From my experience in CC you can get an L changed to an F, If you have the right connections.

You need to have the support of someone with guanxi at the PSB, you can’t do this by yourself. At Jida many of the FTs had L 3-month tourist visas, and the uni changed them into F visas for the duration of the contract.

Also you can buy an F visa in CC if you know the right people, costs around 2000 yuan for 6 months, which is really, really expensive. Might as well take a trip to HK for that much…

Hello all,
I was just wondering if it is possible to change an L visa into an F or a Z visa in country…I am rather short on funds and would like to be able to change my visa type over without having to make a trip to Hong Kong. I was hoping that with the proper support of an authorized company I would be able to do this. Does anyone know about the new regulations?

Is it true they can call and cancel my Z visa and every day I am without one I will be fined??

AS far as I know, in Changchun know they can’t just cancel it like that.
I was on my old employers (Star education) Z visa for 6 months after I quit.

But they can report you to the SAEFA and that would mean it mya be very hard to get a work permit – the foreign experts book – meaning you’d have to go to another province to work, if you wished to stay in China.

However If you employer has your passport and foreign experts book then I would be worried, as I’m told it’s possible to chnage your visa without you actually being there..

You cannot not have a visa, even in the unlikely event that your Z visa is ‘cancelled’ you;ll be put onto something else, and you’re have a new visa in your passport – most likely a 7 day exit visa.

If you pland on satying in town then you will have big problems getting the correct working documentation again without the release letter – unless you know somebody that is.

You shouldn’t have a problem extending your Z into a tourist visa providing you can show you have the money to support yourself as requested by the government – i.e. 800yuan a day. And the correct paperwork showing you are staying at pace accredited for foreigners – your apartment isn’t good enough as you’re suppossed to be a tourist staying in hotels in their eyes!

“Hey, I was hoping to get some advice on my situation. I am planning on leaving the school I teach at before my contract it up. Is it true they can call and cancel my Z visa and every day I am without one I will be fined??
I do not have a bank account here in China, so I have no bank statement and not enough funds from home to prove the 800 yuan per day. I have an apartment that is paid for the next 3 months, and just enough to live on the cheap and survive until I figure something out.

Will it be difficult getting a travel visa once my Z visa is cancelled??

Any advice as soon as possible would be so very appreciated!! Thank you!”

I extended my resident permit in Changchun and paid 400 RMB for a two-month extension. If you have a resident permit and Foreign Expert Certificate and none are expired, you can just ask your employer to extend it without switching. Of course, if you plan on leaving China for good, then yes, a tourist visa is a much cheaper option.

Yes they do, anything is ok as long as it shows funds!

I brought this up at work today and lo and behold, yes, all I need is a bank statement. I don’t have as much in my Bank of China account as I do at home…do you know if they’ll accept a foreign bank statement as well as a local one?

The tax recipts thing is bogus, never had to do this for an L visa.

All I’ve ever needed is:

-passport +photocopies visa/photo page
-Bank statement – evidence of funds (800 yuan per day)
-Stamped temporary residence form

That’s it.

Interesting post. I’m getting close to the end of my teaching contract (and visa) here in Changchun and want to get a tourist visa so I can travel China for a month-and-a-half or so. My school’s office manager has told me that I would have to show tax receipts to the PSB to get an L visa which. Have you ever had to do that?
I may simply take a Chinese friend and do it all myself if it’s not that much of a hassle.