Getting a Z (working) visa in Hong kong

[lordnikon]

I just came back from getting a Z visa in hong kong last week, i easily got it done no problem in 24 hours. You dont need to bother with travel agents just go to the visa office in hong kong all the taxi drivers know where it is as soon as i showed the address to the taxi driver he immediately asked me if i was going to get visa. I had all my paper work in order and waited about 1 hour in the office handed them my documents in the afternoon around 4 and they told me to come back the next day at 3. You will pay when you pick up your passport they will write the amount you will need to pay on your pick up slip when you hand in your passport, for me it was 1350 HK dollars, it must be payed in HK dollars so remember to make sure you get enough cash before you go to pick up your passport, I have US passport and asked for rush processing, the visa office is about 2 blocks from the wan chai star ferry dock

[jbradfor]

@lordnikon, could you post the address (in Chinese) for others? Thanks.

[skylee]

@lordnikon, could you post the address (in Chinese) for others? Thanks.

It's right on the official website (address, fees etc) -> 辦公地址、辦公時間和咨詢方式

香港灣仔區港灣道26號華潤大廈低座7樓

[GaHanna]

Great news Lordnikon, I am off on the 15th. I will keep us posted!

[lordnikon]

here is the exact info that was given to me by my hr department, it is both english and chinese so you should have no problems just showing this to a taxi driver in hong kong, i dont know what those prices the quote are, I think it is just the base fee they charge for all applications, you will definitely have to pay more based on what country your passport is from, i paid 1350 HKD and have US passport for rush service 24 hours. It is also very easy to get to by subway as it is not that far from the wan chai subway station and it is very near the star ferry wan chai dock.

Z-Visa办理信息汇总-香港

Z-Visa Application Info-HK

办理地点

Office

中华人民共和国驻香港特派员公署

The Commissioner's Office Of China's Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong SAR

详细地址

Address

香港湾仔区港湾道26号华润大厦低座7楼

7th Floor, Lower Block, China Resources Building,

No.26, Harbor Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong SAR

办公时间

Working Hour

周一-周五上午： 9:00—12:00 下午：2:00—5:00

Monday to Friday 9:00AM-12:00AM 2:00PM-5:00PM

需提供材料

Required Documents

任职就业签证(Z签证) -Z-visa Application in HK

1) 《被授权单位签证通知表》-Invitation Letter

2) 工作人员《就业许可证》原件复印件-Original andCopy of the AEL

3)《外国人体格检查记录》-Medical Check Report

4) 照片2寸白底彩色背景1张 -1 photos per person(2 inches with white background)

5) 申请表-Application Form(please see attached)

6) 护照-Passport

办理时间及费用

(只收港币现金)

Process Time & Visa Fees(HK Dollars Only)

（一）普通件：受理后的第四个工作日可以取证，(如周一申请，周四取证）

150港币/人

（二）加急件：受理后的第三个工作日可以取证，（如周一申请，周三取证）

150港币+150港币=300港币/人

（三）特急件：受理24小时后的第二个工作日取证，

（如周一上午申请，周二上午取证，周一下午申请，周二下午取证）

150港币+250港币=400港币/人

1. Regular service: 4 working days including submission day (e.g. Submission on Monday and collection on Thursday)

HK$150/Per Person

2. Express service: 3working days including submission day

(e.g. Submission on Monday and collection on Wednesday)

HK$300/Per Person

3. Rush service: 2 working day (including the submission day.

e.g. If visa application is submitted on the morning of Monday, collection time is on the morning of Tuesday; If visa application is submitted on the afternoon of Monday, collection time is on the afternoon of Tuesday)

HK$400/Per Person

[lordnikon]

Another things that has been mentioned before but something everyone who is applying for Z visa should know is that if you want to apply for Z visa in hong kong and not in your home country your visa invitation letter must say to apply in hong kong at the top of my invitation letter it stated this in both chinese and english, the english said (now that i look at it again, this is the only english written on the whole document so you should notice it):

Please apply forthwith for visa at the Chinese Embassy/consulate/visa Office in 香港 with this form

This invitation letter must be obtained by your company from the local bureau of commerce where your company is located, make sure you tell them you will go to hong kong to get the visa, also they will keep the original of this document when you apply for the visa, you dont need it for anything else

[GaHanna]

Handed in documents yesterday. Should pick up passport this afternoon. HK$400 in total. Arrived about half an hour before the office opened after lunch. Queue was very long. It took nearly three hours from 5pm for me to hand in documents and walk away.

I was with this French guy yesterday and he was told that they couldn't process without an insurance certificate from the company that he will be working with.

[GaHanna]

Just got back. No problems at all.

[lordnikon]

GaHanna what country is your passport from? I feel ripped off for having to pay 1350 with a US passport,

There have been a few other people with french passports reporting bad experiences trying to get a visa in HK so I think all French passport holders should really double check everything before they go to HK to get a visa

[skylee]

GaHanna what country is your passport from? I feel ripped off for having to pay 1350 with a US passport,

Why do you feel ripped-off? Of the 1350 you paid, 250 was for rush service. The basic fee 1100 seems fair when the US charges a US$140 (HKD 1120) visa fee. No?

[GaHanna]

Lordnikon

I hold an Irish passport and I thought that I should have been charged HK$850. When I asked the clerk to check the charge she said that it is definitely HK$400. I think the reasoning behind this is that I will be working in a government research institute.

Yes, I met the French guy the next day and even though he got the certificate, and paid for rush service it is still four days to complete the process.

[Chinabound]

I just got my invitation letter and AEL to take to Hong Kong next week to try and get my Z visa. Do I need to take my medical check report with me? The school used it to get the invitation letter and AEL and did not give it to me to take. Also, the school was told about a new requirement that just started on 1 Jan. 2011. The requirement is the addition of an invitation letter from the school needs to be submitted with the Offical invitation letter from the government and AEL.

[lordnikon]

You need to have medical form with you, they will not keep it when you apply for visa but they are supposed to look at it to make sure you have gotten the medical check and are eligible for the visa, you only need the small thin white paper not the actual results of you medical check, the small thin white paper is the form that states you have taken the medical check and are eligible for work the actual results of the test are only for you to see. You will need the medial form when you apply for residence permit also so make sure you have this paper

[Chinabound]

Will a copy of the medical certificate work? When I asked the school, they gave me a copy of it that they had made because they used the original to get my AEL and invitation letter.

[Chinabound]

Just got back from Hong Kong with my Z-Visa in hand. Got there on Tuesday morning at 9:15 A.M. was out by 10 A.M. The only documents that were needed was my Passport, AEL, visa form, Invitation letter stating HK. SAR as where I would be applying for the work visa and an Invitation letter from the school inviting me to come teach for them. I took a copy of my medical, but they just handed it back to me without really looking at it. Did the rush service and got it the next day before 10 A.M. cost was 1350 HKD. I would not recommend traveling by train within 3 to 4 weeks before Chinese New Years unless you get your ticket atleast 10 days in advance for both ways.

Edited January 14, 2011 at 12:31 PM by Chinabound

[ask]

Could you please let me know if an appointment needs to be made ahead of time before going to Hongkong for the Z-visa interview? And where can I download the Z-visa application form? Thanks a lot!

[caffeineaddict]

You don't need to make a z-visa appointment. You apply for it just like any other visa. Just download the visa form from any Chinese embassy website or fill it out at the embassy when you go there in person.

When I got mine in Hong Kong a month ago they didn't ask to see my health certificate. My Chinese friend who helped me get all the documents together told me you can do the health check AFTER you return to China with your Z-visa.