Many of us have heard or read anecdotes recently regarding new Chinese visa policies and the increased stringency of visa policy enforcement. As the specifics of each case vary greatly, we are asking our members to relate their recent personal experiences with the China business visa process in order to gauge the impact of these recent changes on them and their business operations.

AmCham members, please watch your e-mail box for a link to the visa survey.

If you are a current member and didn’t get a copy, please e-mail Bill.Hart@amcham-china.org.cn to get the link.

The chamber will be compiling the results of this survey in the coming days.

The United States Olympic Committee has filed a lawsuit against two ticket sellers for duping would-be ticket buyers. The story, reported by New York Times, calls out http://beijing-2008tickets.com/ and http://www.beijingticketing.com/ for illegally using Olympic trademarks and failing to provide tickets to people who had paid for them.

The suit calls for the sites’ domain names to be impounded and http://beijing-2008tickets.com/ appears to be offline.

AP report quotes an official with the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Commerce saying that the office is not accepting business visa applications related to general matters, such as attending conferences, visiting factories and business negotiations. The good news is there is an end in sight; the restrictions are expected to be lifted on September 20. Read the full story. 

From the Beijing 2008 Olympic website:

Beijing 2008 Olympic ticket general public sales Phase 4 will be launched on 25 July 2008, and there will be 820,000 tickets on sale. After the sale is launched, general public can only purchase the tickets at the venue box offices within the business hours.

Check the Olympic site for details.  

The Department of Commerce recently released two clean energy technology export guides to help US businesses navigate the Chinese and Indian energy markets. The DOC states that these guides provide information on current political and market conditions as well as future opportunities in these two growing economies. They also offer detailed information on Chinese and Indian national and local clean energy promoters and regulators.

The guides were issued as the DOC prepares to lead a clean energy and environmental products trade mission to China and India during the first two weeks of September. 

AmCham-China members can download the detailed document, courtesy of member company Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg.

The official rules are just in from China Daily and Xinhua: 

Spectators will not be allowed to take banners, musical instruments and soft drink containers into Olympic venues, according to a set of rules released Monday.

The Olympic venue rules, promulgated by BOCOG, 25 days ahead of the Games, advise spectators not to bring into the venues support banners or leaflets of commercial publicity, religion, politics, military, human rights or environmental and animal protection.

Huang Keying, a BOCOG official, said the rules, including 22 restrictions and four prohibitions, are completely in line with the Olympic Charter.

Each spectator is subject to the rules aimed at maintaining security and order of the venue,” he said.

Li Yong, a BOCOG volunteer, told the Xinhua News Agency people with banners will be stopped at the entrance security check.

Earlier last month, 800,000 Chinese volunteers began practicing routines to cheer on athletes - both Chinese and foreign - at the Games.

They were trained to do a four-step cheer in uniform sportswear, with easy-to-learn slogans.

These volunteers are required to stand up when national anthems are played and to remove trash at the end of an event.

The rules also ban taking photos with a flash, drunkenness, nudity and gambling, as well as whistles, long umbrellas, cigarette lighters, cameras and radios at venues.

Animals, except guide dogs, are not allowed in the venues.

Zhang Zhenliang, director of the Games’ inquiry center, said spectator rules were always one of the most difficult parts of the Games preparation as they must ensure an orderly, happy and harmonious environment.
The rule books have been delivered to spectators along with tickets. Overseas spectators can check the rules online or dial “12308″.
Zhang said the inquiry center is open daily from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM.

Many overseas spectators have inquired about whether they can bring babies into the opening or closing ceremony venue.” It is not advised.

Li Bingshuang, a office worker, has tickets for the beach volleyball and rhythmic gymnastics events. She carefully read the rules book attached to the tickets.

“I know little about rules, but I’m sure I should clap after athletes completed their routines,” she said. Zhang said the restrictions and prohibitions were roughly the same as those of the Athens and Sydney Games. The “spectator version” of the rules book features a simple and vivid language. Huang said the Beijing Olympic venue rules are different from those of the previous Games as the national situation and local habits are different.

Beijing people like to use a parasol to block out the sunshine. But we have to remind people not to open umbrellas in the seating areas so as not to block others’ view,” she said, adding collapsible umbrellas were acceptable for being taken into venues.

Posted by Adam Steinberg, AmCham Olympic Forum co-chair.

This report comes from a friend of the chamber.  

On the round trip return from Tianjin this morning, a colleague and I were stopped at a routine police checkpoint getting back on the old Tianjin highway to return to Beijing. The police asked for passports, which we have never carried internally in China unless flying.

A US driver’s license and my complex’s residence were card not sufficient. Even though they could see us in their computer system (including passports, photos and residence permits), they required actual faxes of the passports and residence permits before they would let us pass. Luckily someone was at home and was able to fax my colleague her the passport/residence permit quickly. They finally let us go without requiring my secretary to go to the office to fax mine. Lesson for everyone is it is best for westerners to keep our passports/residence permits on our persons at all times, at least through September.

There are many more stories like this being told this summer in the capital city. Got one to share?

I hope this resourceful group can help me.  If you have tickets for sale to Olympic swimming events, we would be grateful for an opportunity to buy them.  

Please mail me at judykarp@amcham-china.org.cn with any leads you may have.

One of our member companies sent the following advisory to its foreign employees in China.  AmCham has not independently verified the information, but we wanted to make it available for general information.

 Please be advised that due to the impending Olympic Games the The Ministry of Public Security in China (PSB) has advised that the existing regulations for the completion of the Registration Form of Temporary Residence in China must be strictly adhered.  The steps required to complete the process will vary from city to city and will also vary depending on type of accommodation utilized.  Whilst the maximum penalty imposed for failing to register is currently RMB 5,000, an official may elect to impose a higher penalty if there are subsequent instances of non compliance.
Effective immediately and until further notice, all foreigners residing in private housing must register at the nearest Police station within 24 hours after arrival back to China every time they have been traveling outside China.  If the registration is not undertaken, both the management company/landlord and foreigner can be fined RMB 5,000.

It is important to note that this rule applies to any foreign person living in any apartment or private dwelling - even if it is for just for one night. And we understand the Ba Li Zhuang, Pan Jia Yuan and San Yuan Li PSB are the 3 local PSB in Beijing that are extremely strict in implementation of this rule. We would like to advise that should your resident falls under the coverage of this 3 PSB, you must ensure you are 100% in compliance. If staying overnight or visiting friends in China, registration must be carried out upon arrival with the local PSB office responsible for the area within 24 hours of arrival.

You will need to supply your passport and evidence of visa when presenting at the PSB office.  In most locations registration can be undertaken at the local Police Station.  For questions on what documents to submit &/or bring to your local police station, please inquire with your housing agent or landlord, as this can vary by district.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What documents are required for presentation or is it only passport and visa?
A:  The following documents should be taken when registering:

Original passport plus a copy of the passport ID page
One passport-style photo (not always requested)
Lease Agreement (original can be requested)
Landlord National ID Card and contact details
Ownership certificate and tax payment receipts (not always requested)

Q: Will all PBS offices or police stations have someone who speaks English?
A:  No.  In most cases there will not be an officer who is able to communicate in English.

Q: Does the employee have to register in person or can it be done by spouse/partner, agent, driver?
A personal appearance is not usually required by either the PSB or local Police Station.

Q: If in person, is it every visa holder including children under 18 years?
In cases where personal appearance is required, only one adult needs to attend (i.e. either the assignee or spouse / partner).

Q:  Do I need to register if I am staying in a hotel or serviced apartment?
A:  Guests must be registered upon arrival with the PSB by the hotel and if separate, the serviced apartment management company.  Usually this procedure is automatic with input from the hotel being directly fed into the local PSB computer at the check-in procedure, with no additional action being required from the guest. However, daily checks are now in operation and the PSB physically visits hotels to request copies of the hotels’ in-house guest lists to make sure they match the PSB’s own records. If they do not, the hotel / serviced apartment will be fined RMB5,000 per missing entry. Hotel guests under these circumstances would not be fined. However it does mean that foreigners wishing to stay at a hotel in China must provide full passport and visa credentials in order to check in.  

Has your employeer issued anything similiar? Will you be or are you personally in compliance with these regulations?

He’s still “lovin’ it” in translation, and is simple and direct with the party too, according to Gregory Gilligan, McDonald’s government man in China, in this bizCult Powwow podcast. Produced with bizCult.com at this AmCham-China Young Professionals Brown Bag Lunch.