Job Discussion Forums

[liztaylor]

Can anyone help advise us?

My husband and I would like to come to China to teach English. Neither of us is certified at this time but we would like to enter a CELTA program. Do we need to have a job lined up prior to our entry if we are not yet certified? Do we enter on a tourist visa and then find a job while we are there and then have the employer secure visa for us?

Also, I have a a bachelors degree but my husband only has an associates. Will he be able to work? Can I enter to work and bring him along on a spouse visa? If so, how hard is that to obtain and will he be able to work on a spouse visa?

If anyone can help us with these questions it would be greatly appreciated. All the information I have been finding is geared toward both parties having a bachelors degree and our situation is a little different. He wll be finishing his degree online while we are there so if there is a type of student visa he could obtain to work as well those suggestions and insights are appreciated also.

Thank you!!

[Mister Al]

1. The minimum legal requirements for working are a bachelors degree and and two years relevant work experience. It is possible to get offered a job without these but it's these qualifications that are 'necessary' to get your Foreign Expert Certificate and hence a Residents Permit, which will last a year usually. The nature of the employer's relationship with the relevant govt. dept. may have a bearing on whether this policy is adhered to or not.
2. CELTA will help for sure but not necessary.
3. Its always advisable to get a job before you arrive. The employer should send you all the papers to apply for a Z visa. Some employers ask prospective employees to arrive on a L visa (tourist) and promise to get all the paperwork done once you are here. Lots of threads on that subject. Take your chance or not as they say. I did and it was fine but that was a long time ago.
4. Your husband will need a L visa to enter China.
5. An X visa is for full time study. No working allowed.
6. If you have a legal job (Foreign Expert Certificate and Residents Permit) your husband can also get a Residents Permit as your spouse but will not be allowed to work legally. He'll probably be able to find part-time work but that is a risk he will have to take if he wants to earn. Lots of spouses do.

Good luck.