Before you start

Residence permit and work permit
Employment contract, which triggers social insurance enrolment
Employer private insurance details, if provided
A Chinese mobile number for hospital appointment apps

Step-by-step

1
Confirm the employer has enrolled you in social insurance
The 2011 Interim Measures make enrolment compulsory nationally across pension, medical, work injury, unemployment and maternity. Enforcement varies by city, so check your payslip shows the deductions rather than assuming.
Via employerWho: Your employerMonth 1
2
Check whether a totalisation agreement applies
China has bilateral social security agreements with a number of countries including Germany, South Korea, Japan, Canada, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Spain, Denmark and Finland, under which posted workers may be exempted from specified contributions with a certificate of coverage from home. Scope differs by agreement.
Via employerWho: You
3
Read the private policy, especially the cross-border terms
The material questions are whether it admits you to hospital international wings, and whether it covers treatment in Hong Kong. The second is genuinely relevant here and is not a standard inclusion.
Via employerWho: You
4
Learn how ordinary outpatient works
Register for a department, see a doctor briefly, then tests and pharmacy in the same building. Fast, inexpensive and conducted in Mandarin. Knowing the process means you are not stranded outside international clinic hours.
In personWho: You
5
Book through hospital apps and mini-programs
Shenzhen hospitals run on app-based appointment systems and popular specialists fill days ahead. Walking in usually means a long wait or no slot.
Mobile appWho: You
6
Know your Hong Kong option and its limits
Hong Kong's private hospitals are an hour away and are genuinely excellent, but they are private-pay unless your policy covers them, and Hong Kong public healthcare is not open to mainland residents on the same terms as residents. Establish what your insurance actually pays for before you need it at 2am.
In personWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Passport and residence permit
Social insurance card, once issued
Private insurance card and policy number, including any Hong Kong coverage
Employment contract
Vaccination and medical history, translated where possible

Things most newcomers don’t know

The Greater Bay Area income tax subsidy is the single largest financial fact about working here.

A Ministry of Finance circular continues a preferential individual income tax policy across the nine mainland GBA cities to 31 December 2027: qualifying overseas high-end talent and talent in short supply have individual income tax paid above a 15% effective rate refunded by the municipal government, and the refund itself is exempt from tax. Against China's 45% top band this is transformative for a senior package. It is a subsidy you apply for annually through the municipal human resources bureau, and the qualifying definitions are set and revised locally.

Source: Ministry of Finance GBA individual income tax circular

Shenzhen's hospitals are new; its most senior specialists are often in Guangzhou.

The city is forty-odd years old and its medical institutions are correspondingly young, well equipped and often branches of older Guangzhou or Beijing hospitals. For routine and emergency care this is an advantage — modern buildings, modern equipment, shorter queues. For a rare condition or a second opinion, the depth of specialist experience sits an hour north in Guangzhou, and the fast rail link makes that a normal thing to do rather than an ordeal.

Source: community-reported

Check whether your policy covers Hong Kong before you assume the border is a safety net.

Living an hour from Hong Kong's private hospitals feels like insurance in itself, and it is not. Hong Kong private care is expensive and private-pay unless your policy explicitly includes it, and Hong Kong's public system does not treat mainland residents on resident terms. Many employer policies written for mainland China exclude Hong Kong entirely. It is a specific question to ask, and it is cheap to add at renewal and impossible to add in an emergency.

Source: community-reported

Social insurance for foreigners is mandatory nationally and enforced unevenly by city.

The 2011 Interim Measures require enrolment of foreign employees across all five funds, but implementation was devolved to municipalities and the practical result differs — Shanghai ran a voluntary regime until it lapsed in 2021, and enforcement in smaller cities remains patchy. If you are comparing offers across Chinese cities, the deduction on your payslip for the same nominal salary may not be the same, and it is worth asking payroll directly rather than inferring.

Source: Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security

Common mistakes to avoid

Never applying for the GBA income tax subsidy because nobody told you it existed.
Assuming your insurance covers Hong Kong treatment when it excludes it.
Treating social insurance as optional for foreign employees.
Turning up at a Shenzhen hospital without an app appointment.
Leaving China without starting the pension refund while you still have a local account.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.