If School's name you wrote is "Kiddie English', school is most likely unauthorized to hire FT, or such School can't apply for Working permit and Invitation letter, both documents needed for Z visa application.

If School is unauthorized to hire FT, Contract you signed is invalid, or in other words it doesn't carry any obligations. You don't owe School anything, if you don't respect the Contract, and sign new Contract with legally authorized school for FT hire.

Its difficult to write right advice without seeing 'Working permit', you received from the School.

You can give us a snap shot of the WP you received, just blank out your name.

WP is A3 format paper with text in Chinese characters. On the bottom of the WP is Chinese red stamp, some 4 cm in diameter. That's how real WP looks like, and it must be original, not copy/scan version.

When School mails WP, it always comes together with Invitation letter.

You could also dial SAFEA in your working city (Shanghai), and inquire about the School with them.

Enter 'SAFEA' in search above for address and contact nos. in your city.

Thank you for all of your answers. I have one last thing to bring up. I read this on usembassy-china.org.

"- Early Termination

Contracts should always include an acceptable early termination clause. If a contract is terminated early and the employee wants to work at another school in China, a “Letter of Release” from the previous school will be required. This letter allows the next school to officially register the teacher; without it one cannot work legally at a new institution. "

I understand that this contract is not legally binding in any way , but should I be asking for a Letter of Release or does this not matter? Thank you for your continued help and support.

Just say you showed the contract to a legal friend.

Then ask questions.

Is this contract legal under Chinese law? My friend says no.

I dont like this part, can I change it?

Do you apply the 5 year law? What is the 5 year law.

This contract is in English. Is it legal?

Trust me on this. Chinese employment law is fuzzy. No one understands it. Start quizzing them, and they will decide you are more trouble than they are worth.

And do it all via email. Your webcam is broken. No more skype.

If they get nasty, no problem. Are you using a gmail account? Ask them how they can do that when it is bannned.

Do they have a license to employ foreigners, or a buisiness license? Ask for a copy so you can scan the matrix code ( wechat has a handy scanner where it will tell you all public domain info attached to a business license, including deposited capital).

If you keep asking questions, they will soon forget you exist.

But anyway, come to Guangzhou, its much better than Shanghai.

two words that i have heard students use to be absent from class:

Family illness

the school is hardly going to send a representative over to your home country to verify if your parent is going into hospital/needing surgery/dying.

Until you step off the plane and hand over your passport to the PSB for the RP, you still have an out.

Then just don't respond to their emails/phone calls etc.

I have not had to do this, but it was always my back-up plan if the school were really ****ing me over, but i do know some FT's who did. EDIT: I do know an FT, who when he said he had to return home to attend a family funeral, he was asked for a copy of the death certificate. When he returned, he was super angry with the school for the rest of the semester. Especially as they wanted him to make up the time.