How do you get a foreigner's work permit in China in 2026?

While you are still abroad, the employer submits the Notification Letter for Foreigner's Work Permit through the Service System for Foreigners Working in China (often referenced via local SAFEA or science-and-technology service windows). You supply authenticated degree or qualification documents, a no-criminal-record certificate, a recent health exam when required, passport bio data, photos, and the employment or dispatch contract: Foreigner medical exam. Apostille or Chinese embassy authentication rules apply for many public documents from Convention countries.

With the approved Notification Letter, you apply for a Z visa at a Chinese embassy or consulate. Without that letter, the Z visa path does not open. Beijing municipal English guidance still points employers to the online foreigner's work permit form and local service centres; Shanghai and Shenzhen desks follow the same national system with city-specific appointment habits.

If you will work in China for no more than 90 days, the MOFCOM guide says you use the Notification Letter to get the Z visa and work only inside the time shown on that visa. If you will work for more than 90 days, you still enter on the Z visa, then apply to the administration department of foreigners working in China where the employer is located for the Foreigner's Work Permit within 30 days of entry. Work only inside the validity of that permit.

Shenzhen publishes a shorter collection clock. Its English work-permit page, updated 14 January 2026, says applicants should apply to collect the permit within 15 days of entry, and that the employer should collect it within 10 days after approval. The national MOFCOM and National Immigration Administration guide still states the 30-day application window. If your city page is shorter, follow that desk: Living in Shenzhen.

Extend the work permit about 30 days before it expires. If your name, passport number or position changes, file a change within 10 working days. After the work permit is in place, convert the stay into a work-type residence permit at PSB Exit-Entry Administration (see Apply residence permit). Address registration within 24 hours remains a separate mandatory step.

Document lists in the 2024 guide include the application form, work-qualification proofs, highest degree materials, no-criminal-record certificate, health exam, job contract or dispatch letter, passport, recent photo, and family materials when dependants accompany you. Employers file online; you attend medical and biometrics steps when the city requires them.