First of all, there are lots of different types of Chinese visas available if you are keen to travel and work in China, although they are all referred to by letters (Z, Y etc…) as well as having ordinary names too (the various types of visa are of course valid in different circumstances, which I will detail in this post).

Advice of Getting a Chinese Visa.

A good thing thing to note before getting to the Chinese visas is that Chinese bureaucracy is incredibly slow and you need to be extremely patient as the visa process can sometimes be very troublesome (even if you have all the required documents). There are so many people in the country that they have many people in unnecessarily created jobs (the essence of communism!), therefore sometimes messages and paperwork get passed ridiculously from person to person, most of them not knowing exactly what to do with it. You must be as patient as you can be. It will get done, just at a slow pace.

Visa Types Available

The following visas are available depending on the reasons for your visit to China:

• Work visa (Z-visa).

When do you need it? When you are applying to work and earn money in China. This is the most important visa and the only visa you should realistically be applying for if you plan to stay for longer than a tourist. You get an initial Z-entry visa for 30 days which will be converted after you arrive in China.

• Getting  Z- Visa.

One thing to get from your employer before you start applying for your Z-visa is who will be responsible for the costs ($130 for Americans, and around $30 for citizens of other countries). Unfortunately you cannot apply for your Z- visa whilst in China. It can be done outside the country only (in your home country or handily in Hong Kong) and it can take up to a month.

• Obtaining Z-Visa in your home country.

You can apply for your initial Z-visa (or any visa come to that), in your home country from one of the Chinese Embassies or Visa for China centres or even by post, whichever is easiest for you. On receiving your Z-entry visa, you will have 3 months to arrive in China and activate/stamp it. You can apply for longer and more entries if need be, but most people get the 3 month single entry visa to begin with. The important thing to note is that once you arrive in China this has to be converted into a “proper” residence/work visa at the local public service authority (PSB) office within 30 days of your arrival.  This replaces the Z-entry visa, and will allow you to leave and re-enter China as many times as you like within the visa validity period. A multiple entry visa.

• Required documents.

Unfortunately, getting a Z-visa is not just as simple as filling in an application form. It is one of the visas which requires an Invitation Letter and a Foreign Expert’s certificate from the school or institution you are working for. A lot of travellers will be looking to teach English in China. To get these two documents, you have to send your institution the following:

• A scanned copy of your passport photo page.

• 2 Passport photos.

• A scanned copy of your degree and TEFL certificate (although if you do not have either of these, your institution will be aware of that).

• CV or Resumé.

• 2 signed references from past employers or educators (this is generally not required if you have TEFL certification).

• A criminal check (can be required from local police for a fee – again this is not always required).

• A signed medical form (again this is not always required – your institution will advise you about this and what costs you will be responsible for).

*If you are required to have a medical, you need to head to your GP or local hospital for various tests including ECG, blood tests, reflex tests and many more – all your vital statistics are measured. You’ll need proof of this on paper if this is a requirement for you.

Filling in an application form for a Chinese Visa.

• Process

Once you gather all the necessary documents, you need to head to your local Chinese Visa Office to apply for your Z-visa. If you are successful, you will receive the Z-entry visa China, where you must enter China within 3/6 months depending on what visa you have applied for. You will then have to convert this to the proper Z-visa within 30 days of your entry into China.

Ideally, you’d want to have the whole process completed at least a week before you fly to China, otherwise you will get stressed and nervous! We also wouldn’t recommend booking flights until you have your visa either, though the flights are not often asked for when applying for the visa.

Once you arrive in China, the next step is to visit the PSB office (public security authority) to get yet more photos taken (as if the ones you submitted weren’t enough already) and maybe you will be asked a few questions as to why you are in China.

• Duration

The process of getting your Invitation Letter and Foreign Expert’s certificate in China can take up to a month. Do not try and apply for this in January/February over the Chinese New Year  period as this will take a quare bit longer. Always expect China to be slow at processing everything though, especially paperwork – it’s typical of the Chinese to do this.

• Tourist visa (L-visa)

This visa is for purely leisure reasons only such as a holiday but can be adequate for backpacking trips too. You can choose either a single-entry visa, a double-entry visa or a multiple entry visa. The single entry and double entry are normally only vaild for 1 trip within 3 months or 2 trips within 6 months. The multiple entry visa last 6 months or a year. It means that if you are granted 90 days double entry visa, the maximum you can stay in China is 6 months (maximum of 90 days after the first entry and a maximum of 90 days after the second entry). Multiple entry visas are also available but can be harder to get. Jonny at Don’t Stop Living has a guide to multiple entry tourist visas.

• Business visa (F-visa)

This is a visa which you can only get if you hold a letter of invitation from a company, educational institute (including all research and lecturing reasons), short-term study and/or internship or for attending trade fairs and exhibitions by invitation. It is valid for 6 months.

• Student visa (X-visa)

Once more, the student visa is one that can only be obtained if you hold a letter of invitation from an educational institute where you intend to study for a period of 6 months or more. When applying to a university, they will be able to help you decide whether a Business or Student visa is best for your needs, mostly dependent on the length and type of your course of study.

• Transit visa (G-visa)

This visa is for people simply transiting or stopping over in China, on their way to another destination. There are various exceptions, including if you are staying in a Chinese airport with an onward ticket for less than 24 hours, and also the new visa-free 72 hours offered to around 45 countries, as long as an onward ticket can be presented. These new 72 visas can only be issued at certain entrance points such as Zhuhai sea border, Shenzhen land border and Beijing airport border.

• Crew visa (C-visa)

This is for crew members of international trains, flights and ships passing through China in order to get to their onward transport or vessel. Sorted by your employer in most cases.

• Journalist visa (J-visa)

The exception to a work visa (Z-visa) is if you are coming to China as a journalist (they are a little more vigilant about this profession, understandably). There are two types: one, if you are a resident foreign journalist, and the other for a foreign journalist visiting for temporary news coverage (e.g. the Olympics). The Chinese government like to know if and where journalists are in the country.

• Permanent Residence visa (D-visa)

This is given to a foreigner who has been approved by the public service authority (PSB). This visa is usually applied for when there has been or will be a marriage. It can be a long and tiring process.

Agness and Cez are a Polish duo standing behind eTramping.com, a travel blog where they both share budget travel tips on how to travel the world with $25 in your pocket. They call themselves “Tramps” as they have been travelling the world on the cheap since 2011 without permanent home. They are photography passionate and food lovers. Agness and Cez are currently based in Dongguan, China where they dig into baozi and jiaozi (local dumplings), teach English and travel around. If you would like to read more about China, you can check out their  “Add the Brick to the Great Wall:” Experience-based Advice for China from Expats” e-book where they share tips on teaching, living and travelling in the Land of Dragons.