Travelling to China.. for work

Delta3D

Delta3D

Delta3D

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North East, UK
Hello,

I'm going to be travelling to China in the next 2 months for a period of 2 weeks for some IT work.

As far as I'm aware I just need a Work Permit and a Z Visa?

Just wondered if there's anything particular to note that isn't commonly expressed on websites such as gov.uk travel advice?

Pucheng County is looking like the most likely region I'll be in. (It's either that or Hong Kong... maybe both...)

Thanks!
 
Megahurtz400 said:
If you're in Bejing and go to Tiananmen Square, there are undercover police walking around, so don't talk about the massacre.

Unlikely to get arrested apparently but you might be asked to stop.
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Thanks - I think unlikely to visit Beijing but can't rule it out!

I think the most likely places I'll be is Hong Kong/Shanghai for flights, then Pucheng County.
 
Delta3D said:
Thanks - I think unlikely to visit Beijing but can't rule it out!

I think the most likely places I'll be is Hong Kong/Shanghai for flights, then Pucheng County.
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I believe it's a banned subject to discuss anywhere in China, including Hong Kong.

I'm sure you wasn't planning a protest about it anyway, but something I always mention to people going just in case :cry:

Best to stay away from discussing politics, East vs West etc. etc. even if you disagree with the way they do things.
 
Megahurtz400 said:
I believe it's a banned subject to discuss anywhere in China, including Hong Kong.

I'm sure you wasn't planning a protest about it anyway, but something I always mention to people going just in case :cry:

Best to stay away from discussing politics, East vs West etc. etc. even if you disagree with the way they do things.
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Yeah I'll be sure to stay well away from any protest planning :P
 
Delta3D said:
Hello,

I'm going to be travelling to China in the next 2 months for a period of 2 weeks for some IT work.

As far as I'm aware I just need a Work Permit and a Z Visa?

Just wondered if there's anything particular to note that isn't commonly expressed on websites such as gov.uk travel advice?

Pucheng County is looking like the most likely region I'll be in. (It's either that or Hong Kong... maybe both...)

Thanks!
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Signup to both Wechat and Alipay before you go using your UK mobile number and make sure it works.

You can add your credit card then pay for stuff using it, this is essential these days. Restaurant menus are also on here, if a place needs you to scan a QR to order, make sure you use alipay as it has a reliable in built translator so you will get an English Menu. Oh and take out a few hundred RMB just in case your wechat/alipay doesnt work - it works 95%+ of the time but theres always 5% when one or the other doesnt work because of some nonsense like the merchant doesnt take international payments or some fraudulent stuff I don't know exactly.

A better recommendation would be to get a chinese data plan there as some chinese websites within wechat and alipay block foreign IP addresses which you will have if you are using roaming.

Signup for VPN - letsvpn or Astrill.

If your work doesnt give you a mobile download an esim before you go - I recommend a three hk one - its about £20 for 45GB.


China is super safe and nothing to worry about - the biggest problem you will have is the language barrier so make sure you use google translate. There is a lot of media propoganda and brainwashing + youtubers that are paid to say bad things so don't watch those at all as its mostly nonsese and completely irrelvant to the average tourist. China is actually very open to visitors for tourism and trade and has been for many years.
 
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jamoor said:
Signup to both Wechat and Alipay before you go using your UK mobile number and make sure it works.

You can add your credit card then pay for stuff using it, this is essential these days. Restaurant menus are also on here, if a place needs you to scan a QR to order, make sure you use alipay as it has a reliable in built translator so you will get an English Menu. Oh and take out a few hundred RMB just in case your wechat/alipay doesnt work - it works 95%+ of the time but theres always 5% when one or the other doesnt work because of some nonsense like the merchant doesnt take international payments or some fraudulent stuff I don't know exactly.

A better recommendation would be to get a chinese data plan there as some chinese websites within wechat and alipay block foreign IP addresses which you will have if you are using roaming.

Signup for VPN - letsvpn or Astrill.

If your work doesnt give you a mobile download an esim before you go - I recommend a three hk one - its about £20 for 45GB.


China is super safe and nothing to worry about - the biggest problem you will have is the language barrier so make sure you use google translate. There is a lot of media propoganda and brainwashing + youtubers that are paid to say bad things so don't watch those at all as its mostly nonsese and completely irrelvant to the average tourist. China is actually very open to visitors for tourism and trade and has been for many years.
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Thanks Jamoor, this is exactly the kind of info I'm after. I had no idea about the IP addressing issue.

I have already got a PrivateInternetAccess subscription which I *think* should be okay to use in China.

I have a mobile for work and a personal one, so thinking of getting a Chinese SIM for one of them and using hotspot.
 
I was in Beijing for 3 days (used transit visa exemption so couldn't stay any longer). The whole of Beijing was like Canary Wharf. Any preconceptions you have, just leave at the door tbh. I can't talk for the place you are going to, but it's exceptionally developed. People are super friendly. A lot of them has expat status from European countries (in the big multi national corps anyway).

All the cars are like ours but mostly long wheel base. It isn't your eyes/jet lag. That Toyota RAV4 is actually 2 clicks bigger than the one over here. Same with Mercedes C class etc.

Food is great, drink is great.

I found VPN super patchy and randomly every now and then WiFi would work. I am on EE and my phone didn't work AT ALL the time I was there - no idea why. That meant I couldn't receive SMS which was annoying AF as most WiFi requires SMS 2FA. Potentially take a spare PAYG....

For WeChat you need an invite from a local who has been a member for 30 days or more.

They hardly take mastercard/visa anywhere.
 
Don't get any illegal taxis. We got stuck in the rain in Beijing without signal and had almost no choice. We knew we'd pay a premium, maybe double or triple, but it was 20x the price which caused an argument at the end. It was the only time I ever felt in danger there (and the only Chinese person I met who spoke good English which tells you something), he locked the doors on us and he had me by the scruff of my t-shirt right outside a massive tourist mall at one point.

Otherwise it's an amazing place and everyone is super friendly and try really hard to help/translate despite words and even certain actions meaning absolutely nothing. We went into restaurant kitchens to point at what we wanted and even made our own drinks behind bars to many "ahhhh!s".

Can you imagine anywhere in the UK letting a tourist do that because they don't speak English?

If you're adventurous with food you'll love it, but you'll also get fed up of rice, noodles, baos and questionable meat after a while so keep a note of good Western restaurants you see or get recommended.

Otherwise echo all of the above.
 
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Megahurtz400 said:
I believe it's a banned subject to discuss anywhere in China, including Hong Kong.

I'm sure you wasn't planning a protest about it anyway, but something I always mention to people going just in case :cry:

Best to stay away from discussing politics, East vs West etc. etc. even if you disagree with the way they do things.
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Had plenty of discussions with people about politics etc in China after typically boozy (and smokey) dinners! Don't believe all the scaremongering. It's a one-party system but not a police state. Don't go causing trouble and you'll be fine.

You'll probably be amazed at how western the big cities feel, they are different and more modern though.....and major cities like Guanzhou and Shanghai are mind-bogglingly massive compared to anything in Europe.

Some local etiquette goes a long way..... Like if you pay in cash for something, present the notes to them with both hands..... passing a note to someone with one hand is very casual and rude.
 
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mid_gen said:
Had plenty of discussions with people about politics etc in China after typically boozy (and smokey) dinners! Don't believe all the scaremongering. It's a one-party system but not a police state. Don't go causing trouble and you'll be fine.

You'll probably be amazed at how western the big cities feel, they are different and more modern though.....and major cities like Guanzhou and Shanghai are mind-bogglingly massive compared to anything in Europe.

Some local etiquette goes a long way..... Like if you pay in cash for something, present the notes to them with both hands..... passing a note to someone with one hand is very casual and rude.
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For sure, wasn't intended to be scaremongering but just making aware :) As I said, as long as your not planning a protest of the CCP you'll probably be alright :cry:
 
I worked in Shanghai for 6 months a few years ago.
  • Make sure your passport is in good condition - mine had a tear on one blank page and the Chinese Embassy agency in London were adamant they would not submit my application with it. I had to sign a waiver in the end before they would process it (it came back fine!)
  • Install WeChat while you are in the UK - you will probably need an invite, if your company has a Chinese contact, like a fixer, then they will probably be able to do this for you
  • Get a VPN, I used NordVPN which was overall ok but occasionally extremely patchy - you will need it for Google Maps, Facebook, WhatsApp etc etc
  • Google Maps in China is unreliable - it's ok for streets but for shops, businesses, specific addresses etc I found it inconsistent at best. I tried using Baidu but it was unintelligible.
  • Get used to using Google Translate Camera - great for understanding menus, signs, things in shops etc. You will need to do a lot of pointing to order things.
  • I found getting a SIM impossible, I tried in shops of all the main providers, with a Chinese translator, and still couldn't get one. My Chinese "fixer" gave me his "Child SIM" from his contract and let me use his data which was very nice of him.
  • Credit cards and debit cards I had almost no joy using, I just withdrew RMB as I needed from ATMs. Again, this was not consistent - I couldn't withdraw from the Agricultural Bank of China, but I could from Bank of China - etc.
  • I had a multi entry business visa (I needed an invite letter from the Chinese branch of my company and a copy of their official seal (like a certificate thing that proves they are a legit firm))
  • It's great fun, the people as individuals were all incredibly nice, but longer term I found as a civilisation and culture it got a little tedious at times. If you're only going for a couple of weeks you likely won't experience this though.
  • China is MEGASAFE, probably the safest feeling place I have been outside Singapore
 
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Russinating said:
Don't get any illegal taxis. We got stuck in the rain in Beijing without signal and had almost no choice. We knew we'd pay a premium, maybe double or triple, but it was 20x the price which caused an argument at the end. It was the only time I ever felt in danger there (and the only Chinese person I met who spoke good English which tells you something), he locked the doors on us and he had me by the scruff of my t-shirt right outside a massive tourist mall at one point.

Otherwise it's an amazing place and everyone is super friendly and try really hard to help/translate despite words and even certain actions meaning absolutely nothing. We went into restaurant kitchens to point at what we wanted and even made our own drinks behind bars to many "ahhhh!s".

Can you imagine anywhere in the UK letting a tourist do that because they don't speak English?

If you're adventurous with food you'll love it, but you'll also get fed up of rice, noodles, baos and questionable meat after a while so keep a note of good Western restaurants you see or get recommended.

Otherwise echo all of the above.
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What year was this?
 
Lopéz said:
I worked in Shanghai for 6 months a few years ago.


  • Google Maps in China is unreliable - it's ok for streets but for shops, businesses, specific addresses etc I found it inconsistent at best. I tried using Baidu but it was unintelligible.
  • I found getting a SIM impossible, I tried in shops of all the main providers, with a Chinese translator, and still couldn't get one. My Chinese "fixer" gave me his "Child SIM" from his contract and let me use his data which was very nice of him.
  • Credit cards and debit cards I had almost no joy using, I just withdrew RMB as I needed from ATMs. Again, this was not consistent - I couldn't withdraw from the Agricultural Bank of China, but I could from Bank of China - etc.
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Just thought i would put this info for others that are reading.

Google maps in China doesnt work at all, the mapping is purposefully put slightly wrong so you will never find the way. For people that can't read any Chinese the only real alternative is apple maps and obviously you have to have an iphone. P.S If you're outside China and look at a city in China, it will be very different once you are in China.
Sim card - I amanged to get a China mobile one from the main china mobile shop, just be prepared to wait for 1 hour as its a tedious beauracratic process.
ATM - ICBC or Bank of china they are everywhere. Most of the other banks just dont work as they are domestic only.
 
Thanks all, some very good points that I didn't consider previously! Very valuable feedback, much appreciated.

I'm hoping work will sort me out with some cash prior to visiting to save me trying to withdraw with company cards etc over there.

Will get WeChat sorted this week, I'm sure one of my clients will be able to help me with that!
 
A lot of common VPNs are blocked in China now. They use packet sniffing to see if you're using a VPN and then block it.
 
jamoor said:
Just thought i would put this info for others that are reading.

Google maps in China doesnt work at all, the mapping is purposefully put slightly wrong so you will never find the way. For people that can't read any Chinese the only real alternative is apple maps and obviously you have to have an iphone. P.S If you're outside China and look at a city in China, it will be very different once you are in China.
Sim card - I amanged to get a China mobile one from the main china mobile shop, just be prepared to wait for 1 hour as its a tedious beauracratic process.
ATM - ICBC or Bank of china they are everywhere. Most of the other banks just dont work as they are domestic only.
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When I was there a few years ago the Google Maps thing was really annoying - as if someone had scrambled the data slightly, just enough to make it not useful - exactly as you mentioned.

Yep ICBC and Bank of China were the only places that worked for me.

I miss Yang's Dumplings in Shanghai :(
 
Lopéz said:
When I was there a few years ago the Google Maps thing was really annoying - as if someone had scrambled the data slightly, just enough to make it not useful - exactly as you mentioned.

Yep ICBC and Bank of China were the only places that worked for me.

I miss Yang's Dumplings in Shanghai :(
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Did you happen to try Apple Maps or are you an android user? :)
 
Skilid said:
A lot of common VPNs are blocked in China now. They use packet sniffing to see if you're using a VPN and then block it.
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Yeah, seem to get mixed reviews about PrivateInternetAccess working or not working over there. Will make sure I download a couple extra VPN's before I go as backup.
 
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