I just wonder WHY people want to come to China to live if they have no money, no assets, rental income or pensions in their own countries.

Assets and rental income has that ring of serious bread about it. Most of us haven't got a pot to piss in, so we have to work in a filthy public school or a training centre, so we can live in China in the first place. I bet you don't know anybody with serious bread who also works in said filthy public school. Because the living-in-China bit, if you do have serious bread, can be achieved without the necessity of working. In the winter when it gets a bit nippy, asset-man can be found on a Thai beach with curvaceous Thai girl, while rental income-man is getting fit in Bangkok with a round or two of ping-pong. When both asset-man and rental-income man get a bit bored, they jump on an aeroplane for Kunming. Since money talks in China, these modern day Pickwickians will soon get to know that drinking-chum-local-official, who makes sure they have a 6 month visa to last them until they get bored with Chinese women and will nip over to another Asian country for a break to the tedium. Even if one had to manage on one or two month visas, no problem, because if you have assets, what's a hundred quid to renew your passport every couple of years when it is full of visas? cheers&beers