Filed under: Essential / Must Read, FAQ | Tags: Banking, China, Living, Money, Working
OE admin Mandy asked this question the other day:
roots mentioned in another thread that the ATM card issued by his bank in China won’t work overseas. Is this the case with all banks in China? Which of the banks are most expat friendly? What are the requirements for opening an account etc?
Which do you use and why?
My 2 answers, please excuse my language:
Chinese banking is so Fuked up that you notice even Jack is avoiding the issue.
Almost all Chinese banks are still nominally owned by Federal or Provincial governments.
The 4 largest banks in China are the ones you are most likely to see: ICBC, BOC, CCB, and ABC. Bank of China and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China been the most popular.
The most f*cked up part of it all is that money doesn’t travel, which created the current cash culture of Chinese economy. Getting money into and out of the country can be especially tedious, and stupendously time consuming.
Don’t expect ANY ATM cards or Credit Cards from Chinese banks to work outside of the country. HK, maybe, if you go to their branches. Chinese banks are heavily protected and extremely archaic (and nontransparent), despite the fact that they are listed on the NY stock exchange. RMB is a protected/controlled currency, which makes the whole thing even more cluster f*cked.
The reason you can’t use their ATM cards outside the country except maybe in HK is because (I am assuming) it’s a RMB account. Most RMB – foreign currency trades/exchanges are still strictly monitored.
Do what most of us do, get one Chinese bank account, and one foreign bank account from home. I lucked out because HSBC is heavily presented in Canada, HK, and slowly, China. A lot of expats rely on grey market money exchanges and Western Union to send money home.
As for the Chinese banks themselves, ICBC is the most popular, “common folk” bank, and BoC is probably ranked second in terms of presence and accessibility. All you need is RMB cash, a passport, an address, and someone to fill out the form for you to open an account. CCB and ABC are more specialized, and probably wouldn’t be as convenient.
All in all, a pea soup of cluster f*cking skull bashing lunatic doggery that is still pretending it’s the 80s.
I had to correct myself a bit upon farther research (btw, I am in no way endorsing CMB to anybody):
Anyway…, I got bored, so I looked into CMB’s services and offers. It basically boils down to this, certain Chinese banks have signed working agreements with various banks around the world, and some banks’ ATM will take a Chinese ATM card. The problem is still RMB. Since your account is most likely to be still in RMB, and you certainly can’t take out RMB, so you will get the an exchange equivalent. The highest ATM equivalent right now seems to be RMB 2000, which is about 2-300 USD.
What complicates things is that some Chinese banks have signed agreements with Visa or Master card. There seems to be an ATM type of card that is Visa certified or something that will deal in USD. What makes it even more screwed is that you can apply for a Visa itself, which should have been easier thing to begin with. But the f*cked up thing is that you seem to need an USD account to start with before you can even do this, otherwise you seem to need a RMB transfer payment plan in place.
Anyway, look for this symbol going outside the country:
银联
Your limit is RMB 2000/day.
QUOTE :
1、在境外哪些商户和ATM刷卡可以用人民币支付？
境外地区贴有“银联”标识的商户和ATM，均可以使用信用卡内人民币账户支付。
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2、在境外“银联”标识和VISA、MasterCard标识的商户和ATM交易，有什么不同？
1）支付货币不同。在“银联”标识的商户和ATM用卡，支付货币为人民币；在VISA或MasterCard联网商户和ATM用卡，支付货币为美元。
2）还款货币不同。境外地区的“银联”交易，客户直接用人民币还款；在VISA或MasterCard联网商户和ATM用卡，客户用美元还款，或申请人民币购汇还款。
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3、银行按什么汇率将交易的外币兑换成人民币？
按照交易当日国家对外公布的外币对人民币的外汇卖出价兑换。
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4、哪些信用卡可以在境外“银联”商户和ATM交易？
招商银行VISA信用卡、招商银行MasterCard信用卡、国航知音信用卡均可以在境外地区的“银联”商户和ATM交易，用人民币支付。
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5、境外是不是所有的商户和ATM，都用信用卡内的人民币支付？
在境外地区，只有在贴有“银联”标识的商户和ATM，才用人民币支付；其余商户和ATM刷卡，均从美元账户扣款。For a list of countries or more info if you can read it:
As for me? I’ll stick to my original advice. Keep your China/foreign accounts separate. It’s much more convenient and hassle free.
Check OE for original discussion.
Filed under: FAQ, Work Advice | Tags: Advice, China, Education, HK, Living, Teaching, Travel, Work
A new expat to be joined us in OE board the other day, and even though this is a China blog, I’ve decided to put my replies here. I usually don’t consider HK to be part of China, since 100 years of British rule has change the port city into a Singapore like city state. But make no mistake about it, HK is politically controlled by CCP. Anyway, that’s not important, let’s get on to the discussion:
Her question:
Hello,
I am a 26 year old American and I just took a job as a kindergarten teacher in Whampoa Garden, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong. The pay is $17,000HK a month but my housing is provided and utilities are split with a roommate. Is this reasonable to live in that area? (I will be walking to work.)
Also what is the cost of living like? I don’t drink and don’t really party so I won’t have to worry about those expenses.
I am also open to any advice that any of you have. This is a new experience for me and I could use all the help I can get.
My first reply:
I would hate to tote my own horn here, but if you have never worked in an Asian/Chinese environment before, I recommend these 2 threads from my blog:http://chinasurvivalguide.wordpress.com/20…ina-in-general/
http://chinasurvivalguide.wordpress.com/20…english-part-1/
HK is quite a bit more westernized than the Mainland, but there are still quite a few thing apply here. HK is a shopping haven though, so it’s easy to over spend when going out. It’s also similar to Vancouver that it’s a touristy town, so you might have to dig a little deeper for local stuff at local prices.
I didn’t catch 2 things earlier, 1. you are female, 2. you are new at this,
http://chinasurvivalguide.wordpress.com/20…ngers-of-china/
HK is relatively safe compare to other places. I never actually lived/worked there long term, so Mandy is probably the one to ask for that. You can never be too careful sometimes. If you aren’t from a big city(are you?), HK can still be a daunting experience.
In terms of cost, HK is one of those places like Taipei where everything is so convenient that I usually don’t know where my money goes until the end of the month. A few coffees here, a few 7-11 trips there, and it all adds up. There is a huge temptation to eat out all the time, which can cost a fortune unless you find out about decent spots with local prices.
In terms of packing, don’t bring your whole wardrobe + closet. It’s a tempting option for new expats sometimes. HK is fairly humid, while a lot of regions in US are fairly dry, so you might want to find out if your favourite skirt/jacket will survive the trip. Sweating can be problematic for some people. You might want to pack things that will wick away moisture. Layering is probably key. Anyway, just bring essentials, and you can probably buy (the rest) some very nice clothes in HK on sale for very good prices compared to home.
Things are more crowded in a lot of Asian Cities, especially places like HK. I don’t know how big your room is, but some of my friends had trouble adjusting to their much smaller lodging. And make sure whoever roommate they set you up with is tolerable. Looking for a place on your own in a foreign land is not a fun experience.
If you have never taught Chinese students, it can be a bit of a daunting experience. Kindergarten teachers usually face a lot of pressure from Chinese parents. That is one of the reason I stopped teaching young children.
Anyway, good luck and have fun. Keep us in touch.
These are just some basic advice based on my own personal experiences. I am sure they can help you as well if you ever decide to drop it all and go work in Hong Kong.
This is the original thread from OE: Linky!
Filed under: Essential / Must Read, FAQ | Tags: Advice, Business, China, Living, Travel, Working
Have you ever taken a taxi in North America? (Sorry, I don’t have taxi experience in Europe)
Ok, throw that out of the window now. It’s not that Chinese taxi drivers aren’t as good as their North American counter parts (which are quickly being replaced by Indians in Vancouver), it’s just that the system and the training is quite different.
Most of the taxi companies in China are run like a cartel or a mob organization. Somebody with Really good connections to the local transportation ministry get a extremely lucrative, monopolistic license, and a heavy financing with the (still partially government owned/controlled) Chinese banks to buy the cars. Pick up some decent drivers, a training center, a maintenance crew and etc, viola, you got a license to print cash.
Therefore, it’s suffice to say that “flavours” and the “quality” of the drivers you get are extremely varied. A lot of them also skim on the side, which is a time honoured Chinese traditions whenever the top management demands too much tribute.
Take Beijing for example, (last I checked) it is now illegal for a taxi driver to privately run a vehicle due to “quality” and “safety” concerns. So most taxi drivers time share their vehicle with another driver with the both of them chipping in the “rent” each month to the Taxi company for “maintenance” and “management” fees. They are also personally responsible for the gas. This will amount to 2-3000 RMB a month for him to run that vehicle nonstop. If he is good, know his routes, know where to hit for his customers, learned to escape the traffic, and then maybe he pulls in 5-7000 RMB a month. His take home after all the hub-bob will be from 2000 – 5000 RMB a month working 12 hours shifts 7 days a week.
Why do I bother with that little anecdote of background story on the life of a typical Beijing taxi driver? Because, if you are living/working here, meeting a good driver is a god send. That’s why I want you to be nice to him(very rarely her) if you find the elusive old school professionals. I have probably ridden enough taxis in China to ride from New York to Vancouver, so I have seen it all.
So what should you do if you are hailing a taxi in China? These are some basic rules:
- If you don’t speak Chinese, it’s preferable to have someone else tell the driver where to go or have the address in Chinese on a piece of paper. When push comes to shove, get your cellphone ready to call a friend who knows the streets.
- Even if you speak Chinese ( a bit or a lot), it’s still probably better for you to ask if the driver is willing to go where you want to go at that particular time. Another reason to ask is because of the fact that there are a lot of new drivers these days. (I.E.: I am finding an increasing number of down sized bus drivers. ) Most of them (new ones) don’t know where the F**k they are going. It’s very annoying to get in, clicked the meter, tell him where to go, watch him go for 1 – 2 blocks and THEN tell me he has no idea where the stinking place is. Make sure you check first.
- A way (in Beijing, not 100% sure about other places, since I have always been too busy in other places to chat with the driver) to check if he is a veteran or not is to check his taxi driver license, which should be promptly displayed in a plastic casing in the front passenger seat. The lower the number he has, the more experience he has. Check to see if it is current and if the picture matched the guy driving. Some veterans rent out their cars (not entirely legal, but if he wants to be home to eat dinner with the wife and kids, I can’t blame him) to younger drivers for a more reliable income.
- If you can read it/see it, there should be a car inspection seal glued to the windshield on the driver/sometimes passenger side for this year.
- You should always ask him to use to meter. No matter how much he insists, don’t deter from your mission, and you can always threaten to leave the car or call the complaint hot line. Most of the time when I tell people this, they are thinking this is to prevent him cheating. Yes and no. These days, you can make an OK living at this (especially if you were a farmer or construction worker), so there is less incentive to cheat you. And the policing of such matter is getting much better, trust me when I say that Chinese riders don’t like to be cheated any more than you (the foreigner) do. Another reason is below:
- Always ask for receipts. All Chinese taxi meters should print out a receipt when he flips the meter back up. Most of them will have a Chinese girl’s voice saying in Chinese or English something like “Thank you for your patronage, feel free to comment, blah, come again”. The receipt is very important when you file a complaint or when you “gasp” lose Sh*t on the taxi (EXTREMELY common). This will tell you the license plate, the company name, what time you got on and off, and the fare.
- Never get on the fake taxis. It’s never worth the hassle. Trust me. All those guys at the airport trying sucker you in, “Taxi, car, sir?” Ignore them, and pretend you have a ride already.
- Off the top of my head, a taxi ride from the Beijing Airport to any hotel in town(unless it’s in the extreme south) shouldn’t be any more than 60 – 120 RMB a ride. You also have to pay the required 10 RMB toll both. Any more than that, and it’s suspicious.
- This is just a personal pet peeve. If you are here on business, and your contact didn’t pick you up at the airport, expecting you (especially if you don’t speak Chinese) to find your way to the whatever bizarre hotel the secretary has kick back with in god knows where? F**K them. This is a basic Chinese courtesy. If he/she can’t even be bothered to send a person to the airport to pick you up, it’s just not worth it to continue your relationship with them.
I wish you luck in your travels.
Filed under: Essential / Must Read, FAQ, General Advice | Tags: Beijing, China, Living, Must Read, Travel, Visa
Courtesy or WSJ:
This is a sort of update on the Visa section. You may or may not have trouble getting a visa. If you need to stay long term, you don’t really need multiple entries anyway. I’ll stick to my original advice, stay away from consular offices and go with a certified travel agency. It’s possible to save yourself a lot of paper work and headache.
Feel free to ask any questions if you got any concerns.
—-
Edited to Add:
This is important, if you need to work or study, I don’t recommend the travel visa. If you are coming here for long term for -
1. Study: Get a student visa. It’s not that bad. Applying to a formal Chinese university might take more time and money, but you won’t get harassed once you get here. I personally know a few school official that won’t mind the extra paper work to properly “invite” you over.
2. Work: This is a gray area. It depends on what you are hired to do. If you are hired by a big company/university, it’s quite probable that most of the paper work are already done for you to get a proper work visa(you just have to pay tax). But if you are coming here without any proper plans except to maybe just get hired as an English teacher, it’ll be somewhat difficult to get one without going through some hoops. If that is the case, then you might want to try the business visa.
As for the crack down, going through consular offices will just makes it easier for them to track you. It’s up to you on what you want to do.
Some might be worried about this:
My face is more important than my people’s well being
But if you are really staying long term, wait out the Olympics. Chinese would eventually understand that visa restrictions(because of the complaint from the Chinese companies/people themselves) would actually hinder Chinese economy, investment to China, and continue to erode any foreign support or trust from any foreigners that are already choosing to live and work in China. Sooner or later, they need to learn that they don’t live alone in the world, and they can’t survive (let’s forget about economics for a second. China does not product enough food to support itself, not counting coal, oil and any other necessities that it needs to keep itself running.) without others.
As for residency permits, that’s entirely up to you. This is how I look at it, the more the Chinese government knows about you, the easier they can do something to you. On the other hand, you will be hard pressed for answers if you are found out. Of course, if you married a Chinese or work for big companies or universities, this is completely pointless to you.
Good luck in the path you take.
Filed under: Essential / Must Read, FAQ | Tags: 2008 Olympics, Advice, Beijing, China, Environment, Living, Pollution, Travel
This is sort of a section for the Athletes and new comers. Pollution is very bad in China. If you are staying long term in China, expect it to take a few years off your life. I won’t get into anything technical here, because telling you how many particles per million or billion is useless to me and most likely to you as well.
This isn’t a section on how bad the pollution is or a rant about environmental damages. This one is about how to cope with it.
I have an independent air filter system at home in Beijing. If you have the money, you can get a combo with a air moisturizing system add on which can be a god send in Beijing.
1. Get an air filtering system. Or if you have an AC, change its filters often(HEPA if you can get it).
2. Get used to it. The US Olympics team has decided to stay in Korea and will only go to Beijing in the last minute to compete. BAD mistake. Your system needs that critical first week to adjust to the new environment. If you don’t do this, the pollution crash(with asthma or flu like symptoms) will be horrid.
3. Drink a lot of good water. Enough said.
4. Choose a living quarter away from the Main streets. In the west, everyone wants a view, don’t they? In China or Beijing in particular, getting a view can mean that your windows can have constant (depending on where it’s facing) winds blowing pollutants INTO your house. You will also have less noise.
5. Keep up your Ritual. Keep up your daily ritual of waking up at 6 am, brushing, and/or your favorite breakfast of sunny side eggs. This will keep you emotionally stable, so you and your immune system will be better prepared for the onslaught.
6. Do some experiments before coming. Here is an interesting experiment to try: Don one or two surgical masks, and go out and run for 5-10 kms. Can you handle the thinner air? Is your body still getting adequate amount of oxygen?
7. Be prepared for HOT, and DRY heat. If you are coming for the Olympics for any reason. Beijing is extremely hot in the summer. A lot of people don’t know that Beijing has desert weather. The fact that we are situated near the corner of Gobi Desert also helps. We don’t usually get sand storms in summer, but these days, you’ll never know. Pause for a second and Imagine a sand storm in the 50 degree C weather. You can get back to me later. Take your time. …., back? Unpleasant? Uncomfortable? Downright Nasty? You bet. AC can be your best friend in this season, but if you stay too long in it, you will get AC disease.
As for Athletes, stay off the sun, and keep hydrated. I am sure you don’t need me to say that.
8. If you are rich, you can get a place near the Summer Palace. This is one place in Beijing with a lot of water nearby and lots of old trees that are actually localized. Of course, you could stay/rent a farm house out there for cheap, but I am not sure if any westerners can actually survive that.
9. Honey with Grapefruit, Honey with Lemon, Grapefruit tea or a tiny bit of ginger tea can be a god send.
To be continued.
Filed under: Essential / Must Read, FAQ, General Advice | Tags: Beijing, China, Living, Must Read, Olympics, Travel, Working
It’s my first blog post! (p.s: Most of these things are based on personal experiences, research, word of mouth, and a prolonged trial and error from many expats, so if you have heard different things from different people, you are welcome to share it/discuss it.)
Here we go:
1. Wash your hands.
Bring disinfectant wipes or soap. I can’t stress this enough. Please make a habit of this before you even set foot in China. Practice at home, and form a habit of washing your hands whenever you enter/leave public spaces. The official population of Beijing is 7.2 million, but if you include the farm workers, and people who doesn’t hold Beijing residency cards but works/lives in Beijing, it is closer to 20 million. Trust me when I say you don’t know where whatever you just touched has been.
2. Shots.
Get your shots at home. Check out the travel advisories from your home country on what shots to get. Hep B is a must.
3. Visas.
You should get your visa from a Certified China Visa (tour/travel) Agency. The general experience from most of the expats who have been through the ringer quite a few times is that if you go to the actual consulate offices, they are more expensive and time consuming. Hong Kong is a good place to start.
4. Check around before you book that flight.
Direct Flights can be a lot more expensive depending on your situation and where you want to go. Before you book that flight, check around. I usually avoid Air China, and China Eastern if I can help it. Their service are just…., not up to snuff. (Most “direct” flights to Beijing go through either Vancouver or Vienna.)
5. Cash is King.
Don’t expect shops to accept any forms of plastic unless you are in a huge international malls. If some small shops say they do, be suspicious. It’s very difficult( depending on where you live) to actually exchange for Renminbi outside of Chinese controlled territories. Ask first, but don’t expect anything.
If you can’t do it locally, H.K. is fine if you happen to pass through. They have an exchange place inside the security zone in the H.K. International Airport, so you don’t even have to go through customs. If you have to do it inside China, then go with the big banks. Bank of China or ICBC. Bring your passport and go to a big location where they post the rates.
Ever since China opened up the banking sector a bit couple years ago, you can now go to local banks’ ATMs to take out RMB using your credit cards and/or your local bank cards. HSBC, CitiBank, and Standard Chartered all have ATMs in Oriental Plaza, one of the biggest international mall there. (They are easier to find than the old stand bys in GuoMao/International Trade Center) Check to see if your bank has affiliation with any of the big four.
Filed under: Essential / Must Read, FAQ, General Advice | Tags: Beijing, China, Living, Must Read, Olympics, Travel, Working
6. Hotels/Motels/Serviced Apartments/hostels.
Take your pick. For peace of mind and someone who Actually speaks English, go with a western managed hotel. If that’s too pricey, Super 8, Home-Inn and any of its copy cats are business style “motels” with internet, showers, and Chinese TV(but no free breakfast, computer, swimming pool or gym). Only Certified “International” hotels have a dish and are allowed to show English broadcasting. All Internet usage is monitored.
The starting price for Chinese style motels are $225 RMB(US $32.00)/night. The starting price for international hotels starts at $120.00 US. As for the ever popular hostels…, good luck. They ARE cheaper, about $125 RMB(US $ 18)/night, but you are crammed 6-12 per room and you have to share the bathroom with the entire floor. Most of them are converted dorms. Please make sure you check the geographic location of the place before booking.
7. A bit Beijing specific. Stick to the Subway.
It’s easy to understand, has English announcements, automatic payment, and a few volunteers/staffs who do speak some English. This is a pet peeve of mine, because I keep losing people who refused to listen to my advice and they almost always end up getting lost in Beijing. They really believed a map and a lonely planet guide will save them. Trust me when I say you should only use the guide as a short reference, not as the bible on how, where and what. China changes very fast, so something printed 2 years ago is probably already outdated. Try to book a hotel/whatever near a subway exit.
The last I checked, Beijing has 1000 bus routes/lines, with multiple same numbered buses going in different directions and ones that will and won’t stop on certain stops. They have not installed any English Bus Stop signs. And all announcements are in Chinese. They also have a complex ticketing system that requires Chinese language skills (and an arcane knowledge of the road names )if you are not on main routes. Asking for directions just brings more “Hey, can you teach me English?” people to your face. Taxis will have its own section later.
8. Don’t expect things to be Cheap.
If we use Beijing as an example, it is ranked #19 (2005) as one of the most expensive cities in the world. And a Gucci is a Gucci, unless, of course, you buy a Cucci or Guci(wink, wink).
9. Hustlers, thieves, scammers
and the rest of riff-raff. Comparatively, it’s getting a lot better. If you are visiting Beijing, the recent crack down has lowered some of the crimes that happens daily to visitors. Use general Travel caution, like use a money belt, hold on to your purse, move in groups, and never leave things out of your sight and double check before you leave any location or car.
10. Prepare for traffic congestion, pollution and strange behaviors on a grand scale. 
