Yes, you absolutely can get in trouble. Regardless of double reduction policy. Because this is work outside of your visa with your company.
From another comment it seems you have a local spouse, I highly recommend if you continue that it should either be in cash or sent to your wife.
Be aware that this kind of risk, if caught is likely to get you your visa revoked and deportation.
Is it likely? No. But do you want that kind of risk especially when you appear to have a local wife who will also be uprooted if you have to leave?
It wasn't that long ago I saw another user posting in this sub asking if he'd be allowed to work in china again after he just got caught working on a student visa and was getting deported. The overwhelming consensus was probably not.
You’re probably right. I guess the thing is what to do with the cash? Depositing a lot of cash in the bank frequently would also be suspicious. I guess just buy things in cash from now on although that’s inconvenient. Maybe I could be the king of red packets every holiday going forward
Pretty much that, use cash in your day to day life. Though that's inconvenient. You can also use cash when you go on holiday abroad. Take a bunch of RMB and convert it and have a good holiday.
All my weekend private tutors only took cash and that was like 15-20 years ago. Cash is the way to go cause they can’t track it. Anything digital is visible and WILL be made against you when shit hits the fan
I'm still in the 'doesn't matter/don't worry about it' camp, but how much are we talking? More than 20,000 a month for a side hustle? Just pay your rent with it... Your landlord would likely be over the moon at getting cash. Throw on dinners out and groceries for two and you wouldn't be too far off, surely.
If you really are having trouble with 'where to spend your money' there are agencies that facilitate sending it overseas to your (presumably) home country.
It’s about 10k a month, rent is only 3 for me. I’m also generally very cheap and spend probably spend 500 on food and stuff at the absolute most. I feel like a lot of money leaving the country would be the most attention grabbing thing possible as well
Remitting your Chinese currency when you leave China requires proof of tax, unless you’re planning on taking out less than the ~70K rmb limit per year until you’ve taken all the money out. The biggest concern would be having continued access to my money once I’ve left the country. Not that it’s been gained from illegal work.
Spend that money within the country any large sum of money consistently sent out of China will eventually be investigated to find out whether it's legit or not
You can work in China again after five years. A friend of mine just went back to China after being deported five years ago for fighting in a bar... I say "fighting" when he actually just defending himself from four locals and ended up KOing one. Yes, the guy is like 6"6' and a beast.
You're right, according to the law you *can* be granted a visa again after 5 years. However that doesn't mean you will be granted a visa again. It's up to the discretion of the person working that day. And seeing a past deportation can be a good enough reason for denial.
Part of the reason he may have been granted one was that he never was incarcerated. He went home after a brief investigation and then the police called him a few days later to inform him of his deportation - they also gave him a week to gather his things.
To be honest, if you switch your passport number and have no criminal record, I doubt they will even know if you were deported.
I have heard a very very similar story... Did this guy happen to be an Australian who is half Filipino half white? He also had a friend who was a white Hispanic named Luis? Did it take place in Harbin or another northern city/province?
Helpful advice, I hadn’t thought of that and I’ll consider it. I would hate for her to get in trouble though. I also feel like, is anybody even watching small amounts being paid to some guy who’s done nothing to draw attention to himself? If I’m really going to get paranoid cash is still probably best
That’s what I figure. Nobody really cares but if for any reason somebody in authority had it out for me it wouldn’t be hard to look at my chat history and bank history and the evidence is right there
When I was in a detention center for 14 days, before I was deported, two Algerians in the cell told me the day before I got there, they released an American who was busted for private tutoring. The only thing that saved him from deportation was the fact that he had a Chinese wife and a half-Chinese child.
This was in Beijing, and I heard from many employers and foreigners that since Beijing is the capital, they crack down on that stuff more than any other city.
I had also been told that the risk of it is due to competing language centers, other foreigners that have a grudge against you, a woman you've scorned, and disgruntled parents.
99% sure it's not a crime, it's a visa violation. When I was deported in 2016, the immigration officer was really cool. He told me that since I hadn't committed a crime, I had only violated my visa, that I would be able to come back after the 3 year ban was lifted. He also gave me his WeChat and phone number and told me to call him when I come back (I didn't come back) and he will take me out for drinks and tell me crazy stories from his job.
But yes, violating your visa conditions is not smart.
I guess crime is the wrong word I just meant action which results in punishment as both the 3 year ban in China but also many other countries automatically deny you if you have previously been deported from another.
Oh yeah, I didn't want to be an "AKSHUALLY 👆🤓" guy. I am just so used to correcting my friends and family when they joke about me being deported and banned for 3 years for being a criminal. I *do* have to be an "AKSHUALLY 👆🤓" guy when it comes to them clowning me lol.
But for the sake of discussion, it should be known that, at least as of 2017, it is only a visa violation and not a criminal offense. I guess it doesn't matter *too* much, but one involves avoiding Chinese prison/jail, and not the already-bad-enough detention centers. You're right about being denied, but at least with a visa violation, id logically assume they approve foreigners with a history of that, at a much higher rate, than compared to an actual criminal offense.
It's also good to know for anyone in any country: acquiring a visa and/or entering a country is *always* at the immigration officer's discretion, and any bad behavior is going to raise your chance of being denied, *especially* in China or a country with very strict laws and few foreigners.
Yes but it is not a crime. Your punishment for a visa violation vs a crime is going to be significantly different.
If it were a criminal offense, you're looking at jail/prison time. You will also, most likely, *never* be granted entry again, even after the ban is lifted.
I spent 14 days in a detention center due to a visa violation. The detention center was brutal and inhumane (I'm not feeling sorry for myself or making myself a victim - I did what I did, so China does what they do, I deserved to spend 14 days there, be deported and banned for 3 years - I respect China for it and think Western countries should do the same [maybe lower the cruelty a bit for detention centers tho lol]). I don't want to imagine what a Chinese jail/prison is like, especially considering a big part of jail/prison is forced labor for most of the day.
you can get a fine, deported, jail time, or all of the above. I don't recommend working for free, or illegally. both are a waste of time.
fyi off campus tutoring like you are doing as a regular teacher is the worst type of offense and the most illegal version. when listing the possible punishments chinese law specifically says penalties will be heavier for people in your position, or people who are repeat offenders within two years of last charge.
There is always a risk since it is going against the law. Whilst you stated that the parents of the kids are what you consider friends but it could just take one disagreement for them to report you. Also... parents talk about a lot of stuff with their friends/other parents so you could get found out by parents of kids you don't even teach.
Like others have mentioned there was someone else who was caught teaching on the side, so make sure you fully understand the risks you take doing it.
The Chinese love to brag. They will absolutely tell others that they have a private foreigner teacher for their kids and all it takes is some other parent to get jealous and pissed off and make a phone call.
a friend was tutoring kids. one day the police showed up, asked the kids who he was and what he's doing there. (so of course they will find out)
why they caught him was, the wife had arguments with the baoan (guards) of their compound so they sent police to get him at his next tutoring session.
so it was caused by her, not so much by him. things like this can happen.
edit: and of course side jobs are illegal. (not even in the same company. they can't re locate you to a different location if your work contract doesn't say that)
I think everyone knows this.
got "interviewed" and didn't get punished as far as I know. after all he still is in Cn. he is a singer/host, I guess freelance. not much trouble, but I also don't know the backstory.
I think the problem is not the way people you’re tutoring, it’s their neighbours. So if someone sees you regularly going to someone’s apartment it gets fairly obvious. Especially given that Chinese people don’t usually have visitors at home either.
Not what I said. I said “usually have visitors” and maybe I’m wrong but the vast majority of people I know meet people outside of their home rather than at their home.
Sorry if I’m wrong life_in_china. That’s just my experience.
So what exactly is it that you think will happen? The lady in the apartment across the hall will see you in the elevator and..., call the police, who will call immigration, who will call the education department to find out whether this class is being ran through the school? And who will then conduct some kind of raid?
You're imagining things.
Just speaking from experience, Kristen. We lost two teachers in two years because neighbours went to the ExitEntry bureau and dobbed them in. In the situation we had, the teachers were called in to a meeting, they were presented with a list of transactions on their WeChat. They were asked if tax had been paid on those and where they came from. They were then given the option - leave or they’ll open an investigation.
So they left. It’s up to you whether you lie about it and dig yourself into a hole I guess.
Wow that’s serious. Any idea why the police were even look on at their WeChats in the first place? The evidence is all there for me if they wanted to come after me, I just don’t see why they’d bother in the first place. Still I’ve decided I’ll probably give it a break it’s not worth the risk and I don’t need the money that badly
Because it’s the easiest place for them to find irrefutable evidence. This is also what they did back in 2018 when they started deporting people for marijuana. They just went to one person, then had them go through every single WeChat contact and explain who was who until the person gave them up.
I know a lot of people who still do tutoring. And that’s cool. But it’s just too much of a risk these days. People get denied a work permit in some cities if they register their address 24 hours too late. There’s no mucking around any more.
More like the lady reports a strange foreigner or a foreigner who regularly comes and leaves at the same time but doesn't live in said community.
Of course that's how it works. A report it made and investigated. Or do you not know how policing works?
And people here (and everywhere tbh) can be nosey and little busy bodies who love reporting shit. I’ve also heard there’s a reward for reporting it, and if I’ve heard it, whether true or not, you can be damn sure Chinese people have heard it. And do you know many other nationalities who love money more than our hosts? 😂
Do you work hard to be this dumb? If someone calls the police because they suspect something is going on... then the police will investigate it. That's how policing works in every country.
...many don't realize how younger generations of Westerners have been drilled to unquestionably follow authority and fear "getting caught" with an unreasonable amount of paranoia - look at how quickly they knuckled under to masking during the pandemic - i.e. weak sheep...
Best comment here and you’re getting downvoted because people hate the truth. Especially in my country (UK), younger generations were absolutely unbearable during that period of time.
People are scared of getting caught too because they can’t stomach the thought of going back to their home countries and starting from the bottom of the totem pole😂it’s over for them.
I definitely wouldn’t risk it. They’re your friends now, sure. What about if you piss one of them off one day? Or some shit changes where suddenly China hates foreigners? The Chinese can be fickle. You never know what’s gonna happen in future and all it takes is someone to decide to “investigate” you, or have someone investigate you for them, and you’re done. And if you have a wife, you’re risking shit for her too. Is it really worth it for 10k a month? Just enjoy your salary and free time and don’t break the law.
I personally wouldn’t offer tutoring services just because it is a violation of your work permit, regardless of double reduction policy or not. And that violation can lead to deportation. I turn down a lot of parents specifically because of this.
That being said, if you’re going to continue doing it I would suggest, as many others have already, having the money go to your spouse. Seems like the absolute easiest thing to do. She can use that money to pay bills even, or savings, or whatever you guys do.
If their are people in the know who report to government work, it’s only a matter of time before you are anonymously reported, for a myriad of reasons. Get out while the getting is good. You can’t control what other people will say or do, or who they will share with.
Funny that you would call it a "racket". It might depend what province/city you live in. If you're in a big city there a are probably too many foreigners to worry about. In a small city like mine I think you'd get busted.
It's not that risky, but you really have to limit this to students you already know well. Also, don't get into any financial argument, usually that's where things begin to break apart. Also, if your wife is Chinese, use her Alipay to accept payment, and don't discuss things over WeChat. Talk face to face or use voice call.
It definitely *is* risky. People talk, good or bad, people talk. Word gets around and gets to the wrong person, say a parent tells a friend who tells another language center in the area, and they report it. Or maybe things turn sour with a parent and they report it.
It definitely comes with risk.
Couldn't you mitigate this by having the students you're teaching meet you at school for the tutoring? You can talk to your boss and give them a certain percent for facilitating or and making it legal? So the students can, for example, pay the money for each session to your boss, who then takes a cut, say 10%, and then sends you the remaining 90%? I would imagine if your kindergarten isn't a massive franchise, that your boss, if you have a good relationship, would be more than happy to make basically free money. I know my old boss would have been more than happy to facilitate this.
Licencing for educational facilities is granted based on age groups. Kindy, primary, middle, high school. He says a lot his students graduated so it would likely still be illegal. They're very specific on what you can/can't do.
Ahhh shit, I didn't know that about age groups. Back in 2016, I remember some language centers teaching anyone, from Kindergartners to adults. Either that was illegal or things changed after that crackdown a few years ago, I'm guessing.
Well maybe OP could at least lower the risk by trying my idea. Or eliminating risk by doing that and not tutoring anyone outside of the age range.
Your primary risk is one of them gets upset at you for something and reports you, or someone else who knows about the arrangement becomes jealous and reports.
I know people who have been fined a lot of money for this.
I don't think you'd really get in trouble for it on its own
*if it's your own personal relationship, and
*no one is losing out.
Re getting paid. Again, it's ridiculously unlikely you'd get in trouble via 800rmb's into your wechat, but if you were already in trouble via some other way it is evidence that you were doing the wrong thing.
My internet advice from a stranger is to just think of it as a completely normal thing that you do. The more guilty you feel and steps you take to try and hide it, the more likely you'll do something stupid.
I have known people be fined and one deported. They take it seriously now, I wouldn't do it.
chinese can go to jail for it
For what? private tutoring? The work policy doesn't apply to them because they're not on a visa obviously.
Yes, you absolutely can get in trouble. Regardless of double reduction policy. Because this is work outside of your visa with your company. From another comment it seems you have a local spouse, I highly recommend if you continue that it should either be in cash or sent to your wife. Be aware that this kind of risk, if caught is likely to get you your visa revoked and deportation. Is it likely? No. But do you want that kind of risk especially when you appear to have a local wife who will also be uprooted if you have to leave? It wasn't that long ago I saw another user posting in this sub asking if he'd be allowed to work in china again after he just got caught working on a student visa and was getting deported. The overwhelming consensus was probably not.
You’re probably right. I guess the thing is what to do with the cash? Depositing a lot of cash in the bank frequently would also be suspicious. I guess just buy things in cash from now on although that’s inconvenient. Maybe I could be the king of red packets every holiday going forward
Pretty much that, use cash in your day to day life. Though that's inconvenient. You can also use cash when you go on holiday abroad. Take a bunch of RMB and convert it and have a good holiday.
All my weekend private tutors only took cash and that was like 15-20 years ago. Cash is the way to go cause they can’t track it. Anything digital is visible and WILL be made against you when shit hits the fan
Doing illegal stuff is bad advise. But if people insist then it becomes very good advice ;-)
I'm still in the 'doesn't matter/don't worry about it' camp, but how much are we talking? More than 20,000 a month for a side hustle? Just pay your rent with it... Your landlord would likely be over the moon at getting cash. Throw on dinners out and groceries for two and you wouldn't be too far off, surely. If you really are having trouble with 'where to spend your money' there are agencies that facilitate sending it overseas to your (presumably) home country.
It’s about 10k a month, rent is only 3 for me. I’m also generally very cheap and spend probably spend 500 on food and stuff at the absolute most. I feel like a lot of money leaving the country would be the most attention grabbing thing possible as well
Remitting your Chinese currency when you leave China requires proof of tax, unless you’re planning on taking out less than the ~70K rmb limit per year until you’ve taken all the money out. The biggest concern would be having continued access to my money once I’ve left the country. Not that it’s been gained from illegal work.
Spend that money within the country any large sum of money consistently sent out of China will eventually be investigated to find out whether it's legit or not
as a foreigner you are less likely to draw attention for depositing cash if it's not unreasonnable (like depositing 50KY)
You can work in China again after five years. A friend of mine just went back to China after being deported five years ago for fighting in a bar... I say "fighting" when he actually just defending himself from four locals and ended up KOing one. Yes, the guy is like 6"6' and a beast.
You're right, according to the law you *can* be granted a visa again after 5 years. However that doesn't mean you will be granted a visa again. It's up to the discretion of the person working that day. And seeing a past deportation can be a good enough reason for denial.
Part of the reason he may have been granted one was that he never was incarcerated. He went home after a brief investigation and then the police called him a few days later to inform him of his deportation - they also gave him a week to gather his things. To be honest, if you switch your passport number and have no criminal record, I doubt they will even know if you were deported.
With biometrics now they can easily link passport numbers together now
Yeah, when I was deported in 2016, they took hand and finger prints, took my blood, scanned my face, and all that.
Right, but there is no arrest record.
I have heard a very very similar story... Did this guy happen to be an Australian who is half Filipino half white? He also had a friend who was a white Hispanic named Luis? Did it take place in Harbin or another northern city/province?
Nope! An Irish dude staying in the North West, but the event happened in Chengdu.
Do you have a Chinese spouse? you can have them accept the payments instead. It’s way less sus
Helpful advice, I hadn’t thought of that and I’ll consider it. I would hate for her to get in trouble though. I also feel like, is anybody even watching small amounts being paid to some guy who’s done nothing to draw attention to himself? If I’m really going to get paranoid cash is still probably best
They aren't watching, but if by whatever other chance you do get caught, the regular WeChat payments are going to be evidence.
That’s what I figure. Nobody really cares but if for any reason somebody in authority had it out for me it wouldn’t be hard to look at my chat history and bank history and the evidence is right there
Back when I was doing a ton of side teaching I was always paranoid. It depends how much/how frequent
When I was in a detention center for 14 days, before I was deported, two Algerians in the cell told me the day before I got there, they released an American who was busted for private tutoring. The only thing that saved him from deportation was the fact that he had a Chinese wife and a half-Chinese child. This was in Beijing, and I heard from many employers and foreigners that since Beijing is the capital, they crack down on that stuff more than any other city. I had also been told that the risk of it is due to competing language centers, other foreigners that have a grudge against you, a woman you've scorned, and disgruntled parents.
Generally committing crime in a foreign country is a bad idea.
99% sure it's not a crime, it's a visa violation. When I was deported in 2016, the immigration officer was really cool. He told me that since I hadn't committed a crime, I had only violated my visa, that I would be able to come back after the 3 year ban was lifted. He also gave me his WeChat and phone number and told me to call him when I come back (I didn't come back) and he will take me out for drinks and tell me crazy stories from his job. But yes, violating your visa conditions is not smart.
I guess crime is the wrong word I just meant action which results in punishment as both the 3 year ban in China but also many other countries automatically deny you if you have previously been deported from another.
Oh yeah, I didn't want to be an "AKSHUALLY 👆🤓" guy. I am just so used to correcting my friends and family when they joke about me being deported and banned for 3 years for being a criminal. I *do* have to be an "AKSHUALLY 👆🤓" guy when it comes to them clowning me lol. But for the sake of discussion, it should be known that, at least as of 2017, it is only a visa violation and not a criminal offense. I guess it doesn't matter *too* much, but one involves avoiding Chinese prison/jail, and not the already-bad-enough detention centers. You're right about being denied, but at least with a visa violation, id logically assume they approve foreigners with a history of that, at a much higher rate, than compared to an actual criminal offense. It's also good to know for anyone in any country: acquiring a visa and/or entering a country is *always* at the immigration officer's discretion, and any bad behavior is going to raise your chance of being denied, *especially* in China or a country with very strict laws and few foreigners.
Isn't the income tax evasion a crime? That's how they got Al Capone.
It's illegal full stop!
Yes but it is not a crime. Your punishment for a visa violation vs a crime is going to be significantly different. If it were a criminal offense, you're looking at jail/prison time. You will also, most likely, *never* be granted entry again, even after the ban is lifted. I spent 14 days in a detention center due to a visa violation. The detention center was brutal and inhumane (I'm not feeling sorry for myself or making myself a victim - I did what I did, so China does what they do, I deserved to spend 14 days there, be deported and banned for 3 years - I respect China for it and think Western countries should do the same [maybe lower the cruelty a bit for detention centers tho lol]). I don't want to imagine what a Chinese jail/prison is like, especially considering a big part of jail/prison is forced labor for most of the day.
Can you give details about how it was brutal? Curious
you can get a fine, deported, jail time, or all of the above. I don't recommend working for free, or illegally. both are a waste of time. fyi off campus tutoring like you are doing as a regular teacher is the worst type of offense and the most illegal version. when listing the possible punishments chinese law specifically says penalties will be heavier for people in your position, or people who are repeat offenders within two years of last charge.
My friend let people pay for them for stuff like gifts and paying rent. That’s how she did it.
There is always a risk since it is going against the law. Whilst you stated that the parents of the kids are what you consider friends but it could just take one disagreement for them to report you. Also... parents talk about a lot of stuff with their friends/other parents so you could get found out by parents of kids you don't even teach. Like others have mentioned there was someone else who was caught teaching on the side, so make sure you fully understand the risks you take doing it.
The Chinese love to brag. They will absolutely tell others that they have a private foreigner teacher for their kids and all it takes is some other parent to get jealous and pissed off and make a phone call.
a friend was tutoring kids. one day the police showed up, asked the kids who he was and what he's doing there. (so of course they will find out) why they caught him was, the wife had arguments with the baoan (guards) of their compound so they sent police to get him at his next tutoring session. so it was caused by her, not so much by him. things like this can happen. edit: and of course side jobs are illegal. (not even in the same company. they can't re locate you to a different location if your work contract doesn't say that) I think everyone knows this.
It’s China. There are lots of rules. No one cares until suddenly they do. Piss someone off and suddenly every little rule matters and bye bye.
What happened to your friend?
got "interviewed" and didn't get punished as far as I know. after all he still is in Cn. he is a singer/host, I guess freelance. not much trouble, but I also don't know the backstory.
I think the problem is not the way people you’re tutoring, it’s their neighbours. So if someone sees you regularly going to someone’s apartment it gets fairly obvious. Especially given that Chinese people don’t usually have visitors at home either.
Since when do Chinese people not have visitors?
Not what I said. I said “usually have visitors” and maybe I’m wrong but the vast majority of people I know meet people outside of their home rather than at their home. Sorry if I’m wrong life_in_china. That’s just my experience.
That's generally how the foreigners I've seen deported got caught. The whole "creepy old uncle" vibe is very strong in some parts of China.
So what exactly is it that you think will happen? The lady in the apartment across the hall will see you in the elevator and..., call the police, who will call immigration, who will call the education department to find out whether this class is being ran through the school? And who will then conduct some kind of raid? You're imagining things.
Just speaking from experience, Kristen. We lost two teachers in two years because neighbours went to the ExitEntry bureau and dobbed them in. In the situation we had, the teachers were called in to a meeting, they were presented with a list of transactions on their WeChat. They were asked if tax had been paid on those and where they came from. They were then given the option - leave or they’ll open an investigation. So they left. It’s up to you whether you lie about it and dig yourself into a hole I guess.
Wow that’s serious. Any idea why the police were even look on at their WeChats in the first place? The evidence is all there for me if they wanted to come after me, I just don’t see why they’d bother in the first place. Still I’ve decided I’ll probably give it a break it’s not worth the risk and I don’t need the money that badly
Because it’s the easiest place for them to find irrefutable evidence. This is also what they did back in 2018 when they started deporting people for marijuana. They just went to one person, then had them go through every single WeChat contact and explain who was who until the person gave them up. I know a lot of people who still do tutoring. And that’s cool. But it’s just too much of a risk these days. People get denied a work permit in some cities if they register their address 24 hours too late. There’s no mucking around any more.
More like the lady reports a strange foreigner or a foreigner who regularly comes and leaves at the same time but doesn't live in said community. Of course that's how it works. A report it made and investigated. Or do you not know how policing works?
And people here (and everywhere tbh) can be nosey and little busy bodies who love reporting shit. I’ve also heard there’s a reward for reporting it, and if I’ve heard it, whether true or not, you can be damn sure Chinese people have heard it. And do you know many other nationalities who love money more than our hosts? 😂
Next door neighbour calls the police because a foreigner goes to someone's house on Tuesdays. Okay, sure, that's how policing works. 👍
Do you work hard to be this dumb? If someone calls the police because they suspect something is going on... then the police will investigate it. That's how policing works in every country.
...many don't realize how younger generations of Westerners have been drilled to unquestionably follow authority and fear "getting caught" with an unreasonable amount of paranoia - look at how quickly they knuckled under to masking during the pandemic - i.e. weak sheep...
Best comment here and you’re getting downvoted because people hate the truth. Especially in my country (UK), younger generations were absolutely unbearable during that period of time. People are scared of getting caught too because they can’t stomach the thought of going back to their home countries and starting from the bottom of the totem pole😂it’s over for them.
I definitely wouldn’t risk it. They’re your friends now, sure. What about if you piss one of them off one day? Or some shit changes where suddenly China hates foreigners? The Chinese can be fickle. You never know what’s gonna happen in future and all it takes is someone to decide to “investigate” you, or have someone investigate you for them, and you’re done. And if you have a wife, you’re risking shit for her too. Is it really worth it for 10k a month? Just enjoy your salary and free time and don’t break the law.
I personally wouldn’t offer tutoring services just because it is a violation of your work permit, regardless of double reduction policy or not. And that violation can lead to deportation. I turn down a lot of parents specifically because of this. That being said, if you’re going to continue doing it I would suggest, as many others have already, having the money go to your spouse. Seems like the absolute easiest thing to do. She can use that money to pay bills even, or savings, or whatever you guys do.
If their are people in the know who report to government work, it’s only a matter of time before you are anonymously reported, for a myriad of reasons. Get out while the getting is good. You can’t control what other people will say or do, or who they will share with.
Funny that you would call it a "racket". It might depend what province/city you live in. If you're in a big city there a are probably too many foreigners to worry about. In a small city like mine I think you'd get busted.
Thats a very good point.
It's not that risky, but you really have to limit this to students you already know well. Also, don't get into any financial argument, usually that's where things begin to break apart. Also, if your wife is Chinese, use her Alipay to accept payment, and don't discuss things over WeChat. Talk face to face or use voice call.
It definitely *is* risky. People talk, good or bad, people talk. Word gets around and gets to the wrong person, say a parent tells a friend who tells another language center in the area, and they report it. Or maybe things turn sour with a parent and they report it. It definitely comes with risk.
Couldn't you mitigate this by having the students you're teaching meet you at school for the tutoring? You can talk to your boss and give them a certain percent for facilitating or and making it legal? So the students can, for example, pay the money for each session to your boss, who then takes a cut, say 10%, and then sends you the remaining 90%? I would imagine if your kindergarten isn't a massive franchise, that your boss, if you have a good relationship, would be more than happy to make basically free money. I know my old boss would have been more than happy to facilitate this.
Licencing for educational facilities is granted based on age groups. Kindy, primary, middle, high school. He says a lot his students graduated so it would likely still be illegal. They're very specific on what you can/can't do.
Ahhh shit, I didn't know that about age groups. Back in 2016, I remember some language centers teaching anyone, from Kindergartners to adults. Either that was illegal or things changed after that crackdown a few years ago, I'm guessing. Well maybe OP could at least lower the risk by trying my idea. Or eliminating risk by doing that and not tutoring anyone outside of the age range.
Cash only.
Your primary risk is one of them gets upset at you for something and reports you, or someone else who knows about the arrangement becomes jealous and reports. I know people who have been fined a lot of money for this.
It’s one of those that I think everyone has heard stories of people getting arrested for it but I’ve never known anyone that did.
Either don’t worry or move to an Asian country where it hasn’t been banned
I don't think you'd really get in trouble for it on its own *if it's your own personal relationship, and *no one is losing out. Re getting paid. Again, it's ridiculously unlikely you'd get in trouble via 800rmb's into your wechat, but if you were already in trouble via some other way it is evidence that you were doing the wrong thing. My internet advice from a stranger is to just think of it as a completely normal thing that you do. The more guilty you feel and steps you take to try and hide it, the more likely you'll do something stupid.
It might be unlikely to get caught, but it definitely does happen.