Job Discussion Forums

burningman21 · Joined: 27 Oct 2008 Posts: 8

Hey, I was wondering if anyone could help me with this situation.

I have a new job starting on the 21st of this month(Guangdong). Instead of arriving on a "Z visa" I arrived in China on a tourist visa and travelled for a short period. I received my invitation letter and working permit this morning and I am scheduled to go to Hong Kong on Thursday to get my Z visa. Everything was working out very smoothly.
However when I looked at my work permit (application and not the actual work permit document), I found that they (the school I am assuming) had spelt my name wrong. I am trying to contact my school but their office is closed today and until Thursday due to holidays. Is there any possibility that I can still process my visa in Hong Kong with a one letter mistake in my surname? My passport number and everything else is ok.

The problem is that my tourist visa has almost expired and I have hardly any money left. I cannot wait another 4/6 weeks for a completely new "Z Visa" application or is there any other possible solution? By the way I know that I should be talking to my school about this but I cannot wait until Thursday. All help is appreciated. Cheers

RonHex · Joined: 10 Nov 2009 Posts: 243

thats a tight call.. I have a buddy with an incredibly long name that wont fit on to airplane tickets.. He runs into trouble every time hes trying to get through security, they always let him through eventually... regarding a visa tho... i really have no clue.. 1. maybe they wont notice it, maybe they catch it and let it slide or maybe.....

I was at the psb last week to get a new res permit.. i noticed that my birth date was wrong on the schools schools application.. didn't seem to cause any problems.. im willing to bet the embassy in HK takes their job a little more seriously tho.

Really your options are
a) go to HK and hope for the best
b) go to the local psb and get a 1 or 2 month tourist visa, while the school sorts out the letter

Normally I wouldnt recommend working on a tourist visa but Im sure you could start on the 21st then make the trip to HK after ur first paycheck

johntpartee · Joined: 02 Mar 2010 Posts: 3258

All you can do is continue trying to contact the school and expedite a correction. They MIGHT take it with the surname spelt wrong, but......
I can tell you that one of my bank accounts has my surname spelled wrong; I've never had a problem. Another bank account doesn't have my family name at all! A lot of people here don't understand that Westerner's family names come last.

I know you know this, and I'm sure these are circumstances beyond your control, but it's not a good idea to show up here without some bread stashed. Anything can happen at anytime, as many stories on here will attest.

JamesD · Posted: Sat Jun 12, 2010 11:13 am Post subject:

Possibility?

"They spelled it S-M-Y-T-H? Sure, that's the alternate spelling. Yeah, English spelling can be funny sometimes."

Accompanied by a "certificate" or "letter" of some kind from any coworker or company that also uses the alternate spelling may work.
"Dear Mr Smyth;...."

"This is to certify that Bob Smyth..........."

Honestly I would think they would be more concerned with the passport number. If they point it out act surprised; could be a simple matter of giving you an extension on your L visa.

johntpartee · Joined: 02 Mar 2010 Posts: 3258

burningman21 · Joined: 27 Oct 2008 Posts: 8

I was going to go and pretend that I didn't notice but a chinese friend said that they will notice it and simply tell you to get a new document. They won't care about my situation which is kind of understandable.

I kept ringing different people and eventually got someone at the school who can help me. She knows someone in the local government office who will change it for me tomorrow. It turns out it wasn't the school's error so that fact should make things go quicker.

Cheers for the help

Teatime of Soul · Joined: 12 Apr 2007 Posts: 905

Schools don't issue the invitation letter. They provide the information/documents. So, it sounds like a govt. office error.

Glad they are fixing it for you. Thanks for the update.

SED · Joined: 29 May 2010 Posts: 9

Yes, Ma'am · Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 8:52 pm Post subject:

Hey Burner!

Please let me know how your HK run works out. Are you in and out of there in a day with your Z-visa or does it take longer? I'm going to HK in August for my visa.

BTW, I was at Evolution '09. Were you there?

burningman21 · Joined: 27 Oct 2008 Posts: 8

i'll post how everything goes, I'm going to HK on Tuesday morning now.
I went to burningman in '07 I think, "The green man"........ amazing time!