Are the Agency's fees prorated?

[JohnB]

I'll be leaving for Shenyang in a couple days. I have been in communication via ChnLove. +3 months of the EMFs had it's considerable cost. No problem. I understand the nature of the "for profit" agencies, but also from what I understand, the woman pays the agency for the "privilege" of her man's visit. Is this correct?
I checked a few of the dated threads and it leads me to this question. If I am successful with the woman, I understand I am expected to pay the marriage fees. This is fair. The thing is all woman in all cities are different. Is there a way to determine what fee the agency expects?
I would imagine a young woman in a large city would command a high fee relative to an older divorced woman in a smaller city. Is this a safe assumption, or am I out on a thin limb thinking this? 
Thanks much to all...it is a pretty good forum.
John

[RobertBfrom aust]

John , pure and simple every agency is different , so this is one of the things that as you have not asked yet it is better to do face to face after finding out if you have a connection with your lady .
 Some ladies pay a large amount up front whilst some pay at each step , some agencies are keen to rip you off whilst others have been as low as 1500 dollars or less , and some are not even registered to introduce overseas men to their ladies , you can always ask to see their registration certificate and see if there face changes colour ha ha , you have not noted which agency you are dealing with , it maybe that one of the forum has already been there done that , regards Sujuan and Robert .

[john1964]

Hi John, After some time communicating with my lady ( now wife), I read on the chnlove web site in the forum section about these "fees",
I was a little alarmed about these and wrote to my lady straight away to find out about these costs and to find out if there were any more hidden costs that i should know about, I got a quick response and she told me that she payed ,,,if i remember correctly,,1,800 rmb to join the agency, Another 2,000rmb when we first met in Beijing and if the relationship was successful then she would pay another 2, or 3,000rmb, She told me that she never mentioned these fees before as she was the one to agree to them when she signed up and they are her responsibility and not mine.
Needless to say after we were married i did pay the "success" fee as my wife always keeps her promise.
I have read that some agency's demand silly amounts for there fees so i would question the lady about these first to know what you are getting yourself in to .   regards from MinYing and John.

[maxx]

John the advise you have received.Is correct each agency is independently owned.And operate under their own rules.So there is 2 ways to handle this.You can pay the fees or you can tell them where to get off at.Because like Robert said.If they do not have a licence to introduce there ladies to foregen men.There isn't a whole lot they can do.They can threaten and harass but that is usually it.

My suggestion is talk to your lady see where she stands on this.If she thinks the fee needs payed.Go to the agency and negotiate the price.This is China.And everything is open to negotiation.If your lady thinks.That the fee is highway robbery.Then go with that.And tell the agency to go away.They may try to intimidate you or your lady into paying.If that does happen.Ask to see there licence to introduce foreigners to there clients. 9 out of ten of these places don't have the licence.And that will end it.If they persist.Tell the agency your going to the police.

The last company that got caught introducing foreign men to there clients with out a licence.The owner got fined out of business.And then got seven years in a Chinese prison.So it all will come down to how far you and your lady want to push it.

The last thing you want to do is take your ladies face.So follow her lead on this.If you feel uncomfortable with the price.Or just telling the agency where to get off at.Post your problem here.And we will get you threw this

[Jason B]

I guess I got lucky.  The agency Xia was with had a change of owner and all we did was take the new owners out for lunch.   No other fees besides what Xia had paid to join.  Probably not a typical outcome but Xia was adamant that we were not going to give them one RMB more as far as she was concerned.  And me too I must admit.

[JohnB]

Robert B, John'64, Maxx, JasonB....
thanks much for all your comments. each and every situation is exactly that...different.
The thing is I imagine the fee issue can be best addressed if only good things happen after the China arrival. no sense with presumptions in the early stage of the relationship. that can poison things if misconstrued...I will not say misunderstood. after all, there are the cultural biases that come into play.   
the EMF's are a delicate situation as we kind of figure out what this other person is all about. getting to know you, whatever. after all, this is the introductory period of the relationship that we do put our best foot forward.
for the most part my agency's letters were seemingly honest. I think the translator stayed true to the content on the translation. this was a big plus. no wasted emotionalisms. no promises other than the knowledge we, as she & me, will have our opportunity for success.

kind of weird, but if I somehow found this site, I think most agencies must be privy to what goes on here. do others share this thinking?
maybe soon I will mention the agency, the ladies name. after all, it is good to put faces on the letters.
take care all, John

[mustfocus]

John,

Check with your lady before you post her picture here... we've had a few ladies become unhappy in the past when their photos were posted.  Best to just give us a name to start.  As you said, you're still relatively early on in the relationship.

[Willy The Londoner]

Max is correct. An agency needs a special licence to introduce foreigners to Chinese Nationals for Marriage.  I understand that the owner of Chlove has such a licence for the Guangzhou City where he operates an agency.  But very few of these licences have ever been issued to any others that are operating under the Chnlove umbrella.  In fact it is illegal in China to advertise matchmaking between Chinese Nationals and Foreigners. Hence the fact Chnlove operates out of Hong Kong.

The individual agencies try to sweet talk the men into paying the womens marriage fees.  If they threaten or harrass tell them to get stuffed or find a simple reason to suggest that you will take them to court and they will run for cover.

My wife was with an agency and when they realised we were serious the translator started to make suggestions that maybe I would like to pay an advance on the success fee! But I had other ideas. 

I found a reason to suggest that I was considering taking the translator, the agency or both to court and set a text.  Within 5 minutes of sending the text my wife received a telephone call from the translator to say that they were sorry but her membership was cancelled and they could not assist her any longer and asking her not to talk to anyone who came enquiring about the agency.  They returned her cancelled contract.

They were seeking 40,000 rmb so you can always put the pressure on the agencies to save all or part.  As you know Chnlove have to operate in Hong Kong  a SAR (Special Administration Region) so as not to break Chinese laws.

OK some of the women are not willing to lose face by not paying the fees.  So I suggest anyone considering going my way should discuss this with the lady before embarking on it as you could save money at the expense of a relationship.

Willy