There is not a specific visa to look for job in China and the Government, as in many countries, is not happy to receive foreigners who don’t have work. You can use a tourist (L) or business (F) visa to enter the country if you would like to discreetly look for work. Please see the previous section, “You want to go on reconnaissance” for more information. If you find a work, you will have to leave the country and come back again, since is not possible to change to a work visa (Z) from another type of visa within the country. Consult “You have a work and need to relocate” for more details.
Once you have one of those visas, you should enter into the country without problems. In case you are questioned by immigration at the border, keep calm. Explain that you are visiting the country for tourism. If you already know some Mandarin, refrain from using any. This is important for two reasons: a tourist who knows Mandarin could be suspicious and, most importantly, many immigration officers have a very limited knowledge of English. Most of the time they will let you go without asking any further questions just to avoid losing face by showing limited language skills.
