Before you accept a China job offer: your signed contract is not your work permit

Your contract is not your permission to work

Accepting the offer and signing the contract is only the employment side. Under the Exit and Entry Administration Law, a foreigner working in China must obtain a work permit and a work-type residence permit, and an employer may not hire someone who has not obtained them (National Immigration Administration). The contract creates the employment relationship; it does not, by itself, grant the right to work.

So before you say yes, the question is not only "what does the contract say," but "what permits does this offer depend on, and who secures them."

What the contract should show — and what it cannot do

In Beijing's route for overseas applicants in designated non-credit-based Class B foreign professional talent cases, the submitted Chinese contract typically shows workplace, duties, remuneration, term and position, and is signed by the applicant and stamped by the employer (Beijing Municipal Government English Portal).

Two cautions from the evidence:

• That contract-content description is tied to a specific Beijing application route. It is not evidence that every applicant nationwide must hand in a signed Chinese contract before leaving their home country.
• A contract, even a fully signed one, is not the administrative license. Treat it as the commercial basis for a permit application, not as the permit itself.

The permit sequence, step by step

The documents form a chain, and the order matters:

1. Work permit notification. The 2024 national notice states a foreign national uses the Notification Letter of Foreigner's Work Permit to apply for a Z visa (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security / Beijing Municipal Government).
2. Z visa and entry. You enter on the Z visa.
3. Residence permit after entry. The law requires those whose visa notes a residence permit to apply for it within 30 days of entry (National Immigration Administration).
4. Work within validity. The business expatriate guide notes that those planning to work more than 90 days obtain a Z visa on the strength of the work permit notification, then apply for a work-type residence permit after entry and work within the permit's validity (State Council English Portal).

A practical suggestion, separate from the rule: for the over-90-day route, align your start date with the required work permission and residence arrangements, rather than relying on the contract's signature date alone.

What changed in 2024: permit and social-security card integration

From 1 December 2024, the national notice removes the old step of obtaining a physical Foreigner's Work Permit card after entry. After entering on a Z visa, you may use the work permit notification, or the electronic social security card loaded with the permit information, to handle the relevant residence permit at the exit-entry department of the public security authority at the work location (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security / Beijing Municipal Government).

This means older guidance telling applicants to get a physical work permit card after arriving is no longer the current basis.

Where local rules differ: the Beijing example

Beijing's English portal covers a narrower case — overseas applications for non-credit-based Class B foreign professional talents. In that route the employer can apply for the work permit notification before the person enters. The page also lists cases where a qualifying employer that cannot yet provide the contract before entry may first submit an employment proof and supplement the contract later (Beijing Municipal Government English Portal).

Read this as a local variation, not a national default. If your offer is outside Beijing, or outside that talent category, the document your employer must prepare first can differ — confirm with the local competent authority.

The 90-day line and your real start date

The business expatriate guide separates planned work of 90 days or less from work exceeding 90 days, with the longer stay requiring the Z-visa and residence-permit path described above (State Council English Portal).

On start dates, the evidence does not give a single universal "first day you may work." The safest practical step is to confirm with the competent authorities which permissions must be effective before you start work in your particular duration category. Because the exact sequencing, document list and effective dates vary by location and individual case, the competent authority to confirm with is the exit-entry department of the public security authority at your intended work location and the local human-resources authority that issues the work permit notification.

What the evidence does not settle

This article is built only on the four sources supplied. The evidence does not establish:

• the complete document checklist for every city or employer type;
• processing times, fees or exact eligibility thresholds for any permit category;
• whether your specific role falls under a given talent class or permit route.

For those points, ask the local public security exit-entry department and the local human-resources and social-security authority before you rely on the offer. This is not a legal, tax or immigration determination for your individual case.

Sources and verification

• National Immigration Administration — Exit and Entry Administration Law of the PRC (web dated 2019-06-21; law in force since 1 July 2013): link. Verified: Article 41 (work permit and work-type residence permit required; employer may not hire without them); Article 30 (residence permit application within 30 days of entry where required).
• Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security / Beijing Municipal Government — Notice on Integrating the Foreigner's Work Permit with the Social Security Card (人社部发〔2024〕75号, published 27 October 2024, effective 1 December 2024): link. Verified: Z visa via work permit notification; no physical work permit card after entry from December 2024; residence permit handled with notification or electronic social security card.
• Beijing Municipal Government English Portal — Notification Letter of Foreigner's Work Permit: Applications for Foreign Professional Talents (Non-Credit-Based) Outside of China (page date not stated; read 28 September 2026): link. Verified: overseas, non-credit Class B route; contract content and the employment-proof-then-contract exception.
• State Council English Portal — A Guide to Working and Living in China as Business Expatriates (2025 Edition): link. Verified: 90-day threshold; over-90-day route via work permit notification, Z visa, residence permit, work within validity.

All claims above were checked against these sources; no figure, date or requirement was added beyond what they state.