Ask Headmaster Ken

Dear Ken

I accepted a job from a school. Later, I got some better offers. I kinda held off telling the first school since I needed the time to finish negotiations and finally decided to go with another school.

I just received my visa paperwork from the first school and they are asking me if I have processed my visa yet.

The school I want to work at hasn't sent me my documents yet.

Can I use the first school's visa documents and then go to my second school to work with no problems?

Also, I feel a little bad about not telling them I'm not coming. But, if I can use their visa documents to speed up my departure, I don't want to tell them because I don't want them to cancel the visa documents they sent me.

Is there a way I can make this work?

What you propose to do is both illegal and unworkable.

When your employer sends you visa documents, they are designed to invite you exclusively to work exclusively for them. The Z-visa is not transferable.

When you arrive, your employer must produce the matching document that proves you are the person invited to work for them. Only the employer who issued the invitation has that uniquely numbered document. No match, no job.

The first school that sent you the paperwork has incurred considerable effort, and some expense, to send you that invitation. In addition, they have probably stopped interviewing candidates, and have classes scheduled in anticipation of your arrival.

It would spare the first school considerable aggravation and expense if you simply let them know you had reconsidered their offer.

Normally, I wish letter writers the best of luck, but in your case, I'll just say, "May your Karma be swift."

In my case I have been dealing with one school (in a cool area) directly, and with one other (in a hot area) through an agent. The former didn't require me to sign a contract, dealt with the whole process in four emails, and delivered the two essential documents for the Z visa several days before I received them from the agent working on behalf of the latter school (who needed to send me about fifteen emails). After a few days deliberating on my situation I decided to go for the school in the cooler area, emailed the agent to tell her of my decision, and took the documents of the former school along to the visa office in London. The agent emailed me back expressing her respect for my new decision, but urging me to pay a visit to the town to check the place out as I may find that it has no mosquitos and a pleasant climate. As she sent me such a nice email, I've been thinking maybe I will after all go for the hot area school. But you are saying I can't do that without re-applying for a new Z visa, right?
P.S.
I didn't see this thread until after posting a reply on the Re: Signing a Faxed Copy of SAFEA Contract for Z-visa thread, Ken. This thread is far more relevent to that reply, so please don't trouble giving the go ahead for my posting on that thread.

The Z visa is issued by the local Embassy/consulate in your local area, usually your home country.

They require a work permit/Invitation Letter from the local SAFEA Office with approval from the Province.

As you might imagine, China has safeguards to prevent someone from using one employer to obtain entry into the country and then working for a different entity.

Your new employer will need to present the serial numbered top half of the Invitation Letter/Work permit (kept by the school that sent you the bottom half) to the local government who will match it to the bottom serial numbered half in order to process your residence permit.

So, you'll need a Z Visa from the entity for whom you plan to work.