Pros: The locals are already used to foreigners. You can find new things to do every day. You are able to start new courses in flower ornamentation, Taiji, water color painting, cooking and so on, at an affordable cost. You are able to travel around the city or to inner China. Lifestyle is not cheap for foreigners, if you choose to live the normal expat lifestyle. You can choose to live more like locals, which is incredibly inexpensive and, most of the time, very good! * Night life is especially good for young guys or gays. Huge, huge night life options with endless restaurant possibilities ? cars, clubs etc. * Community life is perfect for families, if you can afford the high costs. * You can find churches and mosques easily. * Highly safe, in my opinion. * No dress code ? even at midnight, young girls walk around in mini-skirts.
Cons: Very expensive city for the typical accommodation for foreigners. * Not easy to communicate in public ? English is not common. Basic Mandarin is definitely recommended to get around every day. * Just pay attention to your bags in very crowded local markets and on public transport. * When people walk past you, they often brush you with your arms, and tend not to say sorry. Bumping into you is apparently not a problem to locals, so try to get used to it. Same for queue-jumping. In case of a real problem, each police department has a foreigner's officer that speaks English.
Visa process is relatively easy. You need an invitation letter from one of the local companies for business visas. Regarding work permits, a company's legal officer or HR person should apply and provide it. But, it is not easy to change work and get a new work permit. Health check will be required.
There are several down town areas in Shanghai, in Puxi or Pudong side, that are good communities with villas far away from downtown. Puxi is an old city and more expensive than Pudong. Pudong is cleaner and the traffic is more relaxed.
Overall, there are plenty of accommodation options available. It is usual to have an agent/relocation agent help out. There are expensive options and less expensive options. Typical apartments for foreigners range between US$1,800 (1 bedroom) to US$4,500 (3-4 bedrooms) monthly. Homes (villas) between US$3,500 and US$15,000. If you want to buy, it is possible for expats to buy property now, but best to confer with local experts for up-to-date property market conditions.
Central heating systems are used generally, but not in all places, so pay attention.
Beware of nearby construction, as they do not respect holidays or weekends, in that any noisy construction will continue day and night over holidays and weekends. Make sure you are aware of the surrounding neighbourhood before signing a lease!
Ayi (home maid) US$175 to US$300 per month. Driver US$250 to US$350. Filipino maids are very common, but note that they need to handle their visa every 3 months. Foreigners generally prefer to hire them though, as they speak English. I think the local Chinese are more secure and more hardworking, but this is just my personal opinion. Local Shanghai residents generally command a higher salary than those coming in from the provinces to work. Do a good background check before hiring. Health checks are not uncommon also. Best to get a referral from expat groups.
Skype or MSN is the best way. Also invoice cell phone agrement is not common but much more better than
ready card , because you can use your cell phone in inner China. There is a special deal and agreement available in China telecoms, need to check carefully. My cell phone agrement is 228RMB(US$33) for 350 minutes. Internet communication is tooooo slow - it sometimes makes you crazy. Satellite is under control by the government and it is not easy to reach all around the world. If you have a receiver , you can pay once around 1200RMB(US$173) for an access card and there is no need to change each month. There are several companies for internet access or satellite access, but there is not much difference between them. All above agreements need you to have a local guarantor. ADSL available. Huge range of mobile phones/connection options: pre-paid is the most convenient ? or billed to your company (if applicable).
Mandarin is the common language to China. There are plenty of dialects and different languages throughout the country. Shangainese useful in Shanghai, but Mandarin is most commonly used. English, surprisingly, seems limited to the younger generation or tourist/hospitality trades. Cab drivers are not renowned for language capabilities, so best to have the address written down in Chinese characters, for where you want to go!
It is very important at least to know basic communication words in Mandarin. Special tutors are around US$25 per hour ? or much cheaper in (most) language schools.
Tap water is not safe for drinking. Evian is more popular but quite expensive.
At home, we are using Nestle: 20L big bottle with service fee 26RMB (US$3.76)delivered to your home. Plenty of good local drinking water brands, such as 'NongFu' - for 2RMB per 500mls. Don't need to rely on foreign brands only. As long as the seal is in tact, that is.
It is possible for expats to get a job locally and visas can be arranged easily enough through a company sponsor. Salaries can vary (depending on the type of job and which company). Many teach English or work in consulates, Chambers of Commerce, international schools and so on. Word of mouth is the best way to approach employment possibilities.
Terrible, there is not much internet banking, it is very easy to get fake money, and foreigners are only allowed to exchange just US$50,000 per year. Local bank charges are expensive. It can be difficult to find change offices to change money (even in hotels). Go to the banks instead ? and even then, you may need to make a reservation the day before, to see someone. To set up a bank account, you just need a passport and a home rental contract.
For business accounts, they need more documents, such as work permits, representative documents or others. Most foreigners use HK bank (HSBC) because they can provider internet banking (but not for credit cards, at the time of writing this). In China, the Bank of China, Citibank and HSBC seem the most popular banks. Citibank can provider check/cheque accounts, but not internet banking. I have a Bank of China ATM card and credit card, but credit card cannot be used without deposit. The banking system is a little archaic, but it works. Cheques are not used often in shops. Credit cards are slowly becoming accepted, but cash is king. This means you need to plan ahead if you need a lot of money one day, because ATM machines have daily withdrawal limits. So if you are paying airline tickets, for example, in cash, you need to visit several ATMS on different days to accumulate enough funds. You can also speak to offshore finance companies about banking facilities and your best options.
Traditional health care is the most popular. There are two types of
Universities for medical area: regular and traditional. All hospitals are very clean and cheap.
Especially from HK, Taiwan and Australia. There are an abundance of foreign-managed and staffed hospitals in Shanghai. So many new clinics and hospitals opened last year, especially for cosmetics operations ? which Asian women
seem to love. For foreigners, comunities offer you some hospitals, but generally such kind
of hospitals do not have enough devices (such as MR or Xray) and forward you to local
university hospitals. Medicines can be found easily and also pharmacies can provide you with substitutes. During SARS, all people used masks and gloves and now still continue this behaviour, especially in public transportation , or taxi drivers or in manicure
saloon service stuff.
Make sure you have medical insurance, and you can avail yourself to first class medical care ? not cheap, by any means, but available. Do not rely on the ambulance service. Take a taxi if you need to get to hospital urgently. Maternity care is widely available for expats. You may want to include medical evacuation options in your health insurance, just in case.
Anyone younger than 30-35, tends to be very well educated , but scared to speak English. This is why it is increasingly common to put children in pre-schools that speak English (ie. so their children are more confident with English). Even my driver pays (around US$200 per month, which is expensive for him) for his daughter to go to a pre-K school. Generally, the government handles the education fees until university. In Shanghai, there are around 26 international schools. Many foreign children use school buses to get to and from their international schools. School costs can be US$18,000 to US$20,000 annually.
MTR, public buses, trains and taxis are available ? all of them are very safe and cheap. Monthly transportation cards can be used, even in taxis. In taxis, you need always check the Chinese address details, with English. Taxi plates are important - because some of them are just allowed in the outer city and some are just driving in downtown.
Regarding your own car, you can buy second-hand cars ? for example, a 3-year-old car costs less than US$10,000. The most popular car is a Buick van. New car plates in Shanghai are around US$300, but second-hand car plates are very expensive - around US$5,000 to US$7,000. To get a driving license, you need to attend a special exam, with a physical examination. Cost is around US$250. You are able to drive easily after getting Chinese driving license, but it is very hard to find parking in downtown, and also you should read Chinese, because if you break the road rules, you will always be found be guilty.
Well-known brands from all around the world can be found here, in very high level shopping centers. Also you can find designer products and fabric markets that make copy-products (popular for foreigners). Beauty care is popular. Young generation boys and girls are very interested in hair dressers: colorful hair and silicon nails. Skin care is important ? they do not like tanned bodies and sun bathing though - they use umbrellas and tents.
Most popular beauty care product is whitening - they do not like freckles and wrinkles. Indoor swimming pools and gym saloons are popular. Foreigners enjoy massage saloons. Local people enjoy saunas and foot massages.Dragon Fly is hygienic and more professional than others. Able to get membership deal - around US$55 manicure and pedicure. Tony Guy is probably the most popular hair dresser, but I prefer ESPRIT - hair cut around US$30. Waxing is quite good in Dragon Fly. You can buy anything and everything in Shanghai for a price. Health and Beauty is big business and found on every corner.
Carrefour, Lotus, Metro and Citi Super are the main shops, but it's good to visit local markets for fresh fruit, vegetables, seafood etc.
Badminton and golf are popular. Basketball is a new trend due to NBA player Yang Ming. Riding horses, swimming, skiing ? are all available. Plenty of international gyms and fitness clubs have recently opened, including Fitness First and Gold's Gym.
They like dogs more than cats. Having a pet seems like a popular signal of wanting to have a metropolitan life. There are so many pet hospitals and pet shops available. In order to bring your own pet, you need a shuts documents, and also pet relocation can be very expensive (around US$2,000).
I learn about this city with the CityWeekend and SH magazine. (That's Shanghai and Shanghai Talk are some other examples.) It is easy to find any restaurant and also they have web sites for all useful info. There are plenty of free English-language magazines printed weekly and monthly with info on what is on, which can be found in bars and restaurants.
City Description
Healthcare
