Permanent Residency for Shanghai’s High-Wage Foreigners

Permanent Residency for Shanghai’s High-Wage Foreigners
Jul 01, 2015 By eChinacities.com

New changes in policies regarding green cards for foreign talents have taken effect in Shanghai.

The main highlight of the new policies is that the standard for recognizing foreign talents has become simpler. Prior limitations regarding certain work classifications and ranks have been cancelled and have been replaced by limits regarding yearly salary and tax amounts instead. 

Now the definition is a much more straightforward one: a foreign worker in Shanghai whose yearly wage surpasses 600k RMB and whose taxes surpass 120k RMB. Workers who have lived in Shanghai for four years that fulfill these requirements can now apply for permanent residency, also known as a green card.

Source: view.inews.qq.com

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Keywords: China residence permit China foreign talent

31 Comments

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q8chine

So you honestly believe that we married folks should work on a Q visa? yes yes I know many do and I hope they never do get caught, so my question is what will happen if they get caught?

Jul 08, 2015 18:38 Report Abuse

q8chine

yup, for a country having a GDP per capita around the level of Peru

Jul 08, 2015 18:37 Report Abuse

Nessquick

My wife told me that everyone but me have this salary here, just me is that fool with low salary unable to qualify for green card. I am such a fool. hope someone of you can join me :-)

Jul 03, 2015 15:59 Report Abuse

dom87

mh sounds interesting. But where can I apply and how long do I have to earn this number, what changes if I change to a lower paid job? More details please - this rule actually affect me.

Jul 03, 2015 11:01 Report Abuse

Guest655508

if you look at it from a citizenship investment point of view, it is one of the most affordable at the moment...

Jul 03, 2015 01:53 Report Abuse

Guest2239322

What about researchers? They dont deserve it right? Only very rich deserve it?

Jul 02, 2015 11:49 Report Abuse

knightly

How sad that the Chinese government would rather sanctify the existence of foreign workers exploiting market conditions and adding to the economy through taxation over those married, raising families and adding incrementally to the growth and betterment of society. The economy is much healthier than society; the country needs better citizens not a few more drops in the financial ocean.

Jul 02, 2015 09:15 Report Abuse

RobRocks

they should make green cards easier for those of us married to Chinese and that have a family.

Jul 02, 2015 08:43 Report Abuse

The-Final-Say

Agreed. I wouldn't mind paying taxes if it meant I could have one of those cards. But this is because I am loyal to my family and my family has sick relatives to care for so I must stay. I earn well enough in fact but not quite that tax bracket. If men are traditional breadwinners but cannot earn up to the 120000RMB tax bracket, they put their lives at risk by allowing the bosses total control over the visa procedures. The wife has no say, this is unfair. How can one adapt to Neanderthal practices in the modern world when the laws for families still predate Neanderthal eras?

Jul 02, 2015 10:24 Report Abuse

Robk

@Final Say - You know you can get a Q visa, that would allow you to stay for six-months to a year and just renew it. That way you have more control over your visa situation. If you earn quite a bit, they won't kick you out. China is all about sucking up to those who have money... Chinese or foreign.

Jul 02, 2015 11:39 Report Abuse

The-Final-Say

After time, it becomes a family residency permit. I have been in China a long time and have been through this. The issue is that, legally speaking, one cannot earn on Q visa. I am legally eligible to get this so called green card based on the terms of law. However, this issue is far more complex. They never agree to give it simply based on the rules of law. The fact that 100s of thousands of foreigners may qualify does not grant them a single bit of right to pass, only less than 1 percent have ever passed. This is frustrating but it is the way things are at the present in China. Just imagine if more foreigners qualified for these cards based on the marriage rules, with our earning power we could contribute some nice tax money. But they don't think in these terms at all. It is what it is so there is little we can do for the time being. Furthermore, with militarism on the rise, I am wondering if there isn't a bigger reason for the lack of card holders, just thinking out loud now......

Jul 02, 2015 13:13 Report Abuse

The-Final-Say

I see it on the news and there are grumblings amongst the international communities around China. Certain nations peoples are having more and more difficulties to gain visas to come to China for any reason. Some people, from nearby lands, get severely scrutinized by the visa procedures and only a determined boss would ever accept going through so much trouble. The world is in a state of flux. Certain nations are taking sides of others with similar interests or goals. That and the ISIS wars raging on in the Middle East, well as a history buff I can see the world is right about to the point of where WWI and WWII began, a powder keg just waiting to be lit. The only thing keeping the world at bay to this point is that humans do fear the awesome power of nuclear weapons. If there is a WWIII, much or all of Humanity will be at risk. What will be the root of these issues? Poverty, greed, hunger, over population, and a lust for power to control and dominate other humans, in other words.... to survive longer than others. Again, I am just thinking out loud........

Jul 03, 2015 10:03 Report Abuse

Guest160014

So you honestly believe that we married folks should work on a Q visa? yes yes I know many do and I hope they never do get caught, so my question is what will happen if they get caught?

Jul 04, 2015 14:05 Report Abuse

Guest2301262

The whole world knows your hero manufactures scums locally, and wumao zombies like you.

Jul 02, 2015 08:38 Report Abuse

dkappy

I laughed out loud when I saw that salary figure. Foreigners making that much in China are just exploiting China for the money like many others. No one that's smart enough to make 600k a year in China is stupid enough to stay here forever. Milk the cow and shoot it in the head. Will that expression catch on?

Jul 02, 2015 06:17 Report Abuse

Guest2781358

600 000 a year is a bloody lot

Jul 02, 2015 02:27 Report Abuse

Guest2301262

yup, for a country having a GDP per capita around the level of Peru

Jul 02, 2015 08:55 Report Abuse

Guest14274740

Foreigners with that level of income would line up for it as they say getting it makes you invisible to locals who stare, yell at you, purify the air you breath and prevent your kids from becoming terrorists.

Jul 01, 2015 23:37 Report Abuse

Guest2795492

The damage has already been done. China has driven out all the foreigners, and now that the economy is on the brink of collapse they are trying to lure them back in. Blind Freddy could have seen this coming.

Jul 01, 2015 20:14 Report Abuse

Robk

@fada - You know as well as we do that this doesn't encompass your average ESL teacher. Maybe an academic subject or a teacher with an actual degree in education... teaching in an international school, sure. But 90-95% of teachers in China don't fall into this category.

Jul 01, 2015 20:23 Report Abuse

SaifMalik

lol in which City? Send me a link to a job that pays so much!

Jul 04, 2015 12:38 Report Abuse

Robk

That sounds all fine and dandy. So the guy paid 120k RMB in taxes (what?!) and got a permanent residency card. Now is this dependent on CONTINUING to pay those taxes? If his salary lowers, and his yearly taxes is below the requirement... does he lose it? This STILL seems like ridiculous requirements for very little gain.

Jul 01, 2015 19:04 Report Abuse

jetfire9000

Im guessing once you get it, you arent subjected to reevaluations like that.

Jul 01, 2015 19:23 Report Abuse

Robk

You would think so... but in China, it is best to assume nothing. More than likely you get a "permanent residency" card but are audited constantly to ensure you keep up with the requirements of contribution to China.

Jul 02, 2015 11:43 Report Abuse

Guest2763082

Beware of the permanent residency green card, you will lose all entitlements to tax free local allowance. Better to leave and re-enter.

Jul 03, 2015 08:48 Report Abuse