There are some foreign men in China with Chinese wives who teach in China illegaly because they have no other source of income. Often these people are unable to get a work visa for various reasons. These men have no savings, and may not yet be eligible for pensions from their country of origin, so they are marginalized in China. They rely solely on teaching income from illegal jobs at ilegal schools.

Obviously, these people are desperate to stay in China. If they are deported they are likely to never see their wives ever again. These are the men with hardly any money or resources For them, bringing a Chinese wife back to their own country is not an option.

Silverboy, this is one of the most well thought out, wholly accurate, and spot on posts I have read yet on these boards.

I know a few guys in their 40s/50s in China who fit RIGHT into the situation you just described.

Even if they got savings in China, those savings mean nothing outside China. They didn't get a degree, so they can't get a Z visa, the only thing that helps them with their visa status, is their Chinese wife. I'd imagine it is pretty disheartening to have to teach kids for the rest of your life in China just to have to earn some money for a wife.