Types of Chinese Visa's :-
L Visa = Tourist visa
Issued to foreigners who enter China temporarily for touring, family visiting or other personal affairs. Single-entry, double-entry tourist visa are available.
F Visa = Business/Visit Visa
Issued to foreigners who are invited to China for business visit, research, lecture, scientific-technological and cultural exchanges. Single-entry, double-entry, 6-month-multiple-entry, one-year-multiple-entry business visa are available.
Z Visa = Work Visa
Issued to foreigners who are to take up a post or employment in China, and their accompanying family members. Valid for 30 days
X Visa = Student Visa
Issued to foreigners who come to China for study or intern practice for a period of six months or above.
C Visa = Crewmember Visa
Issued to crewmembers on international aviation, navigation and land transportation missions and their accompanying family members.
J Visa = Journalist Visa
G Visa = Transit Visa
Issued to foreigners who transit through China.
D Visa = Residence Visa. The holy grail of visa's!
Issued to foreigners who are going to live in China permanently.
In China visa rumors spring up every where, and it can be difficult finding out what is True and what is False. While rules change, the official websites listing them do so at an alarmingly slow rate, it can take months for them to catch up! Regulations vary from province to province and the interpretation of those regulations vary as well. Whats true for Beijing may not necessarily be true in Shanghai. Visa agents on the other hand exist in there own special Chinese twilight zone of legality, but they can often accomplish things that individuals on their own could not. Of course a quite large fee is required for any services they may offer and I would advise using them with caution. So to help clear up a few general misconceptions here is my list of True and False facts about Chinese visa's:-
False:- Being married to a Chinese national gives you the right to live and work in The Peoples Republic of China
True:- All you are entitled to is an extended L or tourist visa, nothing else. At the moment it is being/has been changed from 1 year visa to a 2 year extended L visa. In theory if you have been married to a Chinese national, lived in China and been a tax payer for 5 years you can apply for a Chinese green card. Even if you meet all of the requirements, the Chinese government issues relatively few of these green cards and most of these to go to foreigners with large financial ties to China rather than personal ones. This may change in the future, I for one hope it does!
False:- A Z visa is a residence permit.
True:- A Z visa allows you to enter China for the purpose of employment and is only valid for 30 days. This can then lead to a Foreign Experts Certificate and a residence permit. The residence permit is a sticker in your passport and it allows you to work legally,pay tax's and is multiple entry.
False:- You can work in China if you have an L or F visa.
Sorry but this is just not true. Some employers and I'm talking about schools now will tell you it's Ok to work on an F visa. I have read a lot about schools in Shenzen especially who get around the need for a Z visa by listing employee's as adviser's and not as teacher's. I believe this is because they do not have a government licence to employ foreign teachers.Beware.In the grand scale of things if your are tempted to work on an F visa it is "less" illegal in the eye's of the police than on an L or tourist visa.
True:- It is illegal to work on any other visa than a Z visa with a legitimate residence permit. If get caught working without the correct visa, you could be subject to deportation and fines. The police know they can shake you down for some easy money and more incidents are coming to light of this happening. As I said it's easy money for them and you will be the target .Get the right visa and if the school or company can not supply it then walk away. There are plenty more employers looking for you!
False:- You can change the visa you have in your passport to another type in country. The only way to do this is to enter the twilight zone of the Chinese visa agent. You can see them everyday in the English printed newspapers here advertising Z or F visa's for sale. I checked one of these companies out when I was faced with the trip to Hong Kong to get my Z visa. They could do it alright but the price a whooping 5000rmb. If I had gone down this route what problems might I have encountered in the future? No idea but I wasn't about to take the chance. If your extremely lucky and your employer's connections go very deep as with every thing else here it's possible.
False:- If you overstay your visa you be thrown in jail.
True:- You can be fined up to 500rmb for the first 30 days of your overstay and the officers at the airport/boarder post will be non to pleased with you to say the least. Quite frankly if you overstay your visa for that length of time your taking the p### and deserve what ever is coming to you. Respect China and it's laws at all times they don't mess about here.
False:- There are absolutes when it comes to the enforcement of any laws in China.
True:- While it is certainly true that China has a written code of laws the enforcement side of it can depend on which way the wind is blowing. Two people in similar situations can end up with vastly different results. Being polite and conciliatory helps and of course personal contacts in the right places certainly smooth your path here. You would do well to cultivate these people as this is often the way things are done here.
Visa shops that have been recommended by members here are:-
US-
http://www.visaexpress.net/ UK-
http://www.chinesevisadirect.co.uk