Ask Headmaster Ken

You tell of a requirement to “present a Release Letter and Letter of Reference from your previous employer” when moving on to a new position in China, and say “You need both a letter of release and recommendation … in order to move on”.

The 'Letter of Release' is straightforward enough (you kindly supply a copy on the website), but what of the ‘Letter of Reference/recommendation’? Is this, in common with the ‘Letter of Release’, an official form? Or is it an informally written letter from the dean of the foreign languages department saying what a sterling worker you have been?

With this document Letter of Release you seem to be presenting a copy of a ‘letter of release’; the problem is that its Chinese title is ‘waiguo wenjiao zhuanjia huo waiji zhuanye renyuan tuijianxin’, and ‘tuijianxin’ means ‘letter of recommendation’, not ‘letter of release’.

Might it be that only one document is required, not two?

The Letter of Release is a standard form. It may vary from province to province on layout, but it contains pretty much the same fields. The Letter of Release is required to be completed by the employer.

The letter of recommendation is informally written, i.e., there is no special form for it, and serves the same purpose as a letter of recommendation in the west.

The letter of recommendation may not be required in all provinces. However, it is recommended, as many employers will ask for both from the previous employer.

In my experience over the last two years, the majority of schools have requested our school to provide both.

I can tell you unequivocally that the letters of release and recommendation are most definitely two different documents.

There are provincial differences in the importance given to the latter. In Haikou, Hainan Province, the PSB will NOT process a new Z-visa and residency permit without a chopped letter of recommendation if the applicant has previously worked in China.

There is a practical reason for the two separate documents. Let's say a teacher wants to leave school A to work for school B. School B knows it cannot process the new Z-visa until the teacher finishes his/her contract with School A. However, School A cannot legally furnish that form letter of release until the contract is actually completed.

Aside from the fact that it is required by some provinces, the chopped letter of recommendation provides School B with confidence that the teacher will finish his/her contract with School A on good terms and that the former (current) employer will be providing that official letter of release shortly.

Think of it as asking a prospective foreign teacher to go for a physical exam prior to arriving in China. The school is simply using that initial exam to screen the teacher so that there are no surprises after he arrives in China.