EMPLOYMENT - Living Abroad in Beijing - page 247

the level of your China salary will be inconsequential to your visa. Nobody cares how
little you get paid here, as long as it's above the minimum wage. Doctorate holders may
find that their entry into China can be expedited by the government's recent drive to at-
tract top-level experts, the Recruitment Program of Global Experts 1,000 Talent Plan ( ht-
tp://1000plan.safea.gov.cn ) . Those who qualify will receive a lump-sum subsidy of RMB1
million granted by the Central Budget; a research subsidy of RMB3-5 million and a salary,
as well as other attractive benefits for you and your family.
Trying to get a job in Beijing from your home country can be next to impossible.
Chinese people put greater emphasis on personal relationships than emails and CVs, so if
they haven't met you face to face, your well-worded applications will no doubt quickly be
clicked into the trash.
If you are determined to come to Beijing to work, failing to secure an employer before
you leave home can put you into a spot of difficulty—without confirmed employment, you
won't be able to get a Z visa. A common technique for overcoming this obstacle is to arrive
on a tourist visa (L), scout the job market once you have landed, and then have your visa
changed over once a company wants you. But beware; the days of the perpetually lingering
tourist are over. It was once the case that a border run every few months made it possible
for people on L visas to live and illegally work in China for seemingly infinite amounts of
time, but the government has now stamped a heavy boot on this behavior. So unless you
want to be heavily penalized, it's best to secure yourself a legitimate working arrangement
as soon as possible. Visa law reform has also meant that you will probably need to leave
the country to convert your L visa to a Z visa when you do get a job offer. Many companies
will be willing to cover the cost of the actual visa; transport, however, most likely will be
up to you.
WHAT EMPLOYERS WANT
Employer standards in Beijing are high and getting higher. Not only is the capital city a
magnet for educated workers from all over the world, it's also the city to be in for millions
of aspirational nationals. What's more, these nationals are not only willing to work longer
hours for less money than their foreign counterparts, many of them are also h ǎ igu ī , eth-
nically Chinese people who have studied abroad and now return home to make their for-
tunes. H ǎ igu ī are particularly attractive to local employers—they're well qualified, viewed
as more likely to stick around, are bicultural, and have the distinct advantage of speaking
the mother tongue. At the top of the applicant ladder is the bilingual executive who has ex-
tensive experience working in multinational corporations.