Employment and labor laws vary from country to country. This guide is intended to provide the most up to date information available. We will update this guide as needed when changes are made to the laws.
Employment Contracts
Employers are legally required to provide formal written contracts for all employees that include salary/wage, termination terms, job title, etc. The contracts must be written in Chinese and use the Chinese Yuan currency (CNY).
Working Hours
Standard working hours within China are 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week. The maximum number of working hours per week is 45.
Overtime
All work above the standard weekly working hours is paid as overtime and regulated by employment contract/collective agreements. In general, no more than one hour of overtime a day is permitted except in exceptional circumstances. Overtime can increase to 3 hours a day with a maximum for the month of 36 hours.
Overtime is paid at 150.00% of the standard salary rate for weekday work, increasing to 200.00% for weekends.
Public Holidays
There are 11 public holidays, however, some regions have additional holidays.
Working on public holidays is uncommon in China, but if an employee is required to work the overtime payment is generally paid at 300% of the hourly rate. The hourly rate is calculated by using the monthly salary rate for the employee divided by 174 (average number of working hours in a month).
For the year 2024:
- Jan 1: New Year’s Eve
- Feb 10: Lunar New Year
- Feb 11-17: Spring Festival
- Mar 8: International Women’s Day (not mandatory)
- Apr 4-6: Qing Ming Jie Holidays
- May 1-5: International Labor Day and extended holidays
- Jun 10: Dragon Boat Festival
- Sep 15-17: Mid-Autumn Festival
- Oct 1-5: National Day
Annual Leave (vacation)
Paid leave in China is set in the employment contract and is dependent upon the years of employment. Paid leave is in addition to all public holidays.
For an employee within the first year of employment, there is no entitlement for paid annual leave. However, after completing the first year up to the tenth year, the employee is entitled to 5 days of paid leave. This increases to 10 days for employees within 10 to 20 years of service and a maximum of 15 days paid leave for employees who have completed 20 years’ service or more.
Sick Leave
Sick pay in China is outlined in the employment contract and depends on the years of employment, the actual amount of sick leave, and the provision of a professional medical certificate. Some of the regulations regarding the calculation for sick pay are made at a local level, e.g., there are differences between Shanghai and Beijing. However, in general, the process is as follows:
The amount of paid sick leave entitlement is based on the number of years’ service:
- Less than five years entitles the employee to 3 months sick leave
- 5 – 10 years’ service entitles the employee to between 6 to 9 months sick leave (region-specific)
- 10 – 15 years’ service entitles the employee to between 12 to 18 months sick leave(region-specific)
- 15 – 20 years’ service entitles the employee to 18 months, and more than 20 years’ service entitles the employee to up to 24 months’ sick leave.
The entitlement for sick pay payment is also based on the number of years’ service; for sick leave of fewer than six months in length, the calculation is as follows:
- Less than two years of employment- 60.00% of the regular wages
- 2-4 years of employment- 70.00% of the regular wages
- 4-6 years of employment- 80.00% of the regular wages
- 6-8 years of employment- 90.00% of the regular wages
- 8+ years of employment- 100.00% of the regular wages
The entitlement for sick pay payment is also based on the number of years’ service for sick leave of more than six months in length; the calculation is as follows:
- Less than 1 year of employment- 40.00% of the regular wages
- 1-3 years of employment- 50.00% of the regular wages
- 3+ years of employment- 60.00% of the regular wages
Maternity and Paternity
Maternity Leave
Female employees are entitled to basic Maternity leave of 98 days, which can be taken from 15 days prior to the expected date of childbirth. Each individual province also has entitlement to extended maternity leave, up to a total maternity leave period of:
- Chongqing, Guangdong – 178 days
- Tianjin – 128 days
- Henan, Hainan – 190 days
- Jiangxi, Hebei (for the third child), Zhejiang (for the third child) – 188 days
- Gansu, Heilongjiang, Fujian – 180 days
- Guangxi – 148 days
- Jiangsu – 128 days:
- Other regions (including Beijing) – 158 days
The calculation of the maternity payment is made by the Social Security Bureau (where the employee is registered) and is typically based on the average monthly salary across the year preceding the due date, or 3x the minimum wage, whichever is greater. However, calculation of basic and extended maternity leave can vary per province regulations.
Additional leave entitlement is also in place as follows:
- Prenatal examination includes doctor visits during the first 12 weeks.
- Difficult delivery – leave days of natural delivery + 15 days
- Multiple deliveries – leave days of natural delivery + 15 days + 15 days extra per baby
- Prenatal leave: After 7th month of pregnancy can avail 1-hour day break. May also avail 2.5 months prenatal leave upon employer approval.
- Breastfeeding leave: For a child less than a year old, female employees may have up to two feeding periods per day (30 minutes per baby). Travel time for the same period shall be counted as working time. Alternatively, after childbirth, female employees may also apply for leave of 6.5 months upon employer approval. With maternity insurance (a part of Social Security Insurance), the employee is compensated with an allowance rather than her normal salary during maternity leave.
- Abortion or Miscarriage within first 4 months – 15 days
- Abortion or Miscarriage after first 4 months – 42 days
Termination of workers during pregnancy and within 1 year from Childbirth, is not permitted.
Paternity Leave
Male employees requesting paternity leave are, in the plurality of regions, entitled to 15 days. However, this may vary by location. The following are the cities that do not follow the 15-day norm:
- Tianjin, Shandong – 7 days
- Shanghai – 10 days
- Liaoning, Chongqing, Sichuan, Hunan – 20 days
- Ningxia, Guangxi, Inner Mongolia – 25 days
- He’nan, Jiangxi, Anhui, Yunnan, Gansu – 30 days
Parental Leave
Parents are entitled to paid Childcare leave, the length of which is determined by each individual province as follows:
- Beijing & Shanghai: 5 days’ childcare leave each year until their child reaches three years old.
- Fujian, Guangxi, Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang, Liaoning, Hebei, Jiangxi, Jiangsu, Sichuan, Guizhou, Zhejiang, Tianjin, Ningxia, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Hainan, Xinjiang, Shandong, and Guangdong: 10 days leave each year for couples with children under the age of three years old.
- Anhui: 10 days leave per parent each year until their child is six years old.
- Yunnan: 10 days leave per year can be taken by either parent who has children under the age of three years old. An additional 5 days of leave can be taken per year by parents who have more than two children under the age of three years old.
- Shanxi, Qinghai & Gansu: 15 days leave each year to couples with children under the age of three years old.
- Chongqing: Two options on how to use this leave (1) After the Maternity/Paternity leave expires either parent can take childcare leave until the child reaches one year old; or (2) both parents can take 5 to 10 days of leave each year until the child reaches six years old.
Other Leave
In China, In the event of the death of an immediate family member, an employee is entitled to up to three days’ leave, depending on the employment contract and region.
In the event of an employee’s marriage, an employee is entitled to between three and ten days’ leave, depending on the employment contract and region.
Employee Severance and Terminations
Termination Process
The termination process varies according to the employment agreement and collective agreement in place and is based on the type of contract, job role, region, and reason for termination.
Notice Period
Notice periods in China are generally set at 30 days, and if notice isn’t given, the employer can provide payment in lieu. The workers are required to give 30-day notices to their employers before they leave.
Severance Pay
In China, severance pay is mandatory if applicable. Still, the amount differs based on the length of service; for less than 6 months of service, half a month’s pay. After 6 months the pay is 1 month pay per year of service. An employee can be entitled to one month of regular salary pay for every year of service completed, up to a maximum of 3x the minimum wage but for no more than 12 months.
Probation Period
The probation period in China is up to 6 months for indefinite contracts and 1 to 2 months on fixed term contracts depending on length of employment.
Payroll Cycle
The payroll cycle in China is generally monthly, and payments are made on the last working day.
The National minimum wage in China differs per region; the most common minimums include 2,320 CNY in Beijing, and 2,590 CNY in Shanghai.
13th Salary
In China, it is customary to pay a 13th-month or even 14th-month salary during the month of the Lunar New Year or Spring Holiday. This will be stipulated within the employment contract.
Contributions
Beijing: Employer Payroll Contributions
Private Pension Reform
The pilot phase of the new private pension scheme was officially launched in November 2022 in 36 cities and is initially set to last a year before being implemented at a wider scale. The first batch of eligible cities include Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Tianjin, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, and Chengdu. The Chinese government has not yet determined when the implementation will be expanded to cover all cities in China.
Participation in the private pension plan will be open to all Chinese citizens and resident workers who currently contribute to the basic pension insurance for urban employees or the basic pension insurance for urban and rural residents.
Participants will be allowed to make voluntary contributions of up to RMB 12,000 per year into their individual pension accounts.
VISA
The employer must sponsor the visa and must be an accredited company that may hire foreign employees. The employee must be a certified foreign expert in the field they will be working.
In China, there is an age limit for male and female applicants for a work visa; for male applicants, the age limit is 24-65, and for female employees, the age limit is 24-55. The employer must send a government-issued employment permit and visa notification letter to the employee, executed and submitted to the Chinese government.
A Z Visa is valid for only 30 days upon arrival, and then during this time, the employer must apply for a temporary residence permit on behalf of the employee. The Z visa is valid for 90 days up to 50 years.
Other visa options include the R Visa for highly skilled people in great demand in China and the J Visa for journalists.
The process usually takes about 8 weeks to complete.
VAT
The average standard rate of VAT is 13.00%.