According to China's law and regulations, within 24 hours of arriving in China, all foreigners must be registered at the local police station near their residence (hotel or apartment).
- If you are staying in a hotel or service apartment, the reception will automatically ask for your passport for registration.
- If you live in an apartment or share an apartment with your friend, you should personally go to the local police station with your passport and rental contract to obtain the white temporary residence sheet free of charge.
The following situations ask foreigners to update their Registration Form of Temporary Residence:
- Move to a new address;
- Change a new passport;
- Change visa category;
- Renew/extend visa;
- Re-enter China (even with the same visa, but not for residence permit holder).
When you get it, you will find different names on the form: Registration Form of Temporary Residence, Accommodation Registration Form or REGISTRATION VOUCHER OF RESIDENCE FOR VISITORS FROM OVERSEAS.
Why police registration form is important in China police clearance application?
The fact is that police needs this document to tell jurisdiction, for example, you made police registration in Beijing for your time in China, Shanghai police will not accept your application.
We strongly suggest you to scan all the Registration Form of Temporary Residences you get in China for your future use.
What if I stayed in China without making police registration?
If you do not take time to deal with police registration in China, you will face a fine, according to the new China Immigration Law which came into force on the 1st of July, 2013.
China Immigration Law 2013
Article 39 Where foreiguers stay in hotels in China, the hotels shall register their accomodation in accordance with the regulations on the public security administration of the hotel industry, and submit foreigners’ accomodation registration information to the public security organs in the places where the hotels are located.
For foreigners who reside or stay in domiciles other than hotels, they or the persons who acomodate them shall, within 24 hours after the foreigners’ arrival, go through the registration formalities with the public security organs in the places of residence.
Article 76 Under any of the following circumstances, a warning shall be given, and a fine of not more than RMB 2,000 yuan may also be imposed:
(1) Foreigners refuse to accept examination of their exit/entry documents by public security organs;
(2) Foreigners refuse to submit their residence permits for examination;
(3) Persons concerned fail to go through the formalities for foreigners’ birth registration or death declaration in accordance with relevant regulations;
(4) Foreigners fail to go through the formalities for altering registration in accordance with the relevant regulations when there is any change in the registered items in their residence permits;
(5) Foreigners in China use others’ exit/entry documents;
or (6) Persons concered fail to go through registration formalities in accordance with the provisions in the second paragraph of Article 39 of this law
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