Visa 2013

Started a new thread on this topic because quite a few changes to the regulations were announced yesterday. The changes will take effect on 1 September 2013.

These notes have been taken from China Briefing:
http://www.china-briefing.com/news/2013/07/25/china-releases-final-draft-of-new-visa-and-residence-permit-regulations-for-foreigners.html
so I think it is appropriate to make the following acknowledgement:
Dezan Shira & Associates is a specialist foreign direct investment practice, providing corporate establishment, business advisory, tax advisory and compliance, accounting, payroll, due diligence and financial review services to multinationals investing in emerging Asia. - See more at: http://www.china-briefing.com/news/2013/07/25/china-releases-final-draft-of-new-visa-and-residence-permit-regulations-for-foreigners.html#sthash.viZj1i7b.dpuf

China Releases Final Draft of New Visa and Residence Permit Regulations for Foreigners
Posted on July 25, 2013 by China Briefing

Jul. 25 – The Chinese government released the “Administrative Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on the Entry and Exit of Foreigners (Order No.637 of State Council, hereinafter referred to as ‘Regulations’)” on July 22, which updates the current visa system and introduces several changes to the application of the residence permit.

The Regulations will take effect on September 1, 2013, with the previous administrative regulations on the entry and exit of foreigners scheduled to be abolished concurrently. Detailed information can be found below.

Changes to Current Visa System
The Regulations have increased the number of visa categories from 8 to 12, and have brought the following changes to the current visa system:

Introduction of the R visa
One of the distinct features of the Regulations is the introduction of the R visa, which aims at attracting global talents that the country urgently needs.

The R visa applies to senior-level foreign talents and professionals whose skills are urgently needed in China. Applicants for the R visa need to satisfy the requirements stipulated by the relevant competent authorities and must provide relevant documentation.

Introduction of ‘family reunion’ visas
Currently, foreigners with an L visa may come to the country for tourism, family reunions or personal affairs. As this visa category doesn’t precisely correspond to the purpose of these various types of visits, the Regulations have limited the L visa to tourism purposes only and, at the same time, the Regulations introduce two “family reunion” visas – the Q visa and the S visa.

The Q visa is created in response to calls by overseas Chinese for improved exit and entry procedures, and will be issued to overseas Chinese visiting relatives in the country. The S visa will be issued to the relatives of foreign residents coming to China for family reunions.

Dividing F visa into F visa and M visa
Under the current visa system, the F visa is applicable to foreign citizens who come to China for commercial and non-commercial purposes including business activities, scientific and culture exchanges, short-term study and internships. After the Regulations take effect, the F visa will only be issued to foreign visitors coming to China for non-commercial purposes, such as cultural exchanges and inspections. Meanwhile, a separate M visa will be added and will be issued to foreigners coming for business and trade purposes.

Splitting the X visa
The Regulations have divided the current X student visa into the X-1 visa and the X-2 visa, with the X-1 visa applying to foreigners coming to China for a long-term study period (greater than 180 days) while the X-2 visa applies to foreigners coming to China for a short-term study period (less than or equal to 180 days).

Visa System after September 1, 2013

Based on one’s purpose of entry, the Regulations have provided for the following 12 types of visas:

C Visa

Applicable to train attendants, air crew members and seamen operating international services, and to their accompanying family members
D Visa

Applicable to foreigners who are to reside permanently in China
F Visa

Applicable to foreigners who come to China for exchanges, visits and inspections
G Visa

Applicable to foreigners who transit through China
J Visa

J-1 Visa: Applicable to resident foreign journalists in China (long term stay – more than 180 days)
J-2 Visa: Applicable to foreign journalists who make short trips to China for reporting tasks (short term stay – less than or equal to 180 days)
L Visa

Applicable to overseas tourists (those traveling with tour groups can be issued a group L Visa)
M Visa

Applicable to foreigners who come to China for business or commercial activities
Q Visa

Q-1 Visa: Applicable to foreigners who apply for entry into China for family reunification with Chinese relatives or foreigners with permanent residency in China, as well as to those who need to visit China for adoption issues (long term stay – more than 180 days)
Q-2 Visa: Applicable to foreigners who come to China for a temporary visit to Chinese citizens or foreigners with permanent residency in China (short term stay – less than or equal to 180 days)
R Visa

Applicable to senior-level foreign talents and foreign nationals whose special skills are urgently needed in China
S Visa

S-1 Visa: Applicable to spouses, parents, parents-in-law and children under 18 years old of foreigners who stay in China for study or working purposes, and to foreigners who need to reside in China for other personal reasons (long term stay – more than 180 days)
S-2 Visa: Applicable to family members of foreigners who stay in China for study or working purposes, and to foreigners who need to reside in China for other personal reasons (short term stay – less than or equal to 180 days)
X Visa

X-1 visa is applicable to foreigners who come to China for a long-term study period (more than 180 days)
X-2 visa is applicable to foreigners who come to China for a short-term study period (less than or equal to 180 days)
Z Visa

Applicable to foreigners who apply to work in China
Changes to the Application of Residence Permits

Types of residence permits
The Regulations have categorized residence permits into the following five types:

Working residence permits
Study residence permits
Journalist residence permits
Family reunion residence permits
Personal affair residence permits
Processing time of residence permits
Currently, foreigners holding a D visa, Z visa, X visa and J-1 visa must obtain a residence permit within 30 days upon entry. The processing period for applications of the permit is 5 business days upon the receipt of the application. However, the processing period has been extended to 15 calendar days under the Regulations.

Biometric information
Foreigners who apply for residence permits should submit their passports (or other travel documents) along with photos and other supporting documents to the local exit and entry administration authority above the county level, and shall provide fingerprints and other human biometric information at the same time.

Health certificate
Foreign nationals shall provide a health certificate when applying for a residence permit that is valid for more than one year, and such certificates are valid for six months from the date of issuance.

Strengthening Supervision and Management

Information verification
According to the Regulations, financial, educational, medical and telecommunications institutions can verify foreigners’ identities with the exit-entry administration authorities when necessary.

Obligation to report
The Regulations provide that relevant entities must report to the local entry and exit  administrative authorities if the foreign nationals employed by them have left their jobs, changed work locations, or if the overseas students enrolled by them have left.

Restriction over internships and part-time jobs
It has been provided in the Regulations for the first time that if foreigners holding study residence permits need to take part-time jobs or internships outside the campus, they shall obtain approval from their academic institutions and apply for a residence permit with an annotation of location and term of the part-time employment or internship from the entry and exit administrative authorities.

Foreigners whose study residence permits are not annotated with the information mentioned above are not allowed to take part-time jobs or internships outside the campus.

Defining Illegal Residence
The Regulations also address the illegal entry, stay and employment of foreigners and have defined the “illegal stay of foreigners” as the following:

Foreigners who stay and reside in the country beyond the duration of stay stipulated on the visa, stay or residence permit;
Foreigners who are admitted into China without a visa and have stayed beyond the allowed stay duration without obtaining a stay or residence permit;
Foreigners who travel and stay outside of the allowed stay or residence area; and
Other illegal stay situations.
- See more at: http://www.china-briefing.com/news/2013/07/25/china-releases-final-draft-of-new-visa-and-residence-permit-regulations-for-foreigners.html#sthash.viZj1i7b.dpuf

Thanks X-Warrior-that is X-cllent information, and it looks like the S visa is the right one. I got my wife to ring the CC in CM, and they said that they have not received anything in writing about the new regs yet, and they know nothing about it. They told my wife that they would get L visas, and to get them changed to RP's in China.

Here's a bit more detailed info on those final regulations issued  July 22 and effective September 1 (especially highlighting differences between the general rules that came into effect on July 1 and these final regulations). Also a good Q&A following about various issues.

http://lawandborder.com/?p=2707

Gott im Himmel...could they possibly come up with some more types of visas? Anyhow, from what I can see, nothing has changed regarding the Z visa, apart from the fact that one might have to give biometric data, whatever that is: fingerprints, blood-samples, DNA swap..

Here in the boonies it seems that processing the new permits are taking longer. It used to take just one week, but this year (right after the changes) it took 3 weeks to get my passport back. 

For those who are about to land for the first time:

Usually an employer will take care of your REGISTRATION. In my time I have only once had to go along to the PSB office to take part in what was a really basic procedure. Three years ago, however, I ended up in a dumb situation because my college had 'forgotten' to register my presence.

Up to now the 24hr requirement has been taken as a general aiming point; this article suggests that it may pay to come to treat that as a deadline.

http://www.china-briefing.com/news/2013/08/15/china-strengthens-enforcement-of-24-hour-registration-rule-for-foreigners.html

Come to think of it, I have an idea that those returning from a holiday overseas are also required to check in - I have never done that - so maybe someone can confirm if that is the case.

Come to think of it, I have an idea that those returning from a holiday overseas are also required to check in - I have never done that - so maybe someone can confirm if that is the case.

Yeah, in theory you are supposed to re-register at the local police station every  time you leave the country and come back, whether it's just a short holiday or whatever, I think for example even if you only went to Hong Kong you're supposed to re-register.

The police station will print you off a new Temporary Residence Form each time. When it comes to residence permit renewal time, changing jobs etc, the entry date on your Temporary Residence Form must match the latest entry date stamped in your passport or you might have trouble...(TIC, YMMV)

By the way, I completely forgot to do this (go to the police station) when I returned from the UK this year and when I finally got round to it, I got a lecture (well, my wife got the lecture in Chinese actually) about how we should have been fined and need to follow the rules etc (we didn't get fined in the end).

Edit:  But say you arrive back in Shanghai from overseas, and then immediately fly to Yunnan for a couple of weeks more R&R, before finally getting back to Zhengzhou, where you actually live, what happens in that situation?

To answer the last question... In theory you should be registering at each place you are staying... but hotels etc cover that for you without you needing to do anything, but if you are staying with anyone else then you should be registering each time.  The back at home time is from when you get back to that city... but you should also be prepared to explain what you did in the meantime.  That is the explanation our International Office gave us. Right now is the first time I have left China in 18 months, so when I get back it will be the first time I have had to do this since then. Normally our office will do it for us, but during vacation "shut-down" periods we have to do it for ourselves.

...so if you forget to register and they give you grief, you can just say you've been travelling around China since you got back?

I tried reregistering after a couple days in HK earlier this year.  The local cop shop didn't seem interested in making my file any thicker than it already is.

That being said, do at least make the attempt.  Technically, you are supposed to do this.  Your local PSB officer may be trying to win an award for most papers filed and will be very annoyed if you don't fill out the form.

...so if you forget to register and they give you grief, you can just say you've been travelling around China since you got back?

If you are travelling around China then you are registered every time you check into a hotel and that's in your file so they will know. If you are staying at a friend's house in a city you have 24 hours to register. If you are in the countryside the times are extended 48-72 hours depending how far in the boonies you are.

Even if it wasn't much of an issue before in a particular area, I wouldn't mess with it now as the recent focus on foreign visas may have made this more important everywhere.

Yeah, I am all for abiding by the rules, especially at the moment, just throwing hypotheticals out there.

If you are travelling around China then you are registered every time you check into a hotel and that's in your file so they will know.

Is the whole system really that connected country-wide?  If I check into a little hostel in Dali can they really see that on their computer in my local Jiangsu police office?

I beleive things are that connected. When I register in my local office in zhangjiagang when i go there, I am usually standing right beside the police woman inputing the information. when she calls up my file there is a list of all the places I have been registered at during my time there. And she does look through them (at a quick glance). Then prints of the form and stamps it for me.

Wow, I was skeptical, but that's good to know.

I can confirm adamsith's experience. Believe it.