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China · Relocation guide

Moving to China: work permits, residence registration and first-month setup

For a long-term move, the entry visa is only the first document. Match the route to the activity, register every non-hotel address, complete the work and residence steps, then connect banking, tax, healthcare and family records.

Content updated 11 September 2026. Individual source-check dates are listed below.

Choose a route that matches the activity, not just the planned length of stay

China separates entry visas, work permission and residence permission. A visitor, business or visa-free entry does not authorise ordinary local employment. For the usual employee move, the employer obtains the required notification and work-authorisation evidence, the applicant uses the appropriate work entry visa, and a longer-term worker completes the work permit and work-type residence permit after arrival. Do not start work simply because the passport contains a Z visa.

Family and study routes have their own sponsors and conditions. A Q family route is relevant to qualifying relatives of Chinese citizens or permanent residents, while accompanying relatives of a foreign worker may need a different family status. Permanent residence is a separate adjudication, not an automatic conversion after holding temporary permits. Confirm the exact category with the Chinese mission, employer and local exit-entry authority before booking a one-way move.

Choose a route that matches the activity, not just the planned length of stay
Relocation planVisaAtlas routeBoundary to resolve
Employer-sponsored jobZ Work Visa (with Foreigner Work Permit and Residence Permit)The entry visa does not replace the work permit and work-type residence permit
Recognised high-level talentR Talent Visa (high-level and urgently needed talent)Talent status and permission to perform the actual work must both be confirmed
Join a Chinese citizen or permanent residentQ Family Reunion Visa (Q1 and Q2)Relationship status does not create unrestricted work permission
Long-term formal studyX Student Visa (X1 and X2)Employment and internships require the approvals applicable to students
Permanent residence candidateForeign Permanent Resident ID Card (Five-Star Card)The card follows approval under a qualifying category; residence time alone is insufficient

Make the employer and document file usable before departure

Ask the employer who owns each step: notification for the work permit, visa application support, post-arrival work permit, residence permit, social-insurance registration and renewals. The current national working-and-living guide lists a passport, job contract or dispatch letter, work-qualification evidence, highest degree or professional credentials, no-criminal-record certificate, health examination and recent photograph among common work-permit materials. The required authentication and translation depend on the document and authority, so obtain the employer’s local checklist before legalising anything.

Prepare separate indexed files for the principal applicant and every family member. Carry originals and secure scans of passports, approvals, civil-status records, school records, prescriptions and any authority-requested medical evidence. Names, dates and passport numbers should match across the contract, invitation, certificates and applications. If the job location, employer, position or passport changes, do not assume the original permission follows automatically.

Register the address first, then complete the residence permit

Accommodation registration is an immediate arrival task. Hotels submit the registration. If you stay in a private home or other non-hotel accommodation, the Exit and Entry Administration Law requires you or the host to register with the local public-security organ within 24 hours of arrival. NIA now also publishes national online channels through its 12367 app, mini-programs and service website, but confirm whether the local address and applicant can use them. Re-register after changing accommodation rather than carrying forward the old receipt.

Where the visa says a residence permit is required, apply to the competent exit-entry administration in the intended place of residence within 30 days of entry. NIA’s service guide identifies the passport, application form, compliant photograph, purpose evidence and biometrics as core requirements; a work-type application also needs the work permit and employer letter. Appointment delay does not extend the statutory window, so the employer should book promptly and keep the acceptance receipt.

Connect lawful work, payroll, social insurance and healthcare without merging them

The law requires both a work permit and work-type residence permit for foreign employment. Check that the employer, city, occupation and validity on the documents match the real job before the first working day. Keep the signed contract and payslips, and ask what approval is required before a change of employer, position or work location. A dependant or student status should never be treated as unrestricted work permission.

The national guide says qualifying foreign employees participate in social insurance and that the employer handles registration through the local system. A social-security agreement may exempt a covered national from corresponding branches, but it does not create a blanket exemption and must be evidenced under that agreement. Ask payroll for the local contribution record and confirm how basic medical insurance is used in the chosen city. Separately assess provider language, direct billing, exclusions, medicines, maternity and evacuation, and maintain suitable cover until actual access is clear.

Treat tax residence, payroll and payment access as separate decisions

China’s Individual Income Tax Law distinguishes domicile from physical presence. A non-domiciled person who spends at least 183 days in China in a tax year is a resident individual under the basic statutory definition; a non-domiciled person below that threshold is generally non-resident, but China-source income can still be taxable. Longer multi-year residence, treaties, equity, bonuses and offshore-paid remuneration need a fact-specific analysis. Track complete and partial travel days, work locations, pay components and foreign income from day one.

For daily money, the government guide says foreigners can apply at commercial-bank outlets using a passport or Foreign Permanent Resident ID Card, while each bank can require additional information. Keep an overseas payment fallback while the account is tested. International cards can be linked to supported mobile-payment services, but issuer verification, limits and acceptance vary. Use the exact romanised name and document number consistently across the bank, SIM, work permit, residence permit and payment apps.

Choose housing that can support registration and solve driving separately

Before paying a deposit, verify the landlord or agent, property address, permitted occupancy, lease, inventory, utilities, maintenance, early termination and refund terms. Confirm that the address can be used for accommodation and residence-permit evidence. City rules and access to schools, hospitals and work vary sharply, so begin with short accommodation if the neighbourhood and commute have not been tested. Keep each new accommodation-registration record with the lease.

Do not drive on the assumption that an overseas licence or international permit is enough. The government guide says a Chinese licence is needed for car rental and describes provisional Chinese permits for eligible overseas-licence holders, with passport, overseas licence, Chinese translation, photograph and other local documents. Mutual-recognition arrangements apply only to specified countries and conditions. Ask the local traffic-management office which permanent, provisional or test route applies before renting or buying a vehicle.

Plan school eligibility and pet entry before choosing flights

School admission is locally administered. Ministry of Education rules allow appropriately authorised primary and secondary schools to accept foreign students and place responsibility with provincial-level education authorities. Ask the city and school which residence, work, relationship, vaccination and previous-school records are required and whether the chosen school is authorised for the child’s status. Families using a foreign-personnel school should verify curriculum, transport, deposits and the route to the next education system before signing housing nearby.

China Customs Announcement No. 5 requires an electronic microchip for a passenger pet. It also limits passenger pets to dogs and cats and generally to one pet per traveller, with an official quarantine certificate and rabies-vaccination certificate. Origin classification, antibody-test evidence, designated entry point and quarantine treatment can change the arrival plan. Obtain the current customs instructions for the origin and port before booking cargo or passenger travel, and check the destination city’s rules for registration and restricted dogs.

Calendar residence, work and personal changes independently

The current government guide tells residence-permit holders who need to remain to apply for extension 30 days before expiry. It also gives separate update windows for passport or residence-permit information changes and for work-permit personal-information changes, while the employer owns the work-permit extension. Use the date on each document and the current local instruction; do not assume one renewal preserves the other.

A job ending, a new employer, a change of city, marriage, divorce, birth or new passport can affect more than one family member. Contact the employer, local foreign-expert or human-resources authority and exit-entry administration before the change takes effect. Preserve tax, social-insurance, accommodation and travel records. If pursuing permanent residence, use the NIA eligibility guide for the actual category rather than treating the Five-Star Card as a reward for any long stay.

Your moving checklist

Tick off the tasks that apply to you. The timing is a planning order, not a substitute for the deadlines on your permission or an official instruction.

0 of 15 tasks completed

Before you move
On arrival
Your first month
Later and before renewal

Sources and checks

The linked authorities set the rules. VisaAtlas explains how the steps fit together; planning suggestions are not a decision on your immigration status, tax residence or entitlement to services.

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