Education — Yiwu sets no minimum
If you assume this is closed to you because you have no degree, you are wrong. Yiwu accepts any completed level of education.
Yiwu sets no minimum level of education. Primary school, middle school, a diploma, a degree — any completed level qualifies for the work permit. This is one of the concessions Yiwu makes to foreign entrepreneurs, and it is unusual: in the larger Chinese cities a bachelor's degree is normally the floor.
We say this plainly because the person who loses most is the one who never makes contact at all, assuming that without a degree there is no route.
The second point saves real time: **company registration needs no education certificate whatsoever.** It becomes relevant only at the invitation letter stage. So do not delay registering while you chase a document you do not yet need — but know from day one that it will be needed later, so it can go through certification in the same trip as your passport.
Your level of education determines which category of work permit is issued: below bachelor's is category **C**, bachelor's up to but not including a doctorate is **B**, and a doctorate is **A**.
**In the first year all three categories are identical** in permit length. The difference appears at renewal.
**Category C carries a points requirement: at least 50 points, assessed annually, to renew the work permit.** A holder who falls short must make up the difference by paying an amount in personal income tax to the government, and only then can renew. **Categories A and B are exempt from this entirely.**
We say this at the start rather than at renewal. Everything looks identical in year one, so a cost arriving twelve months later reads — fairly — as something that was hidden. The points system itself, what earns points and what the shortfall costs, is not yet documented on our side; if it affects you we will check before answering.
What counts as a certificate
- It must be a **completion certificate** — the document stating the course of study was finished
- A mid-course or in-progress statement is not accepted
- **Transcripts are not required** — neither translated nor certified
- **The field of study does not matter** — any subject is fine
- **An old certificate is fine** — there is no age limit on it
- **A lost original is fine** — a duly issued replacement goes through the same process
Translation and certification
- 1
Translation in your country
The original is translated into English. That cost is yours — we charge nothing for any step that happens outside China.
- 2
The certification chain
The English translation goes through judiciary certification, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Chinese embassy. Send us the scan once it is complete.
- 3
Translation in Yiwu
We translate both the English version and the original document into Chinese here. That is inside the published price.
- 4
Bring the originals
When you travel, bring the original certificate and the original certified translation. Immigration may ask to check the paper against the scan.
Frequently asked questions
Do my transcripts need translating and certifying too?
No. Transcripts are not required. Anyone who certifies and translates them has paid twice for nothing: once for the extra certification at home, and again for the extra Chinese translation here.
My certificate is thirty years old. Is that a problem?
No. There is no age limit. Before the certification chain runs, the issuing authority is asked to verify it — and that is the same for an old certificate as a recent one.
Do the stamps go on the translation or on the original?
It depends on the country. In some the chain is applied to the translation; in others — Afghanistan, for example — it goes on the original certificate. Check your own country with us before starting, rather than doing it twice.
Is a certificate needed to register the company?
No. Company registration has nothing to do with education. The certificate is needed only for the invitation letter.
Talk to someone who is actually in Yiwu
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