For organized overseas work, verify the agency's overseas labor cooperation qualification; it cannot demand a deposit

Nothing to check. Spend ten or fifteen minutes verifying the company and read both relevant contracts before departure.

Article 5 requires provincial or prefecture-city commerce authority approval. Article 7 requires a qualification certificate and registration and provides for company lists to be reported nationally and shared with Chinese embassies and consulates. Article 8 prohibits organizing overseas work under business, tourism, or study labels. Article 9 requires at least RMB 3 million in a designated-bank risk reserve within five working days of registration, with reserve-depositor lists published. Article 10 permits the reserve to cover service-fee refunds, labor remuneration, compensation the company refuses or cannot pay, and emergency rescue or return travel. Article 11 prohibits organizing work connected to gambling or pornography. Article 12 bars departure without required training, and Article 13 requires overseas personal accident insurance. Articles 21 and 23 require written contracts with the foreign employer and the worker; without them, the company may not organize departure. Article 25 prohibits deposits or property guarantees under any label. Article 26 requires contract filing with commerce authorities within ten working days. Under Article 29, the company must help seek redress where actual rights differ from the contract, and workers who do not receive due compensation may seek company liability. Article 31 prohibits sending workers where safety cannot be assured. Article 37 requires misconduct records and public notices. Article 39 provides for closure of unqualified operations and criminal liability where applicable. Article 40 revokes qualifications for disguised tourist, study, or business placements, lending qualifications, or organizing gambling- or pornography-related work. Article 43 imposes RMB 100,000–200,000 fines for sending workers without contracts or through concealed or false information, plus RMB 20,000–50,000 on principal responsible persons. These are Chinese rules governing the agency route.

The company first signs a labor cooperation contract with the foreign employer, then a service or employment contract with you. Terms should specify duties, duration, pay, hours, leave, social insurance, and personal safety risks. Contracts are filed within ten working days. Training must cover skills, safety, language, and local laws and customs, with overseas personal accident insurance purchased. Refusal to show contracts, demands for deposits, or pressure to depart before paperwork are reasons to avoid the provider. For overseas high-pay recruitment scams and forced scam compounds, see chapter 21, entry 5; that chapter also covers travel advisories and China's 12308 consular line. These regulations do not impose a universal worker age or degree threshold; agency qualifications and destination-country work permission still matter. The company must contract with a business or institution approved in that country, not an overseas individual. Workers cannot withdraw the risk reserve themselves; complain to the commerce authority, a right stated in Article 20. Where more than 100 workers are sent to one country or region, accompanying management personnel must be arranged and registered with the embassy or consulate. Smaller projects lack that specific safeguard, making your own copies of contracts and transfers especially important.

State Council (2012). Regulations on the Administration of Overseas Labor Cooperation, Order No. 620, Articles 5, 7–13, 21, 23, 25, 26, 29, 31, 37, 39, 40, and 43. https://www.gov.cn/zhengce/zhengceku/2012-06/11/content_1091.htm