Foreigners Dubious of China's Newly Announced “Ease of Entry” Procedures

Word on the street: it's becoming more difficult for foreigners to get employment visas in Beijing.

Several years ago, China implemented and began enforcing new requirements that foreigners have at least two years of work experience outside the country before becoming eligible for a work permit here, along with requiring that such visas be applied for in the applicant's home country.

This cut off a prime source of talent for a significant number of both domestic and international firms: foreigners who were studying at local universities and thus tended to possess the Mandarin-language skills that many coming straight from abroad do not have.

Then, on January 4, the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs (SAFEA) began requiring companies to apply for foreign work permits through a new web-based system. And while that new process may appear to be a long overdue upgrade, companies and potential employees using the system have had mixed reactions.

Several companies contacted for this story report that they have had increased difficulties this year in getting applications approved. Many applicants have been flatly rejected, a hurdle they have rarely encountered before. 

"The reason they gave [us for the rejection] was that the candidate wasn't properly qualified for the position – which wasn't the case," said the head of one Beijing firm, who spoke on condition of anonymity. He called the decision "arbitrary."

"My suspicion is that the recent slowdown in the local economy is making policymakers skittish about foreign hires – unless of course they are demonstrably more qualified than any local candidate."

The new system, is one of several government initiatives in what appears to be an overhaul of entry and residence policies. On January 13 the Xinhua News Agency reported that additional new regulations will be put in place on March 1 “aimed at promoting Beijing's soft environment for innovation and start-ups.”

The piece describes “streamlined approval procedures" for "foreigners with doctorate degrees ... to get a Chinese green card,” and touting other benefits for those working in technology and senior management.

A January 13 China Daily article, meanwhile, highlights fresh entry and residency incentives that will "provide a steady stream of foreign talent for scientific and technological innovations."

Among those changes are permanent residencies granted to both expats who have worked for more than four years in Beijing's Zhongguancun IT hub, and overseas Chinese with a doctoral degree.

"The number of high-level experts introduced to China has grown, and distribution of foreign intellectual resources is improving ..." SAFEA Director Zhang Jianguo told China Daily in describing the government's latest Five-Year Plan for better welcoming and servicing expat workers.

That optimism isn't shared by foreigners working outside of science and technology, or those who don't hold a PhD. 

“China is trying ... to bring in only high-dollar revenue builders – entrepreneurs with big backing, successful tech startups and companies who can produce numbers, not add value," said one foreigner working in the food and beverage industry, who asked to remain anonymous because his paperwork is in process. "[By regulating] the talent pool, they’re ensuring that only those who will make significant short-term improvements are entering in a streamlined manner.”

He calls those measures short-sighted, and said international employees often bring fresh talent and perspectives. "When a company is forced to rely on only local staff, you lose the collaboration and advanced technologies that are often slow to be adopted in China,” he said. “Generally speaking, I think this is a relapse into old ideals that international collaboration is fatal, and only homegrown ideas are worth the investment. It's like we're working in the 1800s."

However, not everyone is critical of the new changes.

Sarah Qin, founder and CEO of Easy Business Solutions (EBS), a consulting firm that, among other things, helps clients with their applications using the new e-system, says an added benefit of the new process is that it will cut down on dodgy, guanxi-addled favoritism that has long plagued the work permit system.

“The person who is authorized to check the documents and approve them is not known by any applicant,” Qin says. “So it indeed helps the prevention of corruption.” 

However, Qin also has plenty of complaints about the new system, saying: “It is truly difficult and time consuming for applicants ... As it is a new system all in Chinese, many HR managers aren’t familiar it.”

She says EBS has helped several clients apply using the new system, but none have been successful yet. She and her customers are also frustrated by the Labor Bureau now demanding employers “input their company profiles first. Then they approve if the company is qualified to hire the foreigner, before checking the expat's documents. For those who just want to renew their work permit, they are not happy because before it took a few hours. Now it takes days, at least.” 

One area that seems to be loosening up is on the hiring of foreign interns. In 2013, China's Public Security Bureau cracked down on numerous companies who had such interns on staff. That was prompted by then-fresh stipulations barring those workers from being paid, and requiring them to endure what one prominent firm called "complicated" and "strict" visa conditions.

The government is now clearing many of those hurdles with its latest entry overhauls, according to the China Daily. It says students from overseas universities will be able to have short-term internships. However, it only mentions permission for those internships in Beijing's Zhongguancun tech hub. That seems to further the point about supposed favoritism of science and technology in the new system, coming at the expense of expats in other fields of expertise. 

Photo: telegraph.co.uk