and I am a little shy about giving my two weeks notice before I have everything in hand - a visa and plane ticket.

What do you think the possibilities are that the government agency won't be able to issue the visa notice and that I will also be denied a visa? My recruiter swears up and down that the work permit is the most important thing and that it should not be a problem at all to get the visa notice and that she can't think of a reason why my visa would get rejected. I have several years left on my passport.

Do you think this sounds right or should I just stay in my comfy little job?

Any advice would help me. Thanks!

- Gabrielle

[Hadit]

I'd wait until everything was kosher to fly over there, if that's what you mean.

[Jayray]

Visa notice? Do you mean a letter of invitation from the provincial government?

Your school can't obtain a visa for you if you are in your own country. You must submit the letter of invitation (and any other documentation required by the consulate) along with your visa to your local Chinese consulate. The Chinese consulate then places the Z entry visa into your passport and returns it to you.

[rogerwallace]

jayray is right- don't even buy ticket until you have z visa in your passport!It can be a bummer if you don't. What kind of teaching jobin the states do you have that your willing to leave just to go to china?
I was going to teach at a univ. but the contract wasn't good enough, so I'll stay teaching H.S. until a better offer comes along for next school year.

[Humbug]

Wait until you get the letter of invitation that your employer will get from the Provincial Govt. Take this and your passport to the nearest Chinese Consulate to apply for your Z visa (quite costly in the USA I believe). Then book your flights. When you get to your school they will organise to get the residency permit and the work permit. Usually you will pay for the airfare up front and the school will reimburse the money at the end of your contract.

[Gabber1981]

Thanks for all your replies. Hmm . . . let me see if I can explain myself better.

To Hadit: I won't fly over until I have all the documents. My only worry is that I need to give my two week notice and I don't know how soon all of the paperwork is going to come together. It would truly to suck to quit my job and then find out that "something" happened on the Chinese sides of things - putting me in a pretty rough spot.

Jayray: The letter may be what I am talking about. I am only using the words that my recruiter has said to me. She said that the school had my work permit and that she now was only waiting on the visa notice. She maybe explaining it all wrong to me. I know that the school can't get the visa for me. Once I get the documents that I need, my recruiter will then send them along with my passport to the consulate office to have the visa. I have no idea why things are more complicated this time around. The last time I went, things went very smooth and very fast.

To rogerwallace: Oh, the recruiter herself has said that we can't buy tickets until we have all the documents in order. I would be terribly sad to buy a ticket that I couldn't use! I am not currently teaching in the States. I meant that I had a decent job here that provides decent benefits and a paycheck. It is nothing special by any means.

To hambug: I remember how the residency permit works from when I went over last time. I have a few of those in my passport. They take up too many stamp sections!!

So . . . in your experience, is the invitation the only thing I need from the school or would there be other documents that the consulate would require? I'll try talking to her again to see what exactly she has and what she is waiting for. This all just makes me a little nervous.

- Gabrielle

[Mister Al]

Contact the Chinese consulate that you are going to use and find out what docs they require you to bring. When you have them hand in your notice. There should be no problem getting the Z visa if you have all the docs.

[idiggs]

Ask your employer if you can take a leave of absence instead and it will give you time to find out if the job is legit.

If the job is legit, turn the leave of absence into a voluntary resignation.

Hope everything works out for you.

[Teatime of Soul]

There is a gap of time. The visa letter is issued by a Province department after the local levels produced the "work permit". Normally, if expedited, this can be done in one to three days. Then, the documents are sent to you (insist they send them by DHL or EMS, with a tracking number so you can check progress online.)

It will then take four to ten days for you to receive the documents after they are sent via courier company.

During this time, you need to check with the closest Chinese Embassy or consulate to ensure you have all the necessary documents. To be safe, check their website AND call (sometimes they don't update the website promptly after changes)

Then you will need to decide if you will go in person or use a visa agency. The visa agency will tell you on their website exactly what you need.

If you go in person, plan to be there at the door at 0830. Plan to pick up your visa after 2 p.m.

If what she says is true, then you are clear of about 90+ percent of the obstacles.

But, don't give notice until their documents are in your hand. Ka Ka happens.

Best of luck.

[Gabber1981]

To Teatime of Soul: Thanks a bunch. This makes me both understand and feel better.

- G

[Jayray]

"...The visa letter is issued by a Province department after the local levels produced the "work permit"."

ToS,

Thanks for that information. I didn't know that step existed at that point. I thought that the local Powers That Be (the PSB) didn't see the paperwork until the Foreign Expert is in-country. Kind of makes me wonder why we have to go back down to the PSB when we arrive in China. I guess that it's because the school doesn't want to shell out the money for the RP until it has the warm body in-hand.

Dang... just when I think I've got a handle on the process, some smart aleck comes along and educates me!

[Renegade_o_Funk]

....

[Gabber1981]

Just to let everyone know, everything turned out just fine. I got all the required documents in plenty of time and I just finished my first semester. Guess I got all worried for nothing. Thanks for all the help, though.

- Gabrielle