Ask Headmaster Ken

Howdy all,

This is Cow(boy) a Canadian in Beijing, China. I live in Beijing, have married a Beijinger, bought a house and will have a baby shortly.... all in Beijing of course..

Is it possible to get Chinese citizenship for myself, what do you do, who do you see, .... I have a Master Degree .... and can easily make a living here ... but it would be easier if I were Chinese (a Western one! Aiyaaa!) ... I could always tell everyone I am xinjiang person Ha Ha... or whatever that Western province is .... life is definitely more fun in Beijing China than boring old Canada ... so I would like to settle down here permanetly with my new lovely family ....

... also would it be good to switch the kid over to Canadian citizenship, before I switch to Chinese .... Hmmm complicated ...

Not sure if some of the Hong Kong gang would know much about that ... but there are lots of Honkies caught between two or three worlds and would probably have good advice ....

Thanks for your info,
Cow(boy) Canuck

Under articles 7 and 8 of the Nationality Law of the People's Republic of China, it is possible for a foreigner to apply for Chinese citizenship.

However, China does not allow dual citizenship, so you would first have to revoke your Canadian citizenship. We don't see how this would possibly help you obtain employment or even be more competitive as a Chinese national in Beijing unless you are fluent in reading, writing and speaking Putonghua.

As you are married to a Chinese national, you are entitled to permanent residency (assuming you have been married for more than five years and have not left China for any period greater than three consecutive months). We feel it is in your better interests to explore this option.

Upon the birth of your child, you should most definitely register the baby's citizenship with the Canadian embassy in Beijing and, from our perspective, you should really think twice (maybe trice) about revoking your own Canadian citizenship.

Good luck.

Wow! Thanks for the info … I am exploring options …. worrying about a job is becoming less of a worry for me now seeing I have some rental properties I collect on now … pulling in almost 44,000 RMB per month now including salary … which is good …. stock market looks good for a rebound over the summer or fall so I am loading up on that again too…. finally got my driver’s license and a Buick here this summer …. this Permanent Residency ??? is that the same or different from the Chinese Green Card and do you still need a work visa with all that ??? is there some Website on all that …??? Where are you getting all your info? it is hard to find on the net????

God Bless and Thanks,
Ox Cow(boy) Canuck

Yes, the “Green Card” is the equivalent of the 10-year renewable residency (5-yr for those under the age of 18). If you have that, you can work in China legally without any additional paperwork.

Not all provinces and municipalities honor the legal requirements. I know of at least one man in Haikou who has been married to a Chinese national for years, has never left China, owns his own apartment, and still they refuse to give him permanent residency based on his marriage and property ownership. Instead, they simply renew his tourist visa every three months! What I suspect is that they don’t approve of his marriage (wife is 35 years younger) and they both have the reputation of proselytizing Christianity.

On the other hand, I recently met a much older (68+) British foreign teacher in Guangzhou who was given permanent residency strictly on the basis of his marriage to a Chinese national. There also seems to be a very high correlation between having won the Friendship Award (the highest honor in China that can be bestowed upon a foreigner) and being granted permanent residency as well.

Just becoming Permanent Resident would be the better option. The Canadian passport is more useful for you.

As for your child, the Government does not recognize dual citizenship. However, I believe, since your wife is a beijinger, she/he can register for Chinese Citizenship. Since Canada allows dualies, you can also register them into Canadian Citizenship through embassy. However, the Chinese Government will not recognize the Canadian one. I know many Chinese people here in Vancouver, who hold both Chinese and Canadian passports. They just use the same passport when entering/leaving other countries.