Marriage, moving and the VISA

About 10 years now I've been around in China. And thanks to places such as The Saloon and a few other reliable sources. I always find answers I may have. Thanks guys.

Am considering bailing out of Beijing for good and moving to the south to be with my girl. We spoken about marriage a lot and some questions come up for us during this process.

I would like to stop working for some time and do some exploration of China. And we all know how much trouble visas can give us... spare us the horror stories.

My girl suggests that since we will be married, I could in fact leave my current position, give up my Resident's permit(Z visa), and the job I hate and get a family L visa which i can stay wherever i like. Just as long as I don't work.


My question to you guys out there is

1. Has anyone ever done this before?
2. What kind of problems did you have after 1-3 years down the road?
3. If you were to look for work again in the future, how was the process of getting a new residents permit

I am considering doing this because I just, frankly speaking, dislike Beijing now very much. That has always been a complaint, if you've been around, and now it seems also that my health isn't as good as it once was.

Beijing is a monster of a city and commuting sucks because of distance and the population. The hustle and bustle of Beijing doesn't suit me well any longer. I am considering moving to a 3rd tier city, less polluted and less populated with slower lifestyle.

I am only concerned that when I am ready to start working again. How much trouble would I have getting my Z back ...IF I wanted to do that.

I'm married but have never gone across to the marriage L visa, so no help there.
But I do remember that you mentioned a while ago that you don't have a degree, so it might be a little tough getting a new Z visa without a Degree as the regulations as getting stricter every year and more steadily enforced.
Depends I suppose on the new place you settle down, a second or third tier city that has a lack of foreigners could be a breeze to get a new Z visa. But a place that has a decent supply of teachers might be a stretch.
So I guess it could range from simple or a nightmare, depending on the place.

You've been around more than long enough.  Be the Saloon's test case for applying for a permanent residence card and see what happens.
 

I have a marriage visa -- these days what they give you is not an L, it is a residence permit. Under purpose it says "family" or somesuch. It is NOT permanent residence, but a residence permit like what you'd get for the job, although the purpose is different.

Of course if anyone asks, I'm a housewife. My husband the musician supports our family, yes indeed.

Has anyone who's been here for 5+ years tried for the elusive D visa?

(just celebrated my 5 year anniversary, but haven't been here continuously )

EL- continuously? What if you take short trips out of the country for under a month once or twice a year? If ok then I'd certainly be eligible!

Short trips out are permitted.  I had 18 months out after my first stay.

Being (mostly) continuously in for 5 years is something of a base requirement.  Beyond that, you need one of these:

Investment with more money that most of us have lost in the sofa (a lot more).
High rank in some corporate or gov't enterprise.
Marriage to a local.

Being considered highly desirable in some other way is good (and may even waive the 5 year requirement), but the details on that are a little sketchy.

I've started a new thread for Permanent Residency over in the Legalities board.  Click Here.

There is no D visa. Information about D visas is out of date.

There is no D visa. Information about D visas is out of date.

From what I can tell, a D is only available if you are outside the country while applying for a greencard.  It's possible that they changed the rules and only allow applications to be submitted from inside the country.  In any event, the reason I brought it up was in regards to getting Green Card/Permanent residence.

Quote from: zero on December 09, 2011, 07:23:05 AM

There is no D visa. Information about D visas is out of date.

From what I can tell, a D is only available if you are outside the country while applying for a greencard.  It's possible that they changed the rules and only allow applications to be submitted from inside the country.  In any event, the reason I brought it up was in regards to getting Green Card/Permanent residence.

The "D" visa is pretty much like the "Z" visa in that it allows you one single, limited entry into the country for the express purpose of picking up your green card.

If you are out of the country when your application for permanent residence is approved in Beijing, they issue you a "D" visa to enter China and obtain your green card.  After that, your "D" visa is cancelled and your green card becomes your visa / work permit.

Changing from a work RP to a family RP is quite easy and painless. YMMV. Essentially they look identical, only the purpose for the stay is different. Family vs work. Switching back may be more difficult as others have mentioned. You know the deal, it's pretty much a crap shoot. If the school has pull and the stars line up right...maybe it will be hassle free or only require a hop to HK.

Howdo Again.
Bit confused.
Currently on RP for work.
But if I get hitched I change this to RP for marriage...But I can't work on that (Correct?)
So what do I need to be able to work if I have the Marriage RP?

Any Ideas?
Ta!

If you have a marriage RP you can't legally work, period. There's nothing you can get on top of the marriage RP that will change that.

You can work on your RP for work, you can work on a greencard, and in some very limited circumstances you can work on an F. Anything else and you're not legal.

Many thanks..

Waahh! Crazy!
So if I have a marriage RP, I'd have to "eat soft rice" and not work.
If I wanted to work I'd have to cancel the marriage RP and get a work RP.
Because I'd bet I couldn't have both!
Surely that can't be the experience of other people who come to China to work and then decide to get married...not much of a choice really.
This mystic Green Card thing seems to be the way to go. I'll need to go digging around!

My understanding (and I may well be wrong) is that if you're already here on a regular work RP, you can continue to work even if you get married. AFIK, your regular RP doesn't get cancelled and re-issued a new "marriage" visa or RP just by getting married here. Your marital status changes, but not your work status. Just keep working under your regular RP. When it comes time to renew your work status, unless you "want to eat soft rice", renew your work RP.

The L-Marriage visa is an option-not a requirement AFIK-for those who can't get/won't get/don't want to get a regular work Z Visa leading to an RP.

LD prolly knows a lot more about this than I, though.