CHINA is considering relaxing its U.S.-style “green card” policy by lowering the application requirements and approval threshold, a move to attract more foreign talent.

    Authorities are deliberating revision to regulations on awarding permanent residency permits to foreigners, plus considering more flexible and pragmatic application standards, the Organizational Department of the Party Central Committee revealed yesterday.

    When the “green card” system was first introduced in China in 2004, it was intended to encourage high-level foreigners to invest in business and promote technology and culture, at the same time satisfying many foreigners’ desires to reside permanently in China. After earning a “green card,” foreigners may reside in China indefinitely, entering and exiting with just a passport and the green card itself, without the need to apply for visas.

    China grants its version of “green cards” to foreigners in certain categories, including businessmen who have invested at least US$500,000 in the country, technical personnel such as managers, people with skills “needed by the State,” and spouses of Chinese nationals.

    Other foreigners staying long term can get visas with multiple-entry permits valid for one to five years.

    Nearly 5,000 foreigners had been granted Chinese “green cards” by 2012, according to a previous Xinhua report.

    As of May 23, 1,306 foreigners had gained permanent residence in China through a foreign talent recruitment plan known as “1,000-talent plan” or through recommendations by central ministries and provincial governments, according to the department.

    (Xinhua)