Generally, a certificate of no criminal record is required to apply for a foreigner’s work permit.
According to relevant regulations, when foreigners apply for work permits in China (work in China for more than 90 days), they generally need to submit the following materials: foreigner work permit application form, work qualification certificate, highest degree (education) certificate or relevant approval documents, professional qualification certificate, certificate of no criminal record, medical examination certificate, employment contract or employment certificate (including letter of assignment from multinational companies).
From November 7, 2023, according to the Notice of the General Office of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security on the Certification of Foreign Official Documents in Foreigners’
Application for Work Permit in China (RSTH [2023] No. 153), when foreigners apply for work permits, they only need to handle the additional certificates issued by the competent authorities of the countries that are parties to the Convention on the Cancellation of the Certification Requirements for Foreign Official
Documents (hereinafter referred to as the Convention), which meet the provisions of the Convention, and do not need to handle the consular certification of China or the consular certification of foreign embassies and consulates in China. Official documents from non contracting states, as well as official documents from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Macao Special Administrative Region, and Taiwan region of China, are not subject to the Convention.
The specific requirements may vary in different regions. It is recommended to consult the relevant local approval department before processing to ensure that all necessary materials are prepared. At the same time, it should be noted that the issuing institution of the certificate of no criminal record should be the relevant institution of the applicant’s country of nationality or long-term residence (region), and the validity period of the certificate is usually 6 months (a few countries are 3 months), calculated from the date of issuance of the certificate of no criminal record, rather than the date of certification. For example, if the certificate of no criminal record is issued on December 16th and the certification completion date is February 1st of the following year, then this certificate will expire on June 16th of the following year, not August 1st.
