China's new "R Visa" for high-level talent

The new visa is designed to attract skilled individuals including technology experts, scientists, entrepreneurs and others with skills in high demand. To obtain an R visa, an applicant must qualify under Category A, meeting certain requirements including:

• Qualifications of the Chinese entity inviting the applicant;
• The applicant’s professional work experience;
• The applicant’s salary; or
• Successfully meeting the required score of 85 on the new scoring system.

This visa will be an attractive option over the Business M visa (which is only valid for 90 days per entry) and also extends to the applicant’s dependants. The process is also expected to be more efficient compared to the Business M visa or the Z visa for work. However, the R visa may not be readily available in all the cities and provinces in China.