Z Class China Visas experiences through Chinese embassy in Ireland

eugenius101 · 27-03-2014 2:56pm

Hi,

I am going to have to apply for my Z Visa in Dublin in June and I believe I'm going through the same hssle you guys went through. Maybe you can provide me with some info?

My company will be sending me the documents from China. What I don't know is a number of things. 1) Which blood samples I need to get done to complete the physical exam? 2) Which documents I need to get legalised here (if any) I'm not sure if I will have to get the Physical Exam form legalised either. 3) Does anyone know a hospital where I can get the report filled out in a short time frame - some are saying that it'll take well over a week for results. 4) Do i have to take chest x ray and blood results with me to the embassy or will the physical exam form suffice?

Cheers

Eug

R.D. aka MR.D · 28-03-2014 10:26am

You don't need a health check for the Embassy here in Dublin. That information is outdated.

You just need the documents that your school send you.

I got my Z visa in December.

dawnbuckley · 22-05-2014 6:02am

Really? I am wondering about this - I got a z visa in 2012 and I needed a health check. I also went and paid a fortune for a chest x ray. In the end they took my results but didn't take the xray! I'm considering going back there in August 2014 for another job so need z visa again. Are you saying that now we don't need any health check? Please confirm! That would be great.

stannis · 22-05-2014 6:33am

I know this thread is a few years old but there are surely still people who plan to work in China, so...

I did it in 2011, have been living in China since then. The visa section of the embassy closes quite early, no later than 1pm if I recall, or maybe earlier, so you'll need to get there nice and early. If you live in Dublin then good for you, but I'm from Cork - had to go up (or down) to the capital the night before and stay in a hostel, then up in the morning to walk out there (taxis are a lot cheaper when you get into China, thankfully!). As for their service, it's typical communist China, i.e. brusque. Don't expect warm smiles.

dawnbuckley · 22-05-2014 7:10am

Thanks Stannis, how about the medical? Did you need it at the embassy? And chest xray?

R.D. aka MR.D · 22-05-2014 7:21am

Things change and my experience was from Dec 2013 so it might not be accurate now but I definitely didn't need one at that time.

If you live in Dublin then why don't you pop into the visa office and check. The 2 times I was there, there was a really nice guy helping people to see if they had everything in order. I'm sure they wouldn't mind you popping in to ask.

eugenius101 · 14-07-2014 4:41pm

I can confirm that despite my school telling me numerous times that I needed health check to get the Z visa done in Dublin that this is untrue. I got my visa last week and they never asked for the health form. Gutted as I had spent €225 getting it done in Dublin. Wish I had of listened to previous poster. Hope this info saves somebody the hassle and expense.

panalava · 14-07-2014 6:04pm

I'm going to pick up my Z-Visa in Dublin tomorrow. Just a couple of points for people looking to apply in future.

When I applied to the school in China, I had to supply numerous documents to them (College Degrees & Transcripts, Garda Checks (Request at a local Garda station - Note: This is not the same thing as Garda vetting. It's basically a form to say you haven't been convicted of any crimes), work references, passport pictures etc. The school/employer needs these and the medical form to apply for a work permit (I have a feeling a some people are confusing the work permit with the visa). The medical included going to the GP for an ECG and blood tests and he referred me for a chest X-ray (Cost roughly €100 for all if I remember). The blood results took about two weeks to arrive (1 week for the X-ray) and then I sent copies via email to the employer.

It took much longer than expected for the work permit/letter of invitation to arrive. I was offer the job in the middle of February and received the work permit in the beginning of July (I was planning to travel in April!).

To apply for the Z-visa at the embassy I just had to hand in my passport and fill out the application form (on the embassy website), supply copies of my work permit/invitation letter and I brought my licence for proof of address just in case. (A single entry visa is €40 - to be paid by postal order when collecting the visa.) If you're planning to come home through your stay, you will need a multiple entry visa which costs more and may depend on the work permit as well).

So to surmise, getting the Z-visa seems quite straight-forward and a short process. The main headache is getting the work permit/letter of invitation as it takes a long time! As mentioned above, there is a helpful aid in the embassy to help you fill in forms but the embassy's visa section is only open from 9am -12 Mon to Thurs when I last checked so it's better to be there early!

dawnbuckley · 14-07-2014 6:07pm

Yep, You definitely don't need the med for the z visa application in Dublin. However, I asked my school and you do need a medical for the work permit. My school are starting the process before I get to China, so this is why I need to get the medical done here. The last time I was in China, I had it done there. I worked for about a month before I received the work permit, so I was working illegally (I know, so what) The school I'm going to want things done properly - yawn. They say they will reimburse me for the med but I have to get it done before they apply for the invitation letter. Things could vary in different provinces I suppose - I'm going to Jiangsu.

panalava · 14-07-2014 6:23pm

I think it depends on the school as opposed to the province. I'm going to Shandong province but the school are a pretty big company with schools in the majority of the different provinces.

coxcarola · 03-04-2015 12:15pm

Hi guys,

My girlfriend and I were offered jobs to teach English at a school in Guangzhou in January. Our invitation letters/working permits were supposed to arrive a month ago, they arrived today belatedly. We will be going to the embassy in Dublin next week. We will be coming up from Cork. We are going to stay overnight in the capital and avail of the rush service. We will be applying for multiple entry Z visa's. How much will we have to pay?

On the invitation letter it says we are invited to come to China on the 20th of April but we want to be gone within the next 10 days. We have been waiting around with 4 weeks now and are desperate to go. Basically the recruitment guy at the school made a cock up by telling us that we would be due in Guangzhou on the 8th of March. So we both handed in our notices to our employers and finished work on the 6th of March. 2 days later we got an email saying the process would be delayed by a month. Thankfully we had not booked flights. Do you think we will be able to travel to China before the 20th of April? Has anyone had this experience whereby your intended departure date is before the date outlined on the invitation letter? or is it the case that once your passport is stamped you are clear to travel to China?

Looking forward to hearing some replies,

pauldla · 07-04-2015 2:50am

coxcarola wrote: »

Hi guys,

My girlfriend and I were offered jobs to teach English at a school in Guangzhou in January. Our invitation letters/working permits were supposed to arrive a month ago, they arrived today belatedly. We will be going to the embassy in Dublin next week. We will be coming up from Cork. We are going to stay overnight in the capital and avail of the rush service. We will be applying for multiple entry Z visa's. How much will we have to pay?

On the invitation letter it says we are invited to come to China on the 20th of April but we want to be gone within the next 10 days. We have been waiting around with 4 weeks now and are desperate to go. Basically the recruitment guy at the school made a cock up by telling us that we would be due in Guangzhou on the 8th of March. So we both handed in our notices to our employers and finished work on the 6th of March. 2 days later we got an email saying the process would be delayed by a month. Thankfully we had not booked flights. Do you think we will be able to travel to China before the 20th of April? Has anyone had this experience whereby your intended departure date is before the date outlined on the invitation letter? or is it the case that once your passport is stamped you are clear to travel to China?

Looking forward to hearing some replies,

Just to be clear; you were due to be there in March, now it looks like you won't be there until later this month at the earliest; and the academic year ends in June? Could you PM me the name of the school and I'll do a little digging for you, something seems off here...

clever user name · 25-05-2016 5:14pm

I applied for a Z visa at the embassy this week, so I just thought I'd update this for anyone heading to China soon.

Nothing has changed since 2013 (when I last got one) in regard to what you need to bring to the embassy. All I needed to hand in was passport, one passport photo, the documents your employer sends you from China and the visa application form. That's it!

I had proof of address and a couple of other things with me but she said that was all I needed, didn't even look at the rest.

Price is still the same also, 40 euro to get it in 3-4 days. Visa section is open from 9-12 Monday to Thursday.

Bring photocopies of your invitation and work permit letters, this will save you having to do it at the embassy and also save you 30 cent :pac:

goon_magee · 19-06-2016 1:36am

@ clever user name

Hey glad to hear you got all sorted.

So can i just pick your brain for a second, you didn't need to get a health check done om this end to actually apply for the z visa? I'm starting the application process with my girlfriend and we were hoping we wouldn't have to pay for xrays and all on this end as it's money we just don't have to spare at the min. However we were slightly concerned as it says on the embassy website that anybody going to work for over 180 days in China must supply them with the health check form from their site?

I know the medical won't be too costly, but with booking flights and saving start up costs for ovwr there it would be great to avoid the cost of doing a medical on this end!

clever user name · 22-07-2016 3:13am

goon_magee wrote: »

@ clever user name

Hey glad to hear you got all sorted.

So can i just pick your brain for a second, you didn't need to get a health check done om this end to actually apply for the z visa? I'm starting the application process with my girlfriend and we were hoping we wouldn't have to pay for xrays and all on this end as it's money we just don't have to spare at the min. However we were slightly concerned as it says on the embassy website that anybody going to work for over 180 days in China must supply them with the health check form from their site?

I know the medical won't be too costly, but with booking flights and saving start up costs for over there it would be great to avoid the cost of doing a medical on this end!

Sorry, haven't been on boards in a while. Probably too late now.

The Chinese embassy in Dublin does not require a medical or medical form for the Z-visa. That was the case the last 2 times I was there.

That is not to say that you don't need to get a medical check in Ireland. It depends on the province in China you are going to. Some require you do the medical check in your home country and then send the results to your prospective employers. This is so they can get your invitation letters and work permit.

For other provinces (Liaoning, where I am) you can do it in China.

A lot of provinces are now requiring degree notarization. So keep these things in mind if you are thinking of teaching in China.

I work in recruitment in China, so if anyone has any visa questions feel free to ask.

hkelleher · 03-08-2016 9:59am

I am moving to Shanghai at the end of the month and will be applying for the X Visa, most likely for over 180 days. I believe I don't need to have the medical/health form completed for applying, but I will need it when registering in my Chinese Uni. Do you know if it would be easier to get it done here or in Shanghai? I'm assuming it would be cheaper to do it in China, but might be just as handy to get it done here?

If anyone has completed the health check in Dublin, where is best to go for ECG and X Ray scans?

clever user name · 05-08-2016 8:19am

hkelleher wrote: »

I am moving to Shanghai at the end of the month and will be applying for the X Visa, most likely for over 180 days. I believe I don't need to have the medical/health form completed for applying, but I will need it when registering in my Chinese Uni. Do you know if it would be easier to get it done here or in Shanghai? I'm assuming it would be cheaper to do it in China, but might be just as handy to get it done here?

If anyone has completed the health check in Dublin, where is best to go for ECG and X Ray scans?

If you can, get it done in China. Costs about 500 rmb, maybe slightly more or slightly less depending on the city. You just go to a specific hospital and get given a form. You then go from room to room getting the different tests done. Takes about an hour and a half, depending on how many people are there.

In Ireland, god knows how much. I know to get the entire thing done in the Mater hospital is something like 400 euro. Could be cheaper elsewhere, but not by a whole lot I'd imagine.

hkelleher · 05-08-2016 9:46am

clever user name wrote: »

If you can, get it done in China. Costs about 500 rmb, maybe slightly more or slightly less depending on the city. You just go to a specific hospital and get given a form. You then go from room to room getting the different tests done. Takes about an hour and a half, depending on how many people are there.

Thanks for the info! Yes I assumed getting it done in Ireland would be more expensive and a bigger hassle too! The Uni I am going to have provided details of a hospital in Shanghai to get it done in, so I think I will leave it till then.

Hopefully I can get the Visa without having it done, I think once you are staying under a year they don't require it.

Z Class China Visas experiences through Chinese embassy in Ireland

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