To standardize the practice for companies to pay social insurance for foreign employees, Chinese authorities issued the “Notice on the issues of foreign employees employed in China joining the social insurance scheme” on December 2, 2011.

Paperwork needed for social insurance registration:

1. Foreigners joining the social insurance for the first time need to submit passports, foreigner employment permits, employment contracts or contracts of dispatched workers and foreigner permanent residence certificates.

2. Foreign companies’ representative offices in Shanghai have to submit approval documents for the setting up of these representative offices and the representative offices’ organization code certificates.

Issues on double paid insurance

Foreigners from a country which has social insurance agreements with China (only South Korea and Germany at present) can submit approval of social insurance membership in their home country within three months of obtaining foreigner employment permit documents in China, and be exempt from paying social insurance on the list of agreements. For social insurance beyond the list, foreign employees still have to pay in China. For employees from other foreign countries, such as Japan, which hasn’t signed the agreements with China, have to pay the social insurance, although it may bring up the problems of double paying.

Social insurance benefits:

1. Foreign employees can get the pensions from 60 years old for men and 50 years old for women if they have paid for at least 15 years for social insurance in China.

2. Birth insurance: According to the Notice, birth insurance should be paid by the Birth Insurance Fund and the detailed items are set by local authorities. In Shanghai, the birth insurance includes two items: birth allowance and birth medical care allowance.