By Robert Vance

“How much money should I take with me to China?” is a common question that I receive when I am working with prospective teachers. Of course, the answer to this question really depends on the person. People who are high maintenance, like to party, and go on buying sprees are naturally going to spend the most money in China. People who do not mind riding a bicycle around town, eating on the street, and buying items in open markets are going to save more money in China. With the rapid development taking place in China, high spenders and low spenders alike find their niches in the local economy of nearly any Chinese city. Throughout my years in China, I have met hundreds of teachers at many different socio-economic levels. Some teachers have plenty of money and are simply working in China for the experience. Other teachers are ‘dirt poor’ but enjoy the fact that they can live at a higher economic level in China based on a foreigners salary. I have met teachers who are paying off hefty college loans or sending a child care payment back to their home country every month. In other words, in a country where foreigner teachers are often in high demand, one does not have to be rich to travel and teach there. Read the rest of “Money Tips for Expats Living in China” or post a comment

By Paul Denlinger

One of the things past experience has taught me that while it is possible to guess that some business will take off in China, it is almost impossible to tell when. The most common scenario is that for many years, a western business will devote its people and resources to making its business popular with Chinese, it will not show results. Frustrated, it will depart China with nothing to show for its hard work and investment. (This happened frequently in the eighties and nineties; now it is much more rare.)

This rule does not just apply to business; it even applies to Chinese government policy. For years, the Chinese government actively urged the Chinese people to travel more; it even increased the number of public holidays, creating the Golden Week holiday around the May Day holiday in the late 90s to get Chinese to travel more, and spend some of their savings. For years, the policy yielded no solid results. Read the rest of “Understanding the Chinese Hockey Stick” or post a comment

By Gregory Sy and Currie Lee

7. Information on the investment budget of the franchise:
a. The expenditure for the investment budget may include the following: initial fee; training fee; real estate and decoration fee, procurement fee fpr equipment, office supplies, furniture, etc; initial inventory; water, electricity and gas fees; fees needed to obtain licenses and other governmental approvals; and working capital; and,
b. The statistical source and estimation basis for the above-mentioned fees.

8. Information on franchisees within China:
a. Information on the present and estimated number of franchisees, geographical distribution, scope of license, and as to whether or not they are subject to an exclusive regional license (if so, details of the scope thereof must also be explained) Read the rest of “Guide to franchising in China part 3″ or post a comment

By Johnny Zhao

Under the current tax system in China, there are 26 types of taxes, which, according to their nature and function, can be divided into the following 8 categories:

• Category of turnover taxes. It includes three kinds of taxes, namely, Value-Added Tax, Consumption Tax and Business Tax. The levy of these taxes are normally based on the volume of turnover or sales of the taxpayers in the manufacturing, circulation or service sectors.

• Category of income taxes. It includes Enterprise Income Tax (applicable to such domestic enterprises as state-owned enterprises, collectively-owned enterprises, private enterprises, joint operation enterprises and joint equity enterprises), Income Tax on Enterprises with Foreign Investment and Foreign Enterprises, and Individual Income Tax. These taxes are levied on the basis of the profits gained by producers or dealers, or the income earned by individuals.
Read the rest of “Types of taxes” or post a comment

The consulting industry in China is flourishing. After all, it is the largest potential single market in the world, and everyone is flocking to it. New companies need information and advice about how to tackle the unique challenges of this market. For any MBA who is fluent in Chinese, or who has grown up in China, and is familiar with the tools of the trade, such as financial modeling, business negotiations and company valuations, China represents an “iron rice bowl” which will make their careers for years to come.

Read the rest of “Why most US Entries Fail in China” or post a comment>>