China
In 2020, the number of first asylum applicants decreased by -10%, to reach around 400. The majority of applicants came from Cameroon (200), Uganda (59) and Zimbabwe (33).
Emigration of Chinese to OECD countries increased by 8% in 2019, to 466 000. Approximately 28% of this group migrated to Japan, 16% to the United Kingdom and 13% to the United States.
At the end of 2020 there were a total of 463 405 foreign residents in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The top three countries of origin for foreign residents in the PRC were Korea (11%), Japan (10%) and the United States (10%).
The PRC has introduced a single service window to apply for work and residence permits. From October 2020, pilot programs for this service window began in Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, Xiamen and Shenzhen. China has also begun to improve visa and residence permit application procedures, including by allowing foreign residents to submit visa and residence permit applications via e-mail or mail.
In March 2021, the PRC introduced relaxed eligibility requirements and other beneficial rules for work permit applications in Shanghai, focusing on foreign nationals in scientific and technological occupations, foreign nationals in innovative entrepreneurial occupations, and special experts. The exact new requirements are at the discretion of the authorities. Previously, these applicants had to be below 60 years old, have at least two years’ work experience and a bachelor’s degree. The changes are in line with Chinese Government’s goal to attract more highly-skilled foreign nationals, especially in scientific and innovative fields.
The PRC is the top Asian destination for international study and expands its lead in the region every year. In 2019, more than 260 000 students were enrolled in the PRC’s tertiary education institutions, 13% more than in 2018. The PRC has aimed to attract students with scholarships for international students, especially students from Africa and from countries in its Belt and Road Initiative. Currently, African students represent the second largest group of international students by region in the PRC, after Asian students.
While figures on outflows of overseas contract workers deployed by the PRC are not available, the stock of such workers overseas fell. According to the Ministry of Commerce, the number of workers overseas dropped from 1 013 000 to 644 000 between November 2019 and July 2020. No recovery was seen over the northern hemisphere summer of 2020.
At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, entry of foreigners with valid visas and residence permits to China was suspended, as well as the visa-free transit and regional visa-free policies. In February 2020, China provided automatic extensions of two months for visas and residence permits of foreigners engaged in innovative and entrepreneurial work or scientific research in China that had expired during the period where pandemic control measures were in place. From May 2020, the PRC successively established ‘Fast Track’ programs with Korea, Germany, Singapore, Cambodia, Indonesia and several other countries to facilitate entry to China for essential business and official travel. China has gradually expanded the ‘Fast Track’ Program to almost all countries.
From September 2020, foreign nationals holding valid Chinese residence permits for work, personal matters and family reunion were allowed to enter China without applying for new visas. From March 2021, the PRC began offering visa facilitation to foreign nationals that have been inoculated with COVID-19 vaccines produced in China and that were planning to travel to China to conduct essential business activities or to visit family members.
