The latest of a series of authentications, "signed" by Rex Tillerson
It's been a bit over two weeks since my last installment in the ongoing saga of my returning to China to teach English. I was waiting to receive these authentications from the US Department of State, the fourth layer of authentications required by the Chinese government for foreign teachers.
And I'm not done yet. There remains even more red tape to deal with.
My employer informed me that these documents (my college diploma and report of no criminal record) must now be submitted to a Chinese consular office for final authentication. And it turns out the consulates are very particular about how the documents are notarized and authenticated.
Plus, there are some pretty stiff fees involved. I'm getting the feeling my first paycheck is already been eaten up by applying for this job.
An applicant can submit the forms in person to a consulate, but as I live nowhere near one, that would require spending money on transport and lodging, which I'd just as soon skip. (Because my legal residence is in Kentucky, I would need to visit the Chinese embassy in Washington, DC.) The alternative is to pay an agency to do the legwork, which is somewhat cheaper, anywhere from $100-250 depending on the agency, with a one- to two-week turnaround time.
So, I decided to go that route. But, dear audience, there is a new problem.
To my dismay, I learned that the consulate requires diplomas to be notarized in the state in which they were issued. In my case, that means a notary in New Jersey has to verify the diploma, and the New Jersey Secretary of State office has to verify the notary public's commission and signature.
Jeez louise.
Now, it turns out the registrar of my university can provide a notarized "verification of enrollment and graduation" free of charge, in lieu of the diploma. This might save a little time. I would still need to send it the NJ state department office for authentication, then the federal State department as I did the previous documents. So, more time and of course more fees to pay.
Now I'm also concerned about the no-criminal record report, as the consular officials seem very picky about the form and origin of the reports. My future employer says they will accept the report from the Kentucky courts system, but the consulates may reject it because of some small details.
This is an awful lot of work to go through just to apply for a visa. Perhaps that's by design.
My friend in Hunan, where I had worked until June, tells me only two foreign teachers have successfully completed these new, stringent visa requirements. Hunan has at least a dozen universities requiring at least two foreign teachers each, so the new rules are making life very difficult for foreign affairs officers trying to fill positions.
With any luck, I will be filling a position in another province, Henan, next month. Whether I will be there at the start of the term Sept. 4 seems highly unlikely now. Once I get all the necessary authentications done, I still have to send the forms to my employer for them to apply for a temporary work permit, which I will need to get a China Z visa (work visa).
To be honest, this red tape is very discouraging, and I've been wondering whether returning to China will be worth all this bother. But, I suppose I need to finish what I've started, so I'm going to slog through it all in hope of a great reward at the end.
I'm going to keep on keeping on.