Regulations of Guangzhou City Encouraging Overseas Students to Work in Guangzhou

(Promulgated by Guangzhou Municipal People's Government Order No. 76 on July 8, 2012; first revised by Guangzhou Municipal People's Government Order No. 126 on July 1, 2015; second revised by Guangzhou Municipal People's Government Order No. 132 on September 30, 2015; third revised by Guangzhou Municipal People's Government Order No. 168 on November 14, 2019)

Article 1In order to encourage overseas-educated personnel to work in Guangzhou, leverage their expertise and international connections, and build a city strong in talent, these Provisions are formulated based on the actual conditions of this municipality.

Article 2Overseas-educated personnel meeting any of the following conditions, upon verification and obtaining relevant certificates, may enjoy the preferential treatment stipulated in these Provisions:

(1) Individuals who have studied abroad at state expense or at their own expense and obtained a master’s degree or higher from a foreign institution;

(2) Individuals who have obtained a postgraduate degree or a master’s degree within China, then pursued further studies or served as visiting scholars abroad for one year or more, or conducted postdoctoral research and achieved certain scientific research results.

Persons who have pursued degrees, served as visiting scholars, or conducted postdoctoral research in Hong Kong, Macao, or Taiwan, and meet the educational qualifications, degrees, and achievement requirements specified in subparagraphs (1) and (2) above, shall be governed by these Provisions by analogy.

Article 3The ways in which overseas-educated personnel may work in Guangzhou include:

(1) Taking up positions or holding concurrent posts in government organs, enterprises, public institutions, and other organizations;

(2) Founding, contracting, or leasing various economic entities and research and development institutions;

(3) Contributing patents, proprietary technologies, capital, or other assets as equity investments in enterprises of various types;

(4) Being hired as consultants or expert advisors to government organs and public institutions;

(5) Coming to Guangzhou to engage in scientific research cooperation, technological development, and related activities.

Article 4Overseas-educated personnel working in Guangzhou shall adhere to the principles of freedom of movement, ease of entry and exit, alignment between education and employment, and full utilization of talents.

Article 5The Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau is the competent authority responsible for the service and management of overseas-educated personnel in this municipality.

The Guangzhou Center for Overseas-Educated Personnel Services is an institution providing comprehensive services to overseas-educated personnel, specifically responsible for liaison, reception, consultation, issuance of relevant certificates, information exchange, assistance with applications, and handling administrative procedures for those coming to work in Guangzhou.

Article 6The municipal government has established a special fund for overseas-educated personnel, intended to improve living conditions and working environments for those coming to work in Guangzhou, as well as to provide financial support for short-term visits, lectures, technical assistance, promotion of research outcomes, and participation in international academic exchanges and collaborations.

Article 7The remuneration of overseas-educated personnel shall be determined through negotiation between the employing unit and the individual, with favorable terms. For those employed by enterprises, salary standards may be set independently according to circumstances; for those employed by public institutions, salaries may be determined favorably in comparison with similar staff within the same unit.

Article 8The years of service completed by overseas-educated personnel before and after studying abroad shall be combined in accordance with national regulations on length of service and may be regarded as equivalent to years of pension insurance contributions. Similarly, periods of social medical insurance contributions both before and after overseas study may be combined.

For overseas-educated personnel who have obtained master’s or doctoral degrees, the time spent pursuing such degrees shall be counted as continuous years of service.

Article 9Upon returning to China, overseas-educated personnel may directly apply for evaluation of professional and technical qualification levels corresponding to their actual professional competence and abilities during their initial application. Specific eligibility criteria, procedures, and channels shall be implemented in accordance with relevant regulations.

High-level overseas-educated personnel working in Guangzhou, based on their educational background, academic standing, or professional expertise, and subject to personnel management authorities, may, after review by the competent department and confirmation by the human resources and social security authorities at the same level, be directly appointed to corresponding professional and technical positions without being restricted by their length of service or the structural proportions of professional positions within the employing organization.

For the purposes of these Provisions, “high-level overseas-educated personnel” refers to individuals who, after studying abroad, have engaged in related professional work overseas and achieved significant accomplishments, representing urgently needed high-caliber talents for this municipality, as well as those possessing patents or proprietary technologies with promising prospects for industrial development.

Article 10The municipal human resources and social security department designates talent agencies to provide two years of free personnel agency services to overseas-educated personnel arriving in Guangzhou.

Overseas-educated personnel who have availed themselves of personnel agency services may, in accordance with national regulations, proceed with matters such as professional and technical qualification assessment, political reviews for overseas travel, and social insurance registration.

Article 11Overseas-educated personnel settling in Guangzhou, together with their accompanying spouses and minor children, may, using the “Guangzhou Urban Household Registration Card” and relevant certificates issued by the municipal human resources and social security department, complete household registration procedures at local public security organs.

Spouses who hold Chinese passports and have continuously resided overseas for one year or more, including those who have given birth abroad or conceived abroad and returned to mainland China to deliver their second child, may register their children as residents of Guangzhou along with their parents.

Article 12Enrollment of children of overseas-educated personnel into kindergartens and daycare centers shall be arranged with assistance from local education authorities and relevant departments; compulsory education shall be provided by the district education bureau where they reside, with admission to nearby schools without examination; and during unified admissions examinations for senior secondary schools, they shall receive preferential treatment as students temporarily residing elsewhere.

Daycare centers, kindergartens, youth palaces, and schools shall not charge any fees beyond those prescribed or approved by the price control authorities when admitting children of overseas-educated personnel.

Article 13Overseas-educated personnel holding Chinese passports but not yet registered as permanent residents in Guangzhou may, with relevant certificates issued by the municipal human resources and social security department, enjoy the same housing purchase benefits as local residents.

Overseas-educated personnel meeting any of the following conditions, upon presenting property ownership certificates for housing purchased in Guangzhou, pre-sale registration certificates for commercial housing, tax payment receipts for deed tax, or house rental contracts, may apply to the human resources and social security department for settlement subsidies funded by the special fund for overseas-educated personnel:

(1) Those who have obtained a doctoral degree overseas;

(2) Those who have conducted postdoctoral research abroad;

(3) Those who have obtained a master’s degree overseas and possess at least five years of overseas professional work experience in their respective fields;

(4) Other overseas-educated personnel as determined by official assessment.

Article 14Employers shall prioritize resolving accommodation issues for overseas-educated personnel coming to work in Guangzhou. Those eligible for talent apartments may apply to rent units from the Guangzhou Talent Apartments program. Detailed management measures will be separately formulated by the municipal human resources and social security department in collaboration with the municipal land and housing administration department.

Article 15Overseas-educated personnel holding Chinese passports who are hired by municipal-affiliated units in Guangzhou or invest in establishing enterprises there may, as needed, apply for multiple-entry permits for travel to and from Hong Kong and Macao or approval documents for overseas assignments.

Overseas-educated personnel working in Guangzhou may enjoy expedited processing channels and flexible timelines when applying for multiple-entry permits and visas for Hong Kong and Macao.

For overseas-educated personnel selected for Guangzhou-level or higher talent programs or who have acquired foreign nationality, public security organs may issue them “Foreigner Residence Permits” valid for two to five years, as per regulations.

Article 16From the date of graduation abroad, overseas-educated personnel who have stayed overseas for no more than two years and entered the country for the first time within one year of graduation may apply to customs for purchasing one duty-free domestically produced compact car.

Article 17The municipal government has established a special fund to support entrepreneurship among overseas-educated personnel, aimed at assisting them in founding enterprises in Guangzhou that align with the city’s economic and social development directions, possess broad market prospects, or yield significant social benefits.

Article 18The proportion of intellectual property rights and other scientifically valuable achievements—evaluable in monetary terms and legally transferable—as equity contributions made by overseas-educated personnel toward a company’s registered capital shall be agreed upon by all contributing parties through legal consultation.

When overseas-educated personnel establish partnerships by contributing intellectual property, the valuation process may either be determined through consensus among all partners or entrusted to a legally recognized appraisal agency.

Contributions involving state-owned assets must comply with relevant regulations governing state asset management.

Article 19Enterprises founded in Guangzhou by overseas-educated personnel using their own patents or proprietary technologies, once certified as high-tech enterprises, shall enjoy preferential treatment accorded to such enterprises.

Article 20Overseas-educated personnel who use Guangzhou as the filing address for patent applications and obtain overseas patents may apply to the municipal human resources and social security department for financial support.

Article 21The municipal science and technology administrative department shall fully leverage the guiding role of performance evaluations for incubators and makerspaces, encouraging incubation facilities across the city to actively attract entrepreneurial projects and enterprises initiated by overseas-educated personnel, granting additional points in performance assessments based on actual introduction results. Eligible high-tech成果转化and industrialization projects may be recommended to sub-funds under the Guangzhou Science and Technology Achievement Industrialization Guidance Fund or to guarantee institutions for loans to technology-based small and medium-sized enterprises.

Article 22The municipal government encourages and supports the establishment of innovation and entrepreneurship bases for overseas-educated personnel.

Enterprises founded by overseas-educated personnel, entrepreneurship parks dedicated to them, and organizations welcoming overseas-educated personnel may apply to become Guangzhou Overseas High-Level Talent Innovation and Entrepreneurship Bases.

Once designated as Guangzhou Overseas High-Level Talent Innovation and Entrepreneurship Bases or selected as National Overseas High-Level Talent Innovation and Entrepreneurship Bases, appropriate financial support and supplementary funds will be allocated by the municipal treasury.

Article 23The municipal government conducts an annual selection of the “Top Ten Outstanding Returned Overseas-Educated Personnel of Guangzhou,” honoring and rewarding those who have made outstanding contributions to the city’s economic development, scientific progress, and social advancement.

Article 24The municipal statistics department shall establish a statistical system for returned overseas-educated personnel and publicly disclose relevant statistical information.

The municipal human resources and social security department shall establish databases for returned overseas-educated personnel and those who have studied abroad, enabling resource sharing and supporting talent selection processes.

Article 25Overseas-educated personnel who have already received other comparable financial assistance from this municipality shall not simultaneously benefit from the financial aid stipulated in these Provisions.

Article 26If overseas-educated personnel encounter labor disputes with their employers during their employment in Guangzhou, they may apply to the municipal labor dispute arbitration commission for arbitration.

Article 27The project funding and subsidy mechanisms covered by these Provisions shall be separately formulated within one year of the implementation of these Provisions by the municipal departments of human resources and social security, science and technology, and intellectual property, in coordination with the municipal finance department, each according to its respective functions.

Article 28These Provisions shall come into force on October 1, 2012. The “Guangzhou Regulations on Encouraging Overseas-Educated Personnel to Work in Guangzhou,” promulgated on December 25, 1999, shall be simultaneously repealed.