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The time I was turned away from China

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Re: The time I was turned away from China

#81

Post by rangibaby »

rahimnathwani wrote: post #59
griffinheart wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure, also because you're going to pay taxes into that ku (city), and they deal with pension and health insurance, even if you're not a foreigner you're going to have to register. Your residence card gets updated every time you change your address and you do have to go to the ward office for them to update it, but that's hardly "register at the police station". Edit: Most if not all the things we have to do, as forei…

"Most if not all the things we have to do, as foreigners, Japanese also have to do it." Chinese also have to register at the local police station when they move. It's not just for foreigners.

in Japan you do not have to register if you are just visiting somewhere

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#82

Post by barry-cotter »

yorwba wrote: post #21
mstaoru wrote: post #11

It is a classic example of "rule by law" which is in full effect in PRC. You're required to register within 24 hours at the "police station", no details of the said station, no opening hours or any further information is given. The process is quite slow, the queues are long, and the officials are visibly irritated every time you come and wake them up from their slumber. Then there are people flying 3-4 times per week…

> no details of the said station, no opening hours or any further information is given If you are staying in a hotel, you don't need to go to a police station. Otherwise, the person you are staying with should be able to help you find it. > The process is quite slow, the queues are long, and the officials are visibly irritated every time you come and wake them up from their slumber. Not my experience, but maybe I jus…

I have lived in China for six years and I first met a foreigner with permanent resident status/ a green card last weekend. He said around 800 people have it and whenever he crosses the border the immigration officers call colleagues over to look at the card because they’ve never seen one before. It is very, very unlikely those people have permanent residency.

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#83

Post by bobjordan »

yorwba wrote: post #21
mstaoru wrote: post #11

It is a classic example of "rule by law" which is in full effect in PRC. You're required to register within 24 hours at the "police station", no details of the said station, no opening hours or any further information is given. The process is quite slow, the queues are long, and the officials are visibly irritated every time you come and wake them up from their slumber. Then there are people flying 3-4 times per week…

> no details of the said station, no opening hours or any further information is given If you are staying in a hotel, you don't need to go to a police station. Otherwise, the person you are staying with should be able to help you find it. > The process is quite slow, the queues are long, and the officials are visibly irritated every time you come and wake them up from their slumber. Not my experience, but maybe I jus…

Even if you have a resident permit and work permit and own companies in China where you are the "legal representative" and lease your own home. If you are a foreigner, every single time you exit China and re-enter, even for one-day turnaround, you need to notify the local police station that you have left and have returned. Now, we have got this down to a We-Chat message with a picture of the entry stamp. Of course, better than the physical visit but it still must be done.

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#84

Post by hrowaway183 »

abc-xyz wrote: post #42
eddz wrote: post #24

The reporter comes off as a bit paranoid and slightly egotistical. Read up on the rules and follow them closely or risk facing consequences. If you aren't 100% sure, ask. Personally, I was held overnight in a cell in KIX (Osaka International Airport) because after 6 hours of back and forth interviews, I couldn't provide a convincing enough reason for working for a Japanese company (my own company) without the correct…

That's a terrible point of view. Who is he supposed to ask these questions that would be absolutely ridiculous to ask in any developed country? Heck, I can't think of any country in the world where staying at AirBNB would be an issue, and why shouldn't he be paranoid when they so easily could pull up info about when/where he stayed there.. Does the airport security also have a list of Chinese girls the visiting forei…

The only terrible point of view I see is yours. Claiming to be morally superior because you view the law is not to your advantage. The rules are there for a country to keep track visitors. They exist elsewhere as well.

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#85

Post by eddz »

abc-xyz wrote: post #42
eddz wrote: post #24

The reporter comes off as a bit paranoid and slightly egotistical. Read up on the rules and follow them closely or risk facing consequences. If you aren't 100% sure, ask. Personally, I was held overnight in a cell in KIX (Osaka International Airport) because after 6 hours of back and forth interviews, I couldn't provide a convincing enough reason for working for a Japanese company (my own company) without the correct…

That's a terrible point of view. Who is he supposed to ask these questions that would be absolutely ridiculous to ask in any developed country? Heck, I can't think of any country in the world where staying at AirBNB would be an issue, and why shouldn't he be paranoid when they so easily could pull up info about when/where he stayed there.. Does the airport security also have a list of Chinese girls the visiting forei…

I'm sorry, but I fail to see your point. This does not have anything to do with his sexual relationships so I am unsure of why you are making that analogy. It is completely usual to have to declare your place of residence to an immigration officer upon entry to a foreign country, wherever you are visiting. If you are suspected of wrongdoing, expect calls to be made and questions to be asked.

It is entirely the traveler's responsibility to understand the requirements for stay and local laws of a foreign country. Ignorance can only get you so far.

The immigration officer – who has absolute power over entry – neither asked anything unreasonable of him nor made any false accusations. This is despite the reporter technically having broken the law. He got off lightly, since the fine for not registering within 24 hours after arrival can be up to $300.

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#86

Post by DrJokepu »

volgo wrote: post #25
desdiv wrote: post #7

>The reason, as it was explained to me, was that in 2015 I had broken Chinese law when I failed to present myself to authorities in Beijing when I had visited and stayed at an Airbnb residence on two different trips. Unbeknownst to me at the time — and something that was not communicated by Airbnb — foreigners are required to register at a local police station, but in most cases the hotels where they stay handle this…

Ya no fan of totalitarian policy, but if you try to skirt immigration laws anywhere, it won't work out well for you. Here in the U.S., I have to notify ICE everytime I change my address.], or I would be deported. Never had the courage to test them...

You have to notify the USCIS, not ICE.

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#87

Post by dis-sys »

> The reason, as it was explained to me, was that in 2015 I had broken Chinese law when I failed to present myself to authorities in Beijing when I had visited and stayed at an Airbnb residence on two different trips. Unbeknownst to me at the time — and something that was not communicated by Airbnb

When you travel to a foreign country you choose to visit, you agree to follow the laws of the land. No one has the obligation to re-educate you about the local laws there, it is your responsibility to learn the laws before you go.

Don't like this? Do go then.

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#88

Post by dis-sys »

arnvald wrote: post #57

I use the Shanghai visa-free transit occasionally and after going through the police station registration once, I decided to stay in hotels on my next trips. The registration process took a long time: - first I had to wait around an hour in a queue, because out of 5 available policemen only one was registering visitors - the police officer didn't speak any English, and there were 2 foreigners who didn't speak Chinese…

to be perfectly clear - airbnb is illegal in China as the pure residential complex/buildings are not allowed to have any commercial activities.

should there be any airbnb in my complex, I could pick up the phone and call police, they are required to be here to handle the case in 15 minutes by law. did it two months ago, they forced the owner to shutdown the business permanently on the spot. ready to do it any time when it happens again in my complex.

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#89

Post by strayamaaate »

Getting the APEC card was life changing. If you’re an Aussie or New Zealander that visits China or anywhere else regularly in Asia, I’d highly recommend checking your elegibilty.

My arrival in China now goes something like; fill in the arrival form, queue at the special APEC immigration line for around 2 mins, show the card + passport, give a polite xiexie and enter.

https://www.border.gov.au/Busi/visas-and-migration/travel-fo...

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#90

Post by ioro »

eddz wrote: post #85
abc-xyz wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a terrible point of view. Who is he supposed to ask these questions that would be absolutely ridiculous to ask in any developed country? Heck, I can't think of any country in the world where staying at AirBNB would be an issue, and why shouldn't he be paranoid when they so easily could pull up info about when/where he stayed there.. Does the airport security also have a list of Chinese girls the visiting forei…

I'm sorry, but I fail to see your point. This does not have anything to do with his sexual relationships so I am unsure of why you are making that analogy. It is completely usual to have to declare your place of residence to an immigration officer upon entry to a foreign country, wherever you are visiting. If you are suspected of wrongdoing, expect calls to be made and questions to be asked. It is entirely the travel…

It's usual to declare where you are staying, it isn't usual to have to register with the local authorities in every place you do. I do accept it, countries have different rules and cultures. Foreigners do end up breaking such local rules when going abroad, including the Chinese. But doing so shouldn't result in being banished from the country. Imagine driving into Austria without a toll sticker and no longer being able to get a Schengen visa. Of course we don't know the full story. Hopefully this is more about the authors situation than something that will become commonplace.
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