The short answer
China’s foreign work permit system sorts applicants into three classes under the 2017 classification standard (外专发〔2017〕40号), which is still the governing framework in 2026:
| Class A | Class B | Class C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who | High-end talent | Professional talent | Ordinary talent |
| Main test | Achievement, position, salary 6×, or 85 points | Bachelor + 2 years, salary 4×, or 60 points | Quota and labor-market need |
| Age | No ceiling | Generally under 60 | Per quota |
| Processing | Green channel, often faster | Standard | Standard, quota-limited |
| Typical permit | Up to 5 years | 1–2 years, up to 5 for senior roles | Usually 1 year or less |
| Family | Spouse and children eligible | Spouse and children eligible | Case by case |
The class is not chosen for prestige. It determines which evidence the bureau will accept, how long the permit can run, and whether the applicant can still renew after 60.
Class A: the six routes
Class A is not a single test. The standard lists six independent routes, and an applicant only needs one:
- Talent programs. Selection into a talent recruitment program approved or filed by a provincial-level or higher talent authority.
- International achievement. Nobel laureates; winners of the US National Medal of Science, Turing Award, or Fields Medal; members of national academies; senior roles at international standards bodies; directors or senior researchers at national laboratories; three first- or corresponding-author papers in JCR Q1/Q2 journals; senior management at a high-level university; senior management or core R&D at a Fortune 500 headquarters; senior roles at renowned financial institutions or accounting firms; principals and professors at renowned arts institutions; chief conductors of renowned orchestras; Olympic top-eight and Asian Games top-three athletes and core coaches.
- Encouraged positions. Senior management or technical roles at central enterprises, Fortune 500 headquarters, national high-tech enterprises, national engineering research centers, or large hospitals; associate professor or above at universities and research institutes; chief conductor or principal player at a first-class orchestra; senior roles at mainstream media; main athletes and head coaches of national or provincial teams; or a salary of at least six times the local average.
- Innovation and entrepreneurship. Founders who invested proprietary technology or know-how, held at least 30% of the shares, and invested at least USD 500,000 over three consecutive years; or chairmen, legal representatives, general managers, or chief technical experts of companies with annual sales of at least RMB 10 million and annual tax payments of at least RMB 1 million for three consecutive years.
- Outstanding young talent. Applicants under 40 doing postdoctoral research at a high-level university or research institution abroad or in China.
- Points. A score of 85 or more on the points table.
The green channel is real: Class A applications are often reviewed faster, and the residence permit can run up to five years. But the evidence burden is also real. A company that writes “key technical expert” in the job description without an award, a position, a salary record, or a points worksheet is claiming a route it cannot prove.
Class B: the standard professional route
Class B is where most foreign professionals land. The standard lists several qualifying routes:
- Degree and experience. A bachelor’s degree or higher plus at least two years of relevant work experience in education, research, journalism, publishing, culture, arts, health, or sports; staff of government-to-government or international organization agreements; staff of international organizations in China; middle managers and above dispatched by multinationals; chief representatives of foreign enterprise representative offices; managers and professionals employed by Chinese entities.
- Skilled talent. An internationally recognized vocational qualification, or a skill in acute local shortage.
- Language teaching. Teaching in the native language of the applicant’s country; a bachelor’s degree plus at least two years of language teaching experience. The two-year requirement is waived with an education, language, or teacher-training degree, a home-country teaching license, or a recognized international language teaching certificate.
- Salary. At least four times the local average monthly wage.
- Points. A score of 60 or more.
- Designated personnel. People covered by specific national programs or projects.
The 60-point route is important for candidates who do not fit the degree-plus-two-years template. Points are awarded for salary, education, years of work, months worked in China per year, Chinese language level, age, location, and bonus factors. A young candidate with a master’s degree, a solid salary, and a job in an encouraged region can reach 60 without the full two years.
Class C: quota and short-term work
Class C covers everyone else who is lawfully admitted to work but does not meet A or B:
- People covered by the existing foreign employment rules.
- Temporary or short-term work of no more than 90 days.
- Quota-managed categories: foreign youth on government-to-government internship agreements, eligible foreign students, foreign graduates of overseas universities, and special sectors such as deep-sea fishing.
Class C is quota-based. The quota is set locally and can close before the year ends. That is why a graduate who qualifies on paper may still be unable to file in a popular city in the fourth quarter. The practical advice is to file early and to have a Class B points assessment ready as a fallback.
The 2026 changes that matter
Three changes in 2026 alter the class calculation:
Salary enforcement. In early February 2026, the national work-permit system began strictly verifying the salary channel. Class A requires six times and Class B four times the local average monthly wage. Applications below the threshold are blocked automatically, with little or no local discretion. In Beijing, the thresholds were RMB 71,622 and RMB 47,748 per month; in Shanghai, RMB 74,604 and RMB 49,736, based on the 2024 average wage of RMB 11,937 and RMB 12,434 respectively. The base is updated annually, usually around July, so the current figure must be checked before the offer is finalized.
Age. Class A has no age ceiling. Class B and C renewals for applicants aged 60 or over now face systematic rejection. The only route for an over-60 renewal is reclassification to Class A, which requires evidence that meets one of the six A routes. Employers should audit staff aged 55 and above well before renewal.
Filing discipline. The system now requires a continuous education and employment timeline without gaps, accepts PDFs rather than images for most documents, and restricts names to English letters and approved separators. A permit that expires during a pending extension or change can be automatically terminated. Renewal filings can be made up to 120 days before expiry, up from 90.
How to choose the class
Start with the strongest evidence, not the desired label:
- If the candidate has an international award, a senior position at a recognized institution, a qualifying investment, a postdoc under 40, or a salary at six times the local average, test Class A first.
- If not, test Class B through the degree-plus-experience route, the salary route, and the points route. File the one with the cleanest documentary trail.
- If the role is short-term, quota-based, or the candidate is a recent graduate, test Class C — and confirm the local quota before promising a start date.
A classification assessment costs far less than a refusal. For the filing service, see Foreign Work Permit. For the documents that support each class, read China Work Visa Requirements.