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Draft law targets work permits

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The minimum length for residential work permits for foreigners will be slashed from 180 days to just 90, according to the latest draft of a new immigration law currently under review.

The draft law on exit-entry administration is receiving its third review from the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress that commenced on Tuesday.

Zhang Bailin, vice-chairman of the NPC Law Committee, said the change was put forward because "some foreigners who come to China for temporary work stay less than half a year".

If passed, the law will affect foreigners on short-term projects, analysts said, although long-term residents will still be able to apply for permits from 180 days to five years.

Foreigners employed in China are required to obtain residential work permits. But as the minimum length of the permit is six months, those who come to China to work for example, for one month, also get a residential permit for 180 days.

"Some people simply don't need a six-month permit," said Liu Guofu, an immigration law professor at the Beijing Institute of Technology.

Liu indicated that there might be management loopholes.

"For example, some employees receive housing and transport subsidies as long as they are still in China, but they may have finished the project that they came for," he said.

"So, instead of issuing a universal certificate, it will be more economical for governments and companies to issue a certificate with a time period according to the project."