Tick list for UK citizens applying for work visa&flying to China

We are not an agent or recuirter, but a headhunter !

This tick list is accurate as of 28th October 2020. Be sure to check at each stage for any updates to the procedures. Please note, if you already have a residence permit from China that expired after 28 March 2020, you can apply for a renewed work visa by following these instructions.

1) Get required documents notarised and authenticated

Apply for a criminal background check at ARCO Criminal Records Office. This is an official statement from a national or local government agency stating that you do not have a criminal record in the country that issued your passport.This document will be valid for the purpose of the China visa application for six months from its issue date.

Get your degree certificate, TEFL certificate (in some cases required, check with your school) and criminal background check notarized and authenticated

Process:
1- Get a high quality colour copy notarised
2- The Foreign Commonwealth Office (FCO) must then issue a stamp verifying the notarisation

–Contact us for a more detailed Visa Guide for step by step instructions and support on getting your documents notarised and authenticated

-Confirm with your school what needs doing

Medical check certificate

You may be required to provide this, however, you may not. Please check with your school to ask if it is required.

-Book an appointment with your local doctor
-Download and print this form and take it to the doctor’s with you
-You do NOT have to have the blood test, chest x-ray or ECC tests done
-Make sure the doctor writes ‘healthy’ and signs at the bottom of the form
-Doctor must stamp over your photo on the top right of the form and at the bottom of the form
-The health check certificate is valid for 6 months from date it was issued

2) Get documents legalized by Chinese embassy

Once the copy of your degree, TEFL and criminal background check are notarized and certified, the national stamp / seal must then be “authenticated” or “legalized” by the Chinese consulate or embassy.

–FAQ on legalising documents

-You can submit the documents yourself or have a visa agent submit them for you

-Consider using a visa agent for this step too. See links above.

-You can have the legalized documents posted back to you

3) Email notarized and authenticated documents to your school in China 

4) School applies for ‘PU letter’ (invitation letter) and work permit notification letter

Process can take around 3 weeks

5) Book appointment to visit Chinese visa center to apply for work visa

www.visaforchina.org – scroll down > hover over UK > select city

-How to book an appointment 

Please note, this is the link for the London office. If you require Manchester, Edinburgh or Belfast, please visit www.visaforchina.org. Email address is [e-mail]

-How to fill in the online application form

Please note, this is the link for the London office. If you require Manchester, Edinburgh or Belfast, please visit www.visaforchina.org

–General FAQ

Getting an appointment can be tricky, some of our teachers have used a visa agent to book the appointment for them as they can have a preferential access to appointments. See links above for visa agents.

Please note: we have heard from teachers who have applied for Z, M, or F visas.

Once they arrive in China the visa is then converted to a residence permit by the school which allows you to live and work in China. Please check with your school on what type of visa you should apply for.

6) Attend appointment at the China Visa Center

-You have to attend the appointment yourself. You can not have an agent attend on your behalf.

-Make sure to bring all the required documents

7) Pick up passport with China work visa stamped in it, or have it posted to you

-2 days for express service, 3 days for regular service or 10 days for the postal service

8) Book flight

-Confirm the target arrival date with your school before booking the flight.

-Make sure you book a flight that is approved to fly to China. Some websites list flights even though they are not approved to fly to China and are therefore likely to be cancelled.

-Here is a list of approved flights to China as of 20 Oct 2020, be sure to check for an updated list of approved flights

-If possible, book a direct flight rather than one with a stopover.

-If possible, book a flight that flies between Tuesday and Saturday, as you need to email your negative COVID test to the Chinese embassy within 72 hours of your flight, so ideally you don’t want to have to deal with the Chinese embassy over the weekend.

-Book directly on the airlines website. Using a Chinese airline is also advisable as it may be less likely to be cancelled.

-Alternatively, consider using a travel agent such as TrailFinders in the UK. They can offer flexible dates in case you need to change your flight and we have heard reports that a return flight can be cheaper than a one-way.

–FlightRadar24 is a useful site for checking the flight history of any flight for the last 7 days and for the coming 7 days, so you can check that certain flights actually flew and were not cancelled.

9) Get a nucleic acid COVID test

-Make sure to self-isolate as much as possible in the weeks before your flight, you don’t want to get COVID and have to cancel your flight

-The date of COVID test result (not the date when you took the test) needs to be within 72 hours of the flight to China. So if you have a stopover be aware the COVID test result has to be within 72 hours of the actual flight to China, not the flight from England to the layover destination. Be sure to check with your airline to confirm if their policy is still 72 hours.

-The test has to be a nucleic acid test

-Book through a private company, not the NHS, as private companies can offer more reliable result dates and the NHS should only be used if you have symptoms

Cardiff, Bristol, Manchester, London –  from £145+
London Mayfair  £220 Guarantees same day
London  £175
London  from £145+
London and Manchester  from £149
London  £152
London  From £199
Central London  £129
Liverpool, London  from £120
Manchester  £120
Edinburgh
Fife
London and Aberdeen  £250
Aberdeen £200
Chelsea and Marylebone
Putney and Guildford  £149
Leeds  £175
Hampshire  £210
Kent  from £145
Wolverhamptom and Shrewsbury  from £145+
Hampshire/Berkshire  £225
Surrey and Berkshire  £195
Burnley, Lancs  £150
Birmingham  £185
Birmingham  £185
Birmingham, Cardiff, Dublin, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newcastle  from £130
Barnsley and Cirencester  from £115+
Coventry  £135
Liverpool  £150
Dublin

Alternatively, Google options near you. Find one that offers guaranteed results within a certain time frame, so you can be sure you will have the results on time.

-Some people choose to book two or more tests, so as to increase the chance of getting the result within 72 hours of the flight.

For example, if your flight is on a Saturday at 1pm, the test result has to be issued no earlier than Wednesday 1pm, so you might want to have a test done on Monday and Tuesday.

10) Email negative nucleic acid COVID test result to Chinese Embassy

Details from the Chinese embassy here. Please note this website says the test results need to be issued within 5 days of the flight, that has now been changed to 72 hours before the flight.

-Complete this health declaration form and have it signed by the Chinese embassy.

-Make sure that the name on your test results is the same as that on your travel document

-Email the following to the appropriate Chinese embassy / consulate:

• Negative COVID test result

• ID page passport scan

• Signed, copy of the health declaration form
  

Chinese Embassy: [e-mail]

Chinese Consulate General Manchester: [e-mail]

Chinese Consulate General Edinburgh: [e-mail]

Chinese Consulate General Belfast: [e-mail]

Chinese Consulate General Ireland:[e-mail]

For the subject line of your email use “HS+passenger name+Date of departure”, e.g. HS+Jack Smith+28th October 2020.

-The Chinese embassy will email you with a health declaration form, usually within a few hours. Print all the documents and certified health declaration and take them to the airport with you.

11) Arrival at the airport

Get to the airport at least 4 hours before your flight as check in process takes longer than usual.

Make sure to bring your stamped health declaration form, original negative COVID test result and passport

Also bring all your notarized documents (degree, TEFL, criminal background check) as they may be needed to get your residence permit in China.

Things to bring:
-Passport

-Boarding pass

-Negative COVID test result, issued within 72 hours before your flight – check specific airline requirements to confirm requirements on this Printed signed and stamped health declaration form from Chinese embassy

-Valid Chinese visa or residency permit

-Masks & hand sanitiser

-Phone with WeChat installed – this is needed for processing on arrival

-Download and complete the WeChat mini program ‘Customs Pocket Declaration’ on the WeChat app on your phone

-Enough cash in Chinese RMB to cover the quarantine costs and food or money on WeChat Pay or AliPay if possible

-Power bank to ensure your phone has power on arrival

-Name and phone number of a contact person in China

-Pen

-Download a VPN, if you wish, for use in China as they are hard to get once you arrive

-Food for the flight – some airlines only provide limited food

-Store on your phone, as will be required for forms: passport number, visa number, flight number, seat number, address in China (in Chinese and English), emergency contact in UK, emergency contact person in China and their phone number

12) Quarantine for 14 days on arrival in China

Once your plane arrives in China you will be taken to a quarantine hotel for your 14 day quarantine. The reports from teachers who have been through it have said things are organized very well, the hotels are of a good quality (similar to what you would expect from a 3 or 4 star hotel stay). They provide 3 meals a day.

Source:https://goldstarteachers.com/tick-list-for-uk-citizens-applying-for-work-visa-and-flying-to-china/, by Jim; https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/f0tTx88MveruFVEalCFRWg

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