Documents Required for Employment

The following information will help you to prepare the documents needed for obtaining a visa and work permit in China.  You can send each document digitally to judy.tang@isnsz.com (cc david.swanson@isnsz.com ).  We will also need to have you bring all original documents with you upon arrival (marriage licenses and children’s birth certificates need to be sent in advance, if applicable – see below).  Most costs incurred for processing these document before arrival in China, including document notarization and the actual visa fee, can be reimbursed up to 6000RMB after your arrival – please keep your receipts.  If the original documents are not in English or Mandarin they will need to be translated.

Note: The notarization of documents (also called document authentication, verification or an apostille) can be quite difficult.  We recommend getting an agent to help with this process.  It involves several steps – one at the local government level and one at the Chinese embassy.  Here is a link with instructions for notarization from the Chinese embassy: http://www.china-embassy.org/eng/ywzn/lsyw/gzrz/  You can find an agent in your area by doing a Google search for “Chinese Visa Services” or something similar.  There is also an online notarization service: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/xmUwR3tgYYiKghiJ1D9vNw, http://renzheng.cscse.edu.cn/Login.aspx this site is all in Chinese but our staff can assist you if you would like to go this route.

Here is a sample of what the notarization stamp from a Chinese Embassy looks like:

All teachers must provide:

1. A copy of the passport photo page. Note: The passport must be valid for at least one year, not damaged and have at least five empty pages.
2. A copy of every visa (the sticker or stamp in the passport) used for entry into China previously (not applicable if the teacher has never entered China before).
3. A digital color passport-quality photo with a white background.
4. A copy of the teacher’s highest-attained university degree that is notarized by the Chinese embassy or consulate in the country it was obtained. The original degree(s) must be provided upon arrival with the paper notarized copy.  Note: Obtaining the notarization (sometimes called an apostille) can be time consuming and costly, especially if you do not live near a consulate and/or need to use an agent.
5. A copy of the teaching license or certificate that is notarized by the Chinese embassy or consulate in the country it was obtained. The original license must be provided upon arrival with the paper notarized copy.
6. An updated resume in MS Word format. The resume should include all education background, work experience, home address and phone number. The education background and work experience sections of the resume need to be detailed as follows:

EDUCATION: September 2002 to July 2006（time frame attended） BA in History – University of New Brunswick, Canada (degree—major—university） WORK EXPERIENCE： October 2008 to June 2010（time frame attended） YCIS International School – Shanghai, China（employer）    Homeroom Teacher（position） Delivered a modified British curriculum to a class of 25 mixed ability international students Instructed Kindergarten and Second Grade reading ,writing, science, and cultural studies （description of work)

7. Three letters of reference from past places of employment.  The letters should included the period of time worked, the position you held and the contact information of the person providing the reference.  Please bring the original letters with when you arrive in China.  At least one must have an original ink signature on it (rather than a printed digital version).
8. If the teacher does not have a bachelor’s degree in a field of education, a teaching license or a TEFL certificate, a Proof of Employment Letter or certificate covering the past two years of employment in an educational institution must be provided. If the teacher has been enrolled in a master’s degree program for the past two years, a letter from the university can be used in place of the proof of employment.  The letter should include the period of time worked, the position you held and the contact information of the person providing the reference. Please bring the original letter with an ink signature on it when you arrive in China.
9. A Health Check Certificate completed by an authorized medical professional. The school will provide the form to be used.  Please contact judy.tang@isnsz.com to receive a copy.
10. A Police Record Check from the local police station or national security agency matching the region of the teacher’s address for the past year. (For example, if the teacher has been living and working in Japan for the past year, a certificate would be needed from that region of Japan or a Japanese national agency).  The Police Record Check must be completed within six months prior to your arrival in China.  Record checks that are older will not be accepted by the Chinese government.  This certificate also needs to be notarized by the Chinese consulate in similar manner as described above with the degrees and licenses.
11. A signed copy of a local Chinese Work Contract. (This is used for government purposes only. The official ISNS contract will be followed as the legally binding document.) Please contact judy.tang@isnsz.com to receive a copy.
12. Determine which Chinese embassy or consulate you need to apply to for your Z visa and send a message to Judy indicating which one it is. Generally, you can only apply for a Z visa in the region that you are living or working.  If you have residence permit or working visa in a certain country, then you most likely can apply for the visa in that country.  However, in some cases, teachers may need to go back to their home country to apply for their visa.  It would be best to check with the Chinese embassy or consulate nearest you to see if they can accept your visa application beforehand.  Please kindly note that once you choose the embassy or the consulate to which you will apply, we will indicate that in the online system and you must to apply for your visa at that embassy or consulate.  If you want to change the embassy, then we need to go through the process from the very beginning.

Spouses of teachers who will be applying for a visa as a family member (not as a licensed teacher with their own work visa) we need to submit the following:

1. A copy of the passport photo page. Note: The passport must be valid for at least one year, not damaged and have at least five empty pages.
2. A copy of every visa (the sticker or stamp in the passport) used for entry into China previously (not applicable if the teacher has never entered China before).
3. A digital color passport-quality photo with a white background.
4. A Health Check Certificate completed by an authorized medical professional. The school will provide the form to be used.  Please contact judy.tang@isnsz.com to receive a copy.
5. A Police Record Check from the local police station or national security agency matching the region of the teacher’s address for the past year. (For example, if the teacher has been living and working in Japan for the past year, a certificate would be needed from that region of Japan or a Japanese national agency).  The Police Record Check must be completed within six months prior to your arrival in China.  Record checks that are older will not be accepted by the Chinese government.  This certificate also needs to be notarized by the Chinese consulate in similar manner as described above with the degrees and licenses.
6. A copy of the couple’s Marriage License that is notarized by a Chinese consulate as outlined above. The original license will need to be mailed to the school in advance of arrival.

For children (under 18 years old) of teachers we will need the following:

1. A copy of the passport photo page. Note: The passport must be valid for at least one year, not damaged and have at least five empty pages.
2. A copy of every visa (the sticker or stamp in the passport) used for entry into China previously (not applicable if the teacher has never entered China before).
3. A digital color passport-quality photo with a white background.
4. A copy of the Birth Certificate that is notarized by a Chinese consulate as outlined above. The original certificate will need to be mailed to the school in advance of arrival.

Please note that we need the original marriage certificate and birth certificates before arrival in Shenzhen in order to process the family visas. These should be sent to Judy Tang at this address:

Judy Tang
International School of Nanshan Shenzhen
11 Longyuan Road, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, P.R. China 518000

Once the above documents are received, we can use these documents to fill out the required forms and procure an invitation letter from the Foreign Experts Bureau and a work permit. This process will take about one month.

If the embassy or consulate near you does not accept electronic versions of invitations letters, we will courier the invitation letters to your current address (please be sure you have provided it if it is different from your resume). Delivery usually takes 2-3 days.

Once you receive the letter(s) of invitation, please bring the letter(s) with your passport and original documents to the Chinese embassy/consulate that you selected previously to apply for a Z visa.  This usually takes four business days.

Some Canadian embassies or consulates now require you to travel to the embassy or consulate in order to be fingerprinted.  ISNS will cover the cost for travel to the embassy or consulate up to a limit if you request prior approval and send us a tentative itinerary and cost breakdown.  Please contact the HR Department (judy.tang@isnsz.com) for approval and a list of reimbursement limits.

Upon arrival in Shenzhen, please go to the HR Office within 24 hours after your arrival.  Your initial Z visa is only valid for 30 days and we must apply for a permanent one immediately after you arrive.

 We will complete the following in China:

1. Collect all original documents and passport. The school will keep these safe and utilize them to complete the process below.
2. Take additional official visa photos.
3. Take you to complete a local health check (the report is usually issued within one week).
4. Submit an application for a Foreign Expert certificate on your behalf (this takes 1-2 weeks).
5. Take you for an interview at the Shenzhen Police Station (non-teaching family members usually do not need to be present).
6. Apply for a residence permit on your behalf (it takes 15 working days for a residence permit to be issued).
7. Update the residence permit information in local police station on your behalf (this usually takes 1-3 days).
8. Once everything is completed, your original documents will be returned to you. If you need your passport to sign up for phone service or other settling-in tasks we can likely give it back to you for a day or so in the middle of the process.

If you have any questions about the visa and work permit process, please do not hesitate to contact us:  Phone: (86-755) 86000870  E-mail: judy.tang@isnsz.com