i’ve ben here for nearly 3 months living in a residential address, and they said they needed it for some kind of registration..i wasn’t happy giving it to them, but they said it would keep me out of jail!..the thing is, they wont give it back to me for a week..by that time my three month visa will expire, and i was just wondering if that will cause any problems when travelling to Hong Kong to fly home? ie, crossing the border?..incidently, i will have to alter my flight home because of this..at a cost of 0 US, and my travel insurance will expire as well..i said i was leaving in 2 days time, but that made no difference…is all this normal for tourists, this registration thing when staying at a residential apartment in China?
Any comments would be much appreciated..just mainly worried about the Visa thing…funny how they noticed me, out of 12 million others in this city!
I just said a prayer for you to get out of there safely with your passport.
You need to get it back before the visa expires. If you can’t, contact the office which renews your visa and tell them you want to apply for an extension for your visa and inform them which office has your passport. Write down the names of all the people you talk to in both offices. Good luck.
I would contact your embassy as soon as possible.Passports are a big black market item. If you have been scammed or need your visa extended they are the most likely to help.
Usually in cases like this, one should contact his native country’s Embassy or consular office/consulate in that area. Your country’s (New Zealand) government through its diplomatic office there in China is the best authority to handle your problem. Good luck.
you should go to your embassy as well as the local psb. If they are legitimate they extend your visa for the period that they have your passport. Ift hey are not legitimate than this will be known by the local psb. Of course you must register in the city that you are staying in. I am living in SIchuan and reigistered here. Also some officals entered my home and requested to the names of all living here but did not require my passport. They recorded everyone in the household, My Chinese wife daughter and mother in law. In any means contact th embassy and the psb to see what the problem is.
Yiu may have a little problem crossing theborder if you do not get your visa extended, however a day or 2 overstay should niot be to much of a problem. They will understandthat youi are not trying to become an illegal alien . They will probably lecture you and send you on your way.
The Chinese authorities /police are not to be trusted. It’s not at all funny that they noticed you. They are always watching. I would contact the NZ embassy as soon as possible and let them know what is happening. You need to tell your insurance company also. Best of luck.
No this is not normal for people staying at a residential apartment in china. But they might be freaking out becuase you are a foreigner. I certainly wouldn’t have given them my passport. If I were you, I probably would have requested to talk to your country’s embassy. They probably would have saved you from this entire mess.
Your passport is a govnt. document that belongs to you. They are required to give it back to you if you ask.. Otherwise contact your embassy. Are you teaching in China? If so, on a tourist visa?
It is required that you register within 48 hours of arriving to any Chinese city where you will be staying for more than a few days. In fact, the PSB can fine you if you didnt do this in time.. So this may be the registration situatiuon you are talking about. However, it only takes a few minutes to register you.. Therefore, verify this is the case, and get your passport back..
If you are leaving in a few days and they are simply registering you.. (Not extending your visa) then you must get it back so you can leave.. I would still write a letter to the embassy. Go to the person who originally took your passport.. and get it back..
ADDITIONAL SCENARIOS
If you inquired about extending your visa, they could simply be in the process of extending your visa. THis takes time and not all govt. employees know how to do it.. So long as they are “in the process” you are fine.. However, you NEED to make them explain if this is the situation.. otherwise Two – If you are working illegally than there are a number of permutations that could arise..
If your visa is about to expire, ask for it back. and right away.. Cause otherwise there is another fine if your visa expires.. (500 Rmb Per Day up to 4000 Rmb, or jailtime)