Hi Nia

Unfortunately it is difficult to give an absolute answer to such questions because the policies of schools as well as different government authorities differ from place to place.

Firstly it's worth understanding the terms used for the various pieces of paperwork.

Foreign expert certificate - this is a document that the school processed for you prior to you arriving in china. It's specific to you working for that single employer.

Z visa - that's what you got when you went to the embassy in your home country. It allows you to enter china and apply for a residence permit. Once you've got the residence permit that z visa becomes invalid.

Residence permit - I'm assuming that you've been with the school long enough for them to have processed this document (it has to be within 30days of arriving). It'll be in your passport. It's specific to a city/area.

It's worth knowing the difference between these documents when it comes to dealing with cancellations and applying for new jobs, etc.

If you leave the school will definitely cancel your foreign expert certificate and will more than likely cancel your residence permit as well. If you can convince them not to cancel your residence permit then you won't need to leave china and you should be able to apply for another permit in your new city (if your new job was in the same city you wouldn't need one at all). There's two main problems with this

1. You're quitting so you shouldn't expect any favors from the school. They may just cancel both documents and force you onto a tourist visa which will likely mean that you'll need to leave the country once that tourist visa expires and/or if you find a new a new job and then want apply for another z visa.

2. Different cities/provinces have different policies about this kind of situation. Some will not allow you to only cancel the foreign expert certificate they will automatically cancel your residence permit as well and put you on a 1 month L visa (tourist visa).

Obviously if you don't give the school your passport the authorities can't physically cancel your residence permit i.e. stamp cancelled on it but they can still make it technically invalid. That would leave you living in china with no valid visa/permit (as I said above these documents are specific to a single employer and single location you can't just transfer them to a new school in a new city). In my opinion what you friend has said is poor advice. You have 2 main options

1. You do a runner. You could head to hong kong or another nearby country or go back home. Once there you look for another job and having found one apply for a new z visa.

2. You resign giving your full notice and go through the official process of canceling your visa. If this means that the school/authorities don't cancel your residence permit then this is the best option. If they do cancel the rp then they will put you on the tourist visa. Once on the tourist visa you will be free to find a new job but you will likely have to leave china anyway if the new employer wants to give you a new residence permit because you can't apply for a z visa from within china. What you might be able to find is a new employer who will pay for the cost of your trip to hong kong in order to apply for the new visa.

There are a few other things to consider mainly regarding references and release letters. If you change jobs in china you need a release letter from your original employer to confirm that you no longer work for them and are free to apply for a new residence permit and foreign expert certificate. This letter must be signed and stamped (the school has an official stamp).