外国人和用人单位签订了劳动合同，是否就能合法在中国就业？
Can I legally work in China after signing a labor contract with the employer?
根据国家统计局公布的《第七次全国人口普查公报（第八号）》文件显示，截至2020年11月1日，在我国居留的港澳台居民及外籍人员合计1,430,695人，而其中以就业为目的在华居留的就有444,336人。伴随着来华就业的外国人不断增加，外籍人员与用人单位的劳动争议案件也呈现逐年上升的趋势。本专题系列将就笔者实务中接触的外籍人员与用人单位劳动争议的常见问题进行探讨。
According to the "Seventh National Population Census Bulletin (No. 8)" document released by the National Bureau of Statistics, as of November 1, 2020, there were a total amount of 1,430,695 Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan residents and foreigners residing in China, of which 444,336 were staying in China for employment purposes. With the increasing number of foreigners coming to work in China, the labor dispute cases between foreigners and employers have also shown an upward trend year by year. This article will discuss the common questions of labor disputes between the foreigners and employers that the author has been asked in practice.
不同于内地及港澳台地区居民，我国对于外籍人员在中国就业的，仍然保留了就业许可制度。根据《中华人民共和国出境入境管理法》第四十一条之规定：“外国人在中国境内工作，应当按照规定取得工作许可和工作类居留证件。任何单位和个人不得聘用未取得工作许可和工作类居留证件的外国人。”《外国人在中国就业管理规定》第八条规定：“在中国就业的外国人应持Z字签证入境（有互免签证协议的，按协议办理），入境后取得《外国人就业证》（以下简称就业证）和外国人居留证件，方可在中国境内就业。”而根据《最高人民法院关于审理劳动争议案件适用法律问题的解释（一）》第三十三条规定：“外国人、无国籍人未依法取得就业证件即与中华人民共和国境内的用人单位签订劳动合同，当事人请求确认与用人单位存在劳动关系的，人民法院不予支持。”
Unlike the policies to the residents of the Mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, China still retains an employment permit system for foreigners employed in China. According to the Article 41 of the Exit and Entry Administration Law of the People’s Republic of China,“Foreigners who work in China shall obtain work permits and work-type residence permits in accordance with relevant regulations. No entities or individuals shall employ foreigners who have no work permits or work-type residence permits.”
The Article 8 of the Provisions on the Administration of the Employment of Foreigners in China also states that“A foreigner seeking employment in China shall enter China with a Z visa (in case of an agreement for mutual exemption of visas, the agreement shall prevail), and may work inside Chinese only after he or she has obtained an Employment Permit (hereinafter referred to as an “Employment Permit”) and a residence permit for foreigners in China.”
Also, according to the Ariticle 33 of Interpretation (I) of the Supreme People's Court of Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Labor Dispute Cases, “Where a foreigner or stateless person signs a labor contract with an employer within the territory of the People's Republic of China without obtaining an employment permit in accordance with law, and the parties request confirmation of the existence of an employment relationship with the employer, the people's court shall not support it”
由此可见，外籍劳动者想要与用人单位建立合法的用工关系，除了签订劳动合同之外，还需要持有有效的工作许可证件。实务中，劳动仲裁委员会在受案时往往会先行审查外籍劳动者是否持有合法有效的工作许可，如无法提供则其劳动关系会被认定为无效。劳动者已提供劳动的，只能依照《中华人民共和国劳动合同法》第二十八条向用人单位主张劳动报酬。
It can be seen that if a foreign employee wants to establish a legal employment relationship with the employer, in addition to signing a labor contract, he or she also needs to hold a valid work permit. In practice, when accepting a case, the Labor Arbitration Commission will often first examine whether the foreign worker holds a legal and valid work permit, and if it is impossible to provide it, the labor relationship will be found to be invalid. If the employee has provided labor, he can only claim labor remuneration from the employer in accordance with Article 28 of the Labor Contract Law of the People's Republic of China, however, any claim of compensation will not be supported.
If you want to know more knowledge about foreigners working in China, please follow us. For more specific labor dispute consultations, please contact Lawyer Chen on wechat
Can I legally work in China after signing a labor contract with the employer?
根据国家统计局公布的《第七次全国人口普查公报（第八号）》文件显示，截至2020年11月1日，在我国居留的港澳台居民及外籍人员合计1,430,695人，而其中以就业为目的在华居留的就有444,336人。伴随着来华就业的外国人不断增加，外籍人员与用人单位的劳动争议案件也呈现逐年上升的趋势。本专题系列将就笔者实务中接触的外籍人员与用人单位劳动争议的常见问题进行探讨。
According to the "Seventh National Population Census Bulletin (No. 8)" document released by the National Bureau of Statistics, as of November 1, 2020, there were a total amount of 1,430,695 Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan residents and foreigners residing in China, of which 444,336 were staying in China for employment purposes. With the increasing number of foreigners coming to work in China, the labor dispute cases between foreigners and employers have also shown an upward trend year by year. This article will discuss the common questions of labor disputes between the foreigners and employers that the author has been asked in practice.
不同于内地及港澳台地区居民，我国对于外籍人员在中国就业的，仍然保留了就业许可制度。根据《中华人民共和国出境入境管理法》第四十一条之规定：“外国人在中国境内工作，应当按照规定取得工作许可和工作类居留证件。任何单位和个人不得聘用未取得工作许可和工作类居留证件的外国人。”《外国人在中国就业管理规定》第八条规定：“在中国就业的外国人应持Z字签证入境（有互免签证协议的，按协议办理），入境后取得《外国人就业证》（以下简称就业证）和外国人居留证件，方可在中国境内就业。”而根据《最高人民法院关于审理劳动争议案件适用法律问题的解释（一）》第三十三条规定：“外国人、无国籍人未依法取得就业证件即与中华人民共和国境内的用人单位签订劳动合同，当事人请求确认与用人单位存在劳动关系的，人民法院不予支持。”
Unlike the policies to the residents of the Mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, China still retains an employment permit system for foreigners employed in China. According to the Article 41 of the Exit and Entry Administration Law of the People’s Republic of China,“Foreigners who work in China shall obtain work permits and work-type residence permits in accordance with relevant regulations. No entities or individuals shall employ foreigners who have no work permits or work-type residence permits.”
The Article 8 of the Provisions on the Administration of the Employment of Foreigners in China also states that“A foreigner seeking employment in China shall enter China with a Z visa (in case of an agreement for mutual exemption of visas, the agreement shall prevail), and may work inside Chinese only after he or she has obtained an Employment Permit (hereinafter referred to as an “Employment Permit”) and a residence permit for foreigners in China.”
Also, according to the Ariticle 33 of Interpretation (I) of the Supreme People's Court of Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Labor Dispute Cases, “Where a foreigner or stateless person signs a labor contract with an employer within the territory of the People's Republic of China without obtaining an employment permit in accordance with law, and the parties request confirmation of the existence of an employment relationship with the employer, the people's court shall not support it”
由此可见，外籍劳动者想要与用人单位建立合法的用工关系，除了签订劳动合同之外，还需要持有有效的工作许可证件。实务中，劳动仲裁委员会在受案时往往会先行审查外籍劳动者是否持有合法有效的工作许可，如无法提供则其劳动关系会被认定为无效。劳动者已提供劳动的，只能依照《中华人民共和国劳动合同法》第二十八条向用人单位主张劳动报酬。
It can be seen that if a foreign employee wants to establish a legal employment relationship with the employer, in addition to signing a labor contract, he or she also needs to hold a valid work permit. In practice, when accepting a case, the Labor Arbitration Commission will often first examine whether the foreign worker holds a legal and valid work permit, and if it is impossible to provide it, the labor relationship will be found to be invalid. If the employee has provided labor, he can only claim labor remuneration from the employer in accordance with Article 28 of the Labor Contract Law of the People's Republic of China, however, any claim of compensation will not be supported.
If you want to know more knowledge about foreigners working in China, please follow us. For more specific labor dispute consultations, please contact Lawyer Chen on wechat