After reading tons of articles, you feel you understand something, but at the same time, no concrete information was given in the article, finally, you still have no idea what to do.
Different than the other websites, as an agency who has gone through hundreds of work visa cases, we are responsible for the result. We need to make sure 100% that, you read our guide, you have a full understanding, you do your efforts, and you get a good result.
The schools in China pay us 1200 USD per case for the work visa consulting service, this article also worth 1200 USD to you.
First of all, you need to make sure you satisfy the requirements for making the Z work visa as an ESL teacher in China.
Basically:
- You hold a passport from native English speaking countries, the USA, the UK, Canada, New Zealand, Ireland, Australia, South Africa
- You hold a Bachelor degree
For more details, please read this article:
https://www.wooktalent.com/post/what-are-the-requirements-for-teaching-english-in-china
Process in General
There are 3 steps for the work visa process
In short:
1. Prepare the documents for the work visa application - 3 weeks
2. School use your documents apply for the work permit for you in China - 3 weeks
3. You use the work permit to apply for the work visa in the Chinese embassy - 1 week
Here is a video explanation:
1. Prepare the documents for the work visa application - 3 weeks
For applying for the work visa as an ESL teacher in China, here is the list of documents which you need to prepare at home:
1. A profile photo see photo requirements here
2. Passport photo
3. Bachelor degree
4. Non-criminal record
5. TEFL certification (Optional)
6. Reference letter of 2 years of teaching experience(Optional)
Condition:
If your major is relative to education or language, you need to provide neither TEFL nor a Reference letter.
If you have 2 years of full-time teaching experience after graduation, you won't need to provide TEFL.
If you have TEFL certification or any other teaching certifications, you won't need to provide a reference letter.
If your major is not relative to education or language, you neither have 2 years of full-time teaching experience after graduation. Do a TEFL, it's a certification cheap and quick. For how to choose a "necessary" TEFL program, please check this article.
Once you have those original documents prepared, you need to legalize some of the documents.
This is actually the step that will take time.
The documents required to be legalized are:
- Degree
- Non-criminal record
- TEFL
Those 3 documents need 3 legalization steps:
- Notarization by the notary public
- Authentication by the foreign ministry
- Legalization by the Chinese embassy
Most of the teachers will feel confused about the legalization steps, if you feel confused too, please read the detailed explanation of the legalization process:
2. School use your documents apply for the work permit for you in China - 3 weeks
After you get your documents legalized by the Chinese embassy, you will be ready to apply for the work permit.
Send the documents in PDF to your school by email, and wait for the notification letter of the work permit.
On regarding the standard for scanning your documents, you could check this link:
ESL teachers who apply for the work permit in Beijing, you need to mail your legalization documents by DHL, FedEx or local post office to Beijing. Please check this article to know the details:
https://www.wooktalent.com/post/mailing-your-documents-to-beijing-what-you-need-to-know
After 3 or 4 weeks, you will get your notification letter of work permit, which is
- The result of all of the documents you prepare
- The only key document to apply for the work visa in the Chinese embassy
3. You use the work permit to apply for the work visa in the Chinese embassy - 1 week
After almost 2 months of preparation, now, you are in the final step - Apply for the work visa
- Filling in an application form online
- Make an appointment online
- Go to the Chinese embassy for the work visa application
- Pick up the passport in person or by mailing
For filling the application form:
UK, Canada, Australia citizen, please click this link:
American citizen, please click this link:
Get the Work visa and fly to China
After you get the work visa, don't hesitate to send a photo of your work visa to your school.
While taking the flight to China, don't forget to bring all of the original documents with you.
For how to prepare the trip to China, please check this link:
https://www.wooktalent.com/post/how-to-prepare-for-the-trip-to-china-as-an-esl-teacher