I just love how some are able to see an opportunity to profit (h/t Soni who emailed this link to me earlier this morning).
The Yantai Longharmony Business Development company is now advertising on Alibaba that they can get you the documents you needto get the multiple entry F Visa:
Note: While I can appreciate the humor of this situation, I should remind you that there is a clear procedure for getting F visas… and it doesn’t involve the group above.
It may seem like a no brainer in answering this question, but last week I was fed a question by a good friend who had been hearing that his friends were having trouble getting his employees from an F to a Z.
In his email to me, he wrote:
that the registered capital requirement for an entity (foreign or domestic) to apply for a first time Z visa for a foreigner had been raised from RMB1m to RMB10m. Clearly this restricts even further where folk can get Zs from…
Immediately, I emailed some friends whose job it is to advocate and assist foreign firms in China at some of the highest levels in China…. After all, this could become a huge human relations headache for some….
Today I got my first response:
Here’s the rules to my understanding:
For WFOEs with less than USD 3 million in registered capital, only the GM/CEO (top guy) can have a Z visa (residence permit). Other foreigners can have F visas but not Z visas.
For WFOEs above the USD 3 million line, all foreign employees can have Z visas (residence permits).
Now, under the old system I have never heard of anyone having issues… but under these time of strict enforcement it could prevent some smaller WFOEs (and perhaps some larger WFOE in the services industry) from registering their employees on a Z visa.
Anyone with any experience on this, or with a story, please share.
For anyone who thought consutructing a JV in China was difficult, here is a story for you.
With the NPC now half complete, the curtain was brought up and 5 new super ministries have been unveiled:
and according to this AFP article:
Under the new system, China’s cabinet, or State Council, will have 27 ministries and commissions, one less than before. No time line was given for when the reformed cabinet would come into effect.
With that in mind, I would like to prepare every reader who is invested in, or looking to invest in, that what we are going to witness is pure gridlock as these groups come together. When we met last month to discuss the draft Energy Law, we looked at the structure of it, and there were 13 ministries/ 2 committees involved.. and even if it were pass tomorrow, it would still take years for the organization to come together. YEARS
It is still too early to really predict the level of chaos these integrations will create, and it is going to be hard to judge what the products of the integration will look like, but I have a strong suspicion that once integrated we will see a much higher level of enforcement on many fronts…. especially when it comes to the environment
One ministry I would like to pull out in a later post (once I get my hands on more information), will be with the Ministry of Transport. China’s Logistics industry is currently running at 20% GDP, double the U.S. or E.U. markets… so reducing will be a priority as planning of networks can be centralized…. theoretically.
With that, the only value I can really add is just for everyone to push their projects through as soon as possible. If your project is caught up in the middle of the integration, it will create issues…. people will move, standards/ regulations may conflict, etc.
In what appears to be a first, and perhaps an insider view into the discussions surrounding the Draft Energy Law, the State Council Information Office published a White Paper on Energy on their website.
Broken into 8 parts, the white paper provided some interesting insights into the current situation of china’s Energy industry in terms of how it is provided, how it is distributed, and how it is consumed. The writers (and researchers) were obviously very conscious of the fact that China’s energy policy and practices in their current form are not ideal:
For regular readers, you will know that for the last 6 months or so, I have been posting regular news briefs of Chengdu’s investment. The group that provides this information, the Chengdu Investment Promotion Commission, has done a lot in the last 9 months to improve their communications with a new website, their newsletter, and have been reaching out to various groups to help promote their capabilities.
Recently while speaking to a member of their team, I asked them if they would be open to answering some questions for the All Roads readers, and they agreed. while I was leveraging my time, I put together some basic questions for them that I thought that readers would like answers to, and here they are:
Perhaps one of the most important laws that will go into place this year, I highly suggest that anyone in Beijing next Thursday go to this EU Chamber event (h/t Renminbi)
17th January, 8:30 am
China World Hotel
Members: 200 RMB
Non-members: 400 RMB
The new Energy Law is still in the drafting process and has been posted for public comments. The enforcement of the new Energy Law is scheduled to become effective as early as April, 2008. The draft rules provide detailed information, definitions and interpretations on how to develop new types of energy sources, energy utilization and management.
By now, everyone reading this post knows my love for Youtube. In the last 12 months, tons of new high quality China specific content has been posted, and I find it to be really useful when I want to see what is going on at large conferences and events.
Well… if the analysts are right, everyone in China may have the Youtube plug pulled on Jan 31, and unlike the outage before, it may not come back until Youtube signs on with a state owned media group.
The full details (with analysis) can be found at the NY Times and Redherring, but here are a few highlights of the regulation:
As many of you know, China recently experienced a 7.8 earthquake in the Sichuan province (China Daily's Dedicated Site)
If you or your firm are interested in donating goods or money, we suggest you visit the website of China's Red Cross, China Charity Foundation, Poverty Alleviation Foundation, China Children Teenager Fund and Youth Development Foundation. The Red Cross will have the most immediate need, but the others will be more active on a long term basis
UPDATE: Care for Children has just posted a list of their needs
UPDATE 2: Donate to the Red Cross Sichuan earthquake effort. Just send an SMS with “1” or “2” to 1069999301. 1 or 2 RMB will be charged to your account.
UPDATE 3: CCTF (China Children and Teenage Fund) in Need of Support
UPDATE 4: Orphanage Assistance in Affected Areas of Sichuan
UPDATE 5: ANZ Bank Sets Up Account to Benefit Sichuan Relief Fund
UPDATE 6: Mercy Corps Is Now Taking Donations
UPDATE 7: China Foundation for Children and Adolescents: Variety Show and Fundraising
UPDATE 8: China Earthquake Donation Guide: 24+ Ways to Help
I will continue to update this as local NGOs send me their needs.
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