Bureaucracy

China visa confusion

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn, May 6, 2008 8:34 AM

Informally employed Yankee, go home

This review of the Olympic-induced Chinese visa confusion is by Xiao Mo. You can find a good summary of the new visa rules on One Eyed Panda.

The Olympic period is apparently between July 1 to October 17 this year.

At least this seems to be the case in regards to the visa restrictions placed on foreigners residing in China (not permanent residents). Unless on a stable 'Z' work visa, the word on the grapevine is that from July 1 visas issued will only last 30 days. A renewal means leaving the country to obtain another.

Tensions were bubbling around April 17, when the somewhat alarming news appeared from a German news agency, announcing that all foreign students in China will be kicked out of the country during the two months of the Olympics. The Taipei Times then regurgitated this report, quoting the same spokeswoman from Beijing University’s international cooperation department:

China plans to order most foreign students to leave Beijing before the Olympic Games in August, strictly regulate the issuing of business and tourist visas, and deport refugees, sources said yesterday.

Even if you have to continue your studies in September, you need to leave Beijing in July and August,” a spokeswoman for Beijing University said.

The spokeswoman from Beijing University’s international cooperation department said the two-month gap applies to all universities in Beijing and was ordered by “higher authorities” because of the Olympics.

She said all short-term summer courses for foreigners had been canceled this year.
One Western education official estimated that at least 10,000 students could be affected by the order if it applied to the whole country, though some universities outside Beijing said they were unaware of the rule.’

When the Beijing University’s international cooperation department was called up, they denied having made such comments. Spokespeople from other universities with a high number of foreign students, such as the Beijing Foreign Language University and the Central University for Nationalities, refuted this supposed new regulation and expressed incredulity, saying that it was infeasible and impractical for the government to throw out all non-Chinese students. For Beiwai (the Beijing Foreign Language University), there are at least 1,000 long-term and short-term international students.

Then came an announcement from the Ministry of Education at around the end of the working day on April 18, which was briefly translated and quoted on Shanghaiist.com:

Recently, some foreign media say China requires foreign students to leave during the Games. “It completely goes against the facts,” ministry spokesman Wang Xuming said.

After this strange situation with the students, the issue now seems to be an absolute restriction on foreigners in China getting renewals on their visas post July 1. As quoted in recent issues of City Weekend and Time Out, it’s supposedly been confirmed that the 'F' (business) visas have not been available since April 15.

Unless through visa agents and “back-street” methods, obtaining an 'L' (tourist) visa for foreigners from July 1 will also be difficult.

Students have been told by their teachers not to apply again for an 'X' visa after July 1 because they simply will not get one (one student at Education First confirmed this).

Singaporeans also have to apply for a visa upon entry into China, and landing visas in China have been stopped.

A full-time work 'Z' visa can be obtained, say some foreigners, but for the price of RMB 5,000 to RMB 8,000 through the black market. However many of the 'visa service' companies that used to provide such visas are not currently offering 'Z' visas.

The Beijing News (新京报) said this on Friday April 25:

Spokesperson [from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs] Jiang Yu said in a press conference when answering questions about why China has tightened its visa policy … “The Chinese will follow Olympic customs, and will provide the peoples coming to China for the Olympics with convenience regarding visas.”

Jiang Yu’s statement is not much use to the alien who has set up home in China.

Nonetheless, perhaps all that's needed is a long break from China. A 'visa service' agent who asked not to be identified said "Don't worry, after September everything will be back to normal".

UPDATE: From AP, Tuesday May 6:

China acknowledges tightening of visas

"We have made some arrangements according to usual international practice. That is, in the approval process we are more strict and more serious with the procedure," Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said.

He did not directly link the changes to the Aug. 8-24 Beijing Olympics, but said the policies would "be maintained for a period of time."

Links and Sources

One Eyed Panda: China visa update
Shanghaiist: More updates on Chinese visa situation
China visa blog
All Roads Lead to China: Posts about visas and red tape in China
Tapei Times: Beijing to force out foreign students
Official Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Website: Visa tips
From the Beijing News (Chinese): Foreign Ministry tightens up visa policy; foreigners must provide invitation letter
New York Times: Bracing for Games, China Sets Rules That Complicate Life for Foreigners

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There are currently 17 Comments for China visa confusion.

Comments on China visa confusion

Thanks for the hat tip. This is a pretty good summary of the confusion going on. I hope my post clears things up.

Posted by: One-Eyed Panda | May 6, 2008 9:58 AM

Jeremy,

I have been covering this for about 3 months and have about 8 posts with 40+ comments on personal experiences.

Posted by: Allroads | May 6, 2008 4:57 PM

Allroads:

Thanks, just added a link to your Red Tape section.

Posted by: Jeremy Goldkorn | May 6, 2008 6:10 PM

to what extent will this tightening of visa reduce visitors to China during the olympics? If there will be a significant drop, doesn't that mean the coming-out party will not be a party after all?

Posted by: fewer people | May 7, 2008 5:30 AM

Here is a link to a great up to date summary on the visa issues - apparently the folks at chinatravel.net did a bunch of researhc and summarized everything neatly in the the form of 13 bullet points that cover just about every angle, including phone numbers and name of a good agency in HK:

"New Chinese Visa Rules from Chinatravel.net"

Posted by: good visa info | May 8, 2008 2:03 PM

Excellent link to the Chinatravel.net comprehensive summary.

The best I've found, and mirrors my experiences over the last two months on visa-refresh trips to Hong Kong exactly.

Posted by: shannonr | May 9, 2008 3:25 PM

Not sure if anyone else has tried obtaining a legitimate Z visa recently, but someone I know who got a job working for one of the big state-run media companies (Xinhua, CCTV, China Daily, etc.) couldn't even get a Z visa in Hong Kong. She was given an F visa and told that she would need to go back to Australia to get her Z visa. Yikes!

Posted by: michael | May 17, 2008 10:45 PM

China has already started to send students back and they are giving some very stupid reasons and forcing students to change the student visa to travel visa and deporting them, if the students wont agree they have been threatened that they will put stamp in the visa stating that they have been doing illegal stuffs in China and wont let them come back for 5 years, its a real bureaucracy....China wants the world to see a clean and beautiful China in Olympic when they have cleaned up sucking the blood out from the innocent students.... they not only made the life of foreigners complicated but also ruin their live in from of their family because of stupid reasons they have implemented…
The foreign governments should ask questions with China and send Chinese students back with same reasons who are studying abroad....they should be expelled with out a reason as how China government is been doing….
China may look a developed country but it’s from the surface… how empty and still a bureaucratic and corrupted country it is please world come and see…china is jumping up and down because of these developed country who is using it as a mean to earn money… Chinese will be worst than Nazis and Japan if they will earn money and be powerful…. Be careful about China……
Live and let live…..

Posted by: Sony | May 22, 2008 4:48 PM

I am “CEO” of one of top printing company in Pakistan, would like to draw your attention towards the bad behaviour of Chinese immigration department at Shenzhen Huanggang Customs at 20:45 on 20th of May, 2008.
I applied my Chinese Visa along with all necessary required documents and got Visa as per procedure of Chinese Embassy in Islamabad-Pakistan on 31th of March, 2008.
I also got Hong Kong Visa (Double entry) and Thai Visa (double entry) to cover-up my whole journey. The purpose to got Hong Kong Visa was to open my company Bank account with HSBC as I had already formed a Limited company in Hong Kong in July 2007. After completion of Bank formalities, I planned to go to China for the negotiation of different Raw Materials and for Printing and Lamination Machines. All appointments with the suppliers were scheduled.
But when I showed my passport to the immigration officer, she asks me to go with another officer for further checking and interrogation. I followed and they ask me to sit down at a stool that was lying outside of immigration office. I sit there about more than two hours without any reply from them. They appointed two Police officers to watch me.
After that they take me to interrogation room and check my body with a scanner and after that they instruct me to put down all things from my pockets and minutely checked step by step. Latterly they checked my entire luggage including my Laptop computer and asked me to run this computer. I did all what they required. I was very much surprised for what is going to be happened with me. After that one Police officer came with camera and took my photographs with different angles. He also takes many photos of all my documents and luggage. Finally after more than one hour they asked me to sign a document in Chinese. I refused because I can’t understand any Chinese so he forced me to sign. I told them that I would not sign unless I knew what document I would be signed. After that one person came and point to the each sentence and speaks in English and he assures me that what he said is same as mentioned in that Document in Chinese. He asked me to sign document again with a note written by me that “I already got back all things in my luggage after checking”. I wrote same and signed.
This all procedure took more than three hours, in the meantime I requested them to go to wash room, but they refused me. I’m patient of high blood pressure and was feeling much uncomfortable at that moment. I thought I would be falling down in soon, I felt my eyes were in pain and my heart beat was abnormal. At 23:45, a person told me that “On the behalf of Chinese law, you are not welcome to China”. I asked them that did they find some problem with my visa or passport. They said “No”, so I asked them that why they cancelled my visa? They replied “on the behalf of Chinese Law, I have right not to answering your question”. They didn’t give me any refusal document, just asked a bus driver to send me back to Hong Kong Customs. I arrived at my hotel in Hong Kong about 3:00 am.
I always trip to all over the world for my business and still have valid visas of UK and USA. I frequently visit China for my business and last year 2007, I visited 3-times.
This is my first time to get so bad experience with Chinese immigration. I want to ask Chinese Immigration department to give me clear answer in written form for this insulting behaviour with me on dated 20th May, 2008.

Posted by: Anonymous | May 24, 2008 4:38 PM

I don't see what all the fuss is. If you have a proper job you should have a Z visa? Who camp out in China with an F visa anyway? By definition that means that you are not employed here?

F visa's are for short term travel in and out. If you live here, you must be on a Z visa. I can't imagine any real job not offering a Z visa. So that raises the real question in my mind. If one does not have a job that can provide a Z visa, then what is one doing here in the first place?

In my Almost 10 years in China, having first and L, then an X and then Z has never been a problem. But Olympics aside I always hear of people going on about trips to HK and vis agents and a whole heap of crap. Also if you don't have a Z visa - you are restricted in your foreign currency transfers and tax credits for back home too.

Posted by: Richard Ford | May 30, 2008 10:27 AM

The main reason why people have been living with F visas for so long in China is that they don't have to pay tax here, this is a pretty nice advantage.

The other reason is that the procedures for getting a Z (work) visa are linked to you working for a company or work unit that has the credentials to apply for a Z visa on your behalf.

If you are doing your own (unregistered) biz,,or work for a small company teaching English etc,, you can't get a Z visa.

In most countries we would on the whole welcome the deportation of all people on incorrect visas as they can access subsidized health and education systems. However one difference in China is that foreigners do not get any social benefits from the government, so a foreigner no matter on what visa is only adding (very modestly) to the economy of China,,even if only by paying rent and eating.

Posted by: TAXJ | May 31, 2008 2:05 PM

I was told last week that I had to go back home to get a new Z visa. It has been approved, I just need to leave and get it in my home country. I was told that my wife and son can stay here and after I return with my visa they can get their visas in China. This rule changed this week and they are forcing my wife, 6 months pregnant, to fly 12 hours to apply for a new visa. Insane.

Posted by: Jamo | June 26, 2008 11:44 AM

Mr. Ford,

According to your comment, a job in any business or company the investment of which has not exceeded 5 million RMB is not a real job. Then, may I ask how you actually define a real job? A job for a multinaltional corporation, I guess, would fit your definition.

Posted by: Arthur Ganczarski | July 27, 2008 12:09 PM

I applied for a L visa from Canada and had no trouble getting it. Probably helps having a wife in China.

Posted by: Paul | July 27, 2008 7:34 PM

I've been teaching at University in Henan for three years. My Foreign Affairs Department have been unable to renew my Foreign Expert Certificate. The local authorities claimed a new rule change meant that any teacher working at the same institute for three years must leave China and cannot return for 6 months! I've had to return to my home country. Does anyone have a similar experience?

Posted by: Colin. | August 10, 2008 6:41 PM

中国有很多问题，但是我们在努力改变自己。希望我们也能为世界作出贡献。

Posted by: 吴续龙 | September 7, 2008 8:49 AM

it seems strict visa restrictions are back in force from two days ago. changing from L to F is not possible at the moment, according to several agents.
anyone else having problems?

from an one agent:

"From January 6, 2009 on, we temporarily paused the service of changing visa types (L to F, Z to F, X to F). F visa extension is still available, though.
It’s hard to say when it can re-start again. Maybe one week or after Spring Festival.
We will keep you informed when the service is available again."

Posted by: gao zhi | January 8, 2009 12:48 PM