Policies that Pull

“The first time I stepped on Chinese soil was in October 1974when I arrived from Sri Lanka. After one year of studyingChinese at the Beijing Language Institute （now the BeijingLanguage and Culture University）， I went to the Northeast Instituteof Technology （now the Northeastern University in LiaoningProvince） for the next four years’ study，” said Raja Magasweran，managing director and co-founder of China Business Associates Inc.

When he finished university， Magasweranfaced the question everyone faces when studyingoutside their country： “What will I do after graduation？Will I stay and work here or return home？”At that time， China’s reform and opening-up hadjust begun， and the plethora of new opportunitiesattracted him to stay and pursue his dreams.

Over the years， public policies to make foreigners’life and work in China more convenient haveevolved and expanded. Beijing’s foreign talentpolicies （FTP） trace their roots back to the establishmentof New China in 1949， becoming wellconstructedand institutionalized especially after2000. The development of FTP represents thedynamics of China’s immigration policy system.Since the late 1970s， especially since Deng Xiaoping’sfamous talk on the introduction of talents onJuly 8， 1983， more and more foreign talents beganto work in China， contributing to the country’sdevelopment. Since the first wave of foreignerssettling in China， the government began to draftpolicies to both manage them and facilitate theirstay. Today， such policies are a crucial part ofChina’s immigration policy.

The basic pathways for applying for a permanentresidence （PR） card prior to 2023 includedthe following： （I） Foreign employees who hold keypositions in a business; （II） High-end and specialskilledtalents; （III） Foreigners who have made arelatively large direct investment in China; and（IV） Family reunion-related reasons： a spouse of aChinese citizen， children under the age of 18 yearsold who are unmarried， or elderly relatives whoare over 60 and have direct relatives in China.

Then a significant move in 2023 further loweredthe threshold for applying for PR. Severalcities across China rolled out new policies greatlysimplifying the PR application process for foreignPh.D. holders. Shanghai and Shenzhen pioneered afast-track PR policy for foreigners holding doctoraldegrees， followed closely by Beijing and Guangzhou.

Straight from the Horses’ Mouth

After he decided to stay in China and not returnto his home country Sri Lanka， Magasweran wentthrough the process of changing his student visato a work visa and went on toestablish several companiesin Beijing over the followingyears including CaliforniaTrade Delegations Inc. andChina Business Associates Inc.From 1979-1982， CaliforniaTrade Delegations introduced128 companies and investorsto China like Control Data Corporation， and IBM.

In the ’80s when his children reached schoolingage， his family decided to move to San Franciscoto apply for American PR status. But he continuedto live in both Beijing and San Francisco to managehis businesses. In 2006， he returned to Chinafor good. Finally， in 2019， he applied for a ChinesePR card and then the Five-Star Card first issued in2023 that can be used as a standalone identificationdocument within China. It is valid for 10 yearsand the cardholders can reside continuously inChina during that period with PR status and alsowork in China， without having to apply for a workpermit. He is very happy now to live in the countryhe loves.

Steven Back came to China from Hungaryalmost two decades ago. He has been working inthe cultural industry based in Shanghai as the CEOof Back & Rosta Ltd.， which specializes in culturaldigitization and intelligent museum solutions.Back is also the Hungarian National Museum’sgeneral representative in China. His work hastaken him all over China， working in various Chinesemuseums.

Back developed an interest in Chinese languageand culture through his interactions with hismany Chinese friends in his home country. He toldChina Today what made learning Chinese veryinteresting for him was learning about the “deepculture veins” imbedded in the language， making ita unique experience.

From a young age Back had dreamed of traveling.He first went to the Netherlands for his universitystudies where he met the young woman whowould become his wife， a Chinese from Shanghai.They went to Shanghai in 2005 and settled downthere with Back working in a Hungarian tech company.

He has seen the working environment in Shanghaiprogressively improve over the years. Accordingto Back， today， to assist foreign talents adjustto Shanghai’s working environment， the city’sForeign Experts Bureau often provides languageservices and holds service meetings to help newarrivals understand general government policies.

In 2016， Back applied for a PR card through theChinese spouse pathway， and then the Five-StarCard when Shanghai first issued it in 2023. Accordingto Back， now it is much easier to invite hisfamily from Hungary to visit him. Purchasing trainand plane tickets is also more convenient andwhen re-entering China， he can use the E-channel，the automated passenger clearance service at immigration.

In addition， from March 14， 2024， ordinarypassport holders from Hungary can travel to Chinavisa-free for up to 15 days for business， tourism，family visits， or transit. This makes inviting museumdirectors and experts to take part in culturalactivities， which is a main part of his work， muchmore convenient.

Kirill Solonin， a Russian professor at RenminUniversity of China in Beijing， was one of the firstapplicants to get the Five-Star Card. He praised itsdesign， which incorporates the five stars on thenational flag， and a segment of the Great Wall， twoiconic Chinese images， and said he had been eagerto apply for it for a long time.

“The application process is not complicatedat all，” he said. “I have beenengaged in academic researchin China for about 10 years，and most of my academicachievements were obtainedin China… After getting thiscard， I feel very happy， as if it isrecognition from the country.”

Zafar Hayat Khan from Pakistanis a professor at NanningNormal University in Guangxiin south China， engaged inresearch and teaching in the field of thermo-fluidssince 2006. Reflecting on how the Five-Star Cardhas made life more convenient， he said in an interview，he doesn’t have to return to the visa officeover and over， like he did previously.

In addition to relaxing restrictions on PR cards，opening up more business opportunities， and reducingrestrictions on entry visas from some countries，China has also been building “internationaltalent communities” （ITCs） to meet the needs offoreign talents.

For example， Beijing has established severalsuch communities， including the ITC in BeijingEconomic Development District in the southernpart of the capital. In 2024， the project will provideabout 7，000 apartments units for foreign talents.

Haidian District on the other side of Beijingis focused on attracting global high-end talentsacross different fields. It began constructing anITC for its Zhongguancun Science City in 2017 thatwould be pleasant for living， working， learning， andcreating for expatriates. Over the past few years，Haidian has focused on attracting global high-endtalents across different fields.

Looking into the Future

Asked about his suggestions for improving theworking environment in China， Magasweran toldChina Today ， “When we think about the changesthat could be made， we have to take into considerationthe bigger picture of how far China has comefrom the early ’80s to today 2024.” The Chinesegovernment is continuing to improve the livingand working conditions for foreign talents and hisadvice to anyone planning to work in China is to“spend more time trying to understand the Chineseculture and the language.”

Back looks forward to the changes that mightemerge in the future. He wonders if one day theremight be a card similar to the Five-Star Card forpeople working in China for a short time， servingthe purpose of a recognized local ID.

As China continues to develop policies for attractinginternational talents as well as improvingthe living and working environment of the talentsalready here， it is important to not forget where ithas come from and appreciate where it is going.