Off-campus work-study paperwork: the agreement, the school's letter and the permit endorsement

Sources checked 11 October 2026 · After arrival

Off-campus work-study in mainland China needs a signed agreement with the employer, a copy of that agreement filed with your school, and an endorsement on your residence permit that names the work unit and the period. Article 11 of the Measures requires the endorsement application within ten days, and a residence permit without the endorsement may not be used for off-campus work-study. The papers below follow the order the official texts give.

The Measures for the Administration of Work-Study by International Students at Higher Education Institutions (notice 教外厅〔2021〕2号, Ministry of Education) and the National Immigration Administration service guide are Chinese texts. The English wording on this page is this site's translation. The Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Administration of the Entry and Exit of Foreigners are quoted from the English text published by the National Immigration Administration.

Papers in filing order

Work through these steps in order. Each step names the article it comes from.

Sign the agreement with the employer.
Submit a copy of the agreement to the school for filing (备案). (Measures, Article 10)
Submit a unilateral letter of undertaking with the copy, covering commitments on matters such as risk bearing. (Measures, Article 10)
Hold the agreement, the school's certification letter and the related materials. (Measures, Article 11)
Within ten days, apply to the exit-entry administration of the public security organ where the school is located, to have the work unit and period endorsed on your residence permit. (Measures, Article 11)

Article 11 says the application is made "in accordance with the relevant rules" within ten days. It names no form number, so ask the exit-entry administration which form it uses.

Article 11 says that a residence permit without this endorsement may not be used for off-campus work-study: "持用未加注勤工助学相关信息的居留证不得进行校外勤工助学活动。"

If the employer or the period changes

Article 11, second paragraph, covers a change of work unit or period.

Hold a new agreement and a new school certification letter.
Within ten days, apply to the local exit-entry administration for a change to the endorsement.

If the work-study ends

Article 11, third paragraph, covers termination.

If the work-study ends because the employer has suspended the agreement or for similar reasons, submit a written report to the school within ten days.
Then handle the change to the endorsement with the local exit-entry administration.

Article 11's third paragraph sets the ten-day limit for the report to the school. The same sentence gives no separate time limit for the endorsement change.

The six basic conditions in Article 9

Article 9 says these are the basic conditions for off-campus work-study. There are six:

aged 18 or over, and physically fit for the work-study post;
holding a valid study-type residence document in China, with remaining validity of six months or more;
abiding by Chinese laws, regulations and school rules and discipline, with good conduct and performance, and with no criminal or illegal record and no violation of school rules or discipline;
having studied continuously for one year or more at the current school as an undergraduate or specialist-college student, a graduate student, an advanced-study student or a research scholar;
meeting the school's requirements for academic progress and attendance;
meeting any other conditions the school sets.

Area and period: Article 12

Article 12 limits the area to the prefecture-level administrative area where the school is located.

Article 12 also sets the period. In the Chinese text: "每次申请勤工助学期限不超过学习类居留许可有效期，且最长不超过一年。" In this site's translation, each application may cover a period of no more than the validity of the study-type residence permit, and no more than one year at most.

The Regulations, Article 22

Article 22 of the English text of the Regulations says: "A foreigner holding a residence permit for study shall not engage in any off-campus work-study or internship unless the information prescribed in the preceding paragraph is specified in his or her residence permit."

The first paragraph of Article 22 says that such a foreigner "shall, upon the approval of the school, apply to the exit and entry administration authority of the public security organ to have such information as the location and duration of the work-study program or internship placement specified in his or her residence permit."

Article 22 refers to the school's approval. Article 10 of the Measures uses filing (备案) for the copy of the agreement. These are two separate provisions in two separate documents, and the steps above keep them apart.

What the service guide says

Item 2 under the study category (学习类) in the National Immigration Administration service guide for residence permits says, in this site's translation, that a foreigner holding a study-type residence permit who needs work-study or off-campus internship shall submit letters of consent to the work-study or off-campus internship issued by the school where he or she studies and by the internship unit. The same item says the foreigner then applies to the public security exit-entry administration for the endorsement on the residence permit.

Item 2 sets no deadline for that application. The Measures set the ten-day limit in Article 11.

Hours and pay

This page does not cover working hours or pay. Check the Measures and your school's own rules on those points.

A planning suggestion (not a rule)

Keep the agreement, the filed copy with the letter of undertaking, and the school's certification letter together. Article 11 asks you to hold the agreement, the school's letter and related materials when you apply.

For the visa and residence permit steps around this, see the X1 and X2 student visa and residence permit guide.

Sources

Checked 11 October 2026

This page is an unofficial summary. It is not published by or affiliated with the Ministry of Education, the China Scholarship Council, the National Immigration Administration, any embassy or any university, and it is not legal advice. If the official text and the current notice of the office handling your case differ, the official text and that notice prevail.