Hainan: visa for talents - William Bao Bean

William Bao Bean

Bureaucratic rules have hampered China's access to international talents, for example, because of troublesome rules on visas for experts. But Hainan is going to do this better, says innovation expert and managing director of the Chinaccelarator in Shanghai William Bao Bean to the South China Morning Post.

The South China Morning Post:

Another key piece of the start-up puzzle is access to talent. While Hainan introduced a visa free policy in May 2018, allowing visitors from 59 countries – including the US, the UK, France, Germany, and Japan to stay for up to 30 days – a tech hub it needs more engineers, not beachgoers. 

So the red tape previously involved in getting a working visa has been streamlined for professionals. “If you’re a foreigner without a bachelor’s degree and you want to start up something in China, it’s almost impossible for you to get a working visa in big cities like Beijing, but it’s possible to get one in Hainan,” said William Bao Bean, a general partner at SOSV.

More in the South China Morning Post.

William Bao Bean is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers' request form.

Are you looking for more experts on innovations at the China Speakers Bureau? Do check out this list.  

The new visa system - talking notes for the China Weekly Hangout

China visa issues

Old China PRC visa, with entry stamp from Guangzhou. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

On September 1 China intends to launch a massive overhaul of its visa systems, at least that is the plan. Earlier July 1 was mentioned as a deadline, but obvious the Chinese ministry of foreign affairs was not able to get the logistics in place.
The China Briefing gave a decent overview of the plans, but as all things in China, the proof of the pudding is the eating. We have seen some initial uproar on visas who suddenly get a maximum of six month, or prolonged processing times when people cannot use their passports. Also, new penalties for expired visa are coming in place.
One of the purposes is stopping foreigners from working illegally in the country.
The +China Weekly Hangout is planning to collect some of the experiences with the new visa system, and discuss them in one of the later sessions.
But we need your help to collect experiences. What is different in the way you are treated? Is it easier, harder or just different to get the new visas?
You can leave your stories here, on our +China Weekly Hangout page or - if you want to stay anonymous - by email. 
When we have collected enough stories, we will set a time for our hangout and invite a few of you to share your experiences live.

China Weekly Hangout

China might become more restrictive in letting foreigners in, European countries are trying to get more Chinese in, especially the rich ones. The +China Weekly Hangout discussed the issue on February, with a focus on Cyprus, and mentioning of Spain, Portugal, Switzerland and Ireland. Business manager +Pol Panayiotides joins +Fons Tuinstra, president of the China Speakers Bureau, from Cyprus. (This was indeed a week before the Cyprus crisis hit the EU, but against all expectations, the number of Chinese applicants for a Cyprus visa only grew.)


Are foreign firms having a hard time in China? That is the question the China Weekly Hangout will address on Thursday 22 August, with as panelists China veteran-at-large Janet Carmosky, CEIBS business professor +Richard Brubaker and international lawyer +Nathan KAISER. You can read our announcement here, or register directly at our event page here.

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