Getting a Chinese 'green card'

Editor’s Note

China is considering relaxing its "green card" policy by lowering the application and approval threshold, a move to attract more foreign talent.

Authorities are deliberating revision to regulations on permanent residence for foreigners, considering more flexible and pragmatic application standards, the Organizational Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China revealed on June 2.

Nearly 5,000 foreigners had been granted Chinese green cards by 2012, since the foreigners' permanent residence policy was launched in 2004.

In 2012, more than 148,000 Chinese obtained overseas citizenship, while just 1,202 expatriates were granted permanent residency in China, said the report by the Center for China and Globalization (CCG), an independent and non-profit think tank based in Beijing.
 

New Measures

In 2013, China added a new visa category - R - to cover those with skills urgently needed in China. China’s State Administration of Foreign Experts says it now plans to let more R visa holders gain permanent residency. 

In 2012, China issued a regulation allowing green card holders the same benefits as Chinese citizens, from employment and investment to housing, social insurance, and even education for their children.

Source: CNTV

Must-know Facts

Who can apply?

Investors:  ● Made a direct investment in China with stable operations for three successive years   and ● Invested at least $500,000 in total registered capital   and ● Have a good tax record
Professionals: ● Worked as a deputy general manager, deputy factory director or above or of associate professor, associate research fellow and other associate senior titles of professional post or above or enjoying an equal treatment   and ● Worked for at least four successive years, with a minimum period of residence in China for three cumulative years within the four years   and ● Have a good tax record
Contributors: ● Having made an “outstanding and necessary contribution” to China
Family: ● An unmarried minor under 18 born to a Chinese citizen or a foreigner with permanent residence status in China   or ● Married to a Chinese citizen or a foreigner with permanent residence status in China for at least five years, with at least five successive years of residence in China and at least nine months of residence in China each year, and having stable source of subsistence and place of residence   or ● A person above 60 years old that has no immediate relatives* abroad and seeks to remain with an “immediate relative” in China, and has stayed in China for at least five successive years with at least nine-month residence in China each year, and has stable source of subsistence and place of residence
*Immediate relatives shall include parents (spouse's parents), grandparents, children at least 18 years old and his (her) spouse, and grandchildren at least 18 years old and his (her) spouse.

How to apply:

 
Eligibility:

A foreigner under 18 years old approved to permanently reside in China must have a valid Foreigner's Permanent Residence Card for five years; those 18 years and older must have one valid for ten years.

Figures: