MOVE TO CHINA
China expat salary and benefits package: what to compare
Compensation comparison
PACKAGE COMPARISON
START HERE
Compare the whole package, not the salary number at the top of the offer.
For a move to China, the practical value of an offer depends on cash pay, tax treatment, housing, school support, insurance, relocation costs, social insurance, bonus certainty and the timing of reimbursements. Two offers with similar gross salary can create very different household cash flow.
This guide gives you a comparison method. It does not calculate your personal tax or tell you what a “good expat salary” should be.
01 · TOTAL REWARD
Compare total reward, not headline salary
Start by putting every item into one of four buckets.
Fixed cash
Examples include base salary or other amounts the contract states will be paid on a defined schedule.
Variable cash
Bonus, commission, incentive or other amounts that depend on performance, company results, continued employment or another condition.
Employer-paid or reimbursed support
Housing, school, insurance, relocation, flights or other items the company pays directly or reimburses under a policy.
Costs or risks you still carry
Tax, employee deductions, uncovered healthcare, deposits, upfront school fees, moving costs, currency risk or benefits that stop when employment ends.
Then label every field:
Confirmed — written and sufficiently clear. Conditional — depends on a policy, cap, eligibility rule or later approval. Unknown — not yet explained.
A benefit does not belong in the same column as salary merely because HR gives it a monetary value.
02 · CASH & CURRENCY
Separate cash, currency and payment certainty
For salary and bonuses, clarify:
- gross or net wording;
- payment currency;
- payroll date;
- where payment is made;
- whether any part is paid outside China;
- bonus formula;
- minimum service period;
- clawback or repayment conditions;
- what happens if employment begins later than planned.
If a contract says “net salary,” ask how the employer defines net and what happens if your tax position changes.
If part of the package is denominated in another currency, separate two questions:
- What amount is contractually owed?
- Who bears exchange-rate movement between the contract currency and your actual spending currency?
Do not assume an overseas payment is outside Chinese tax analysis. China's tax rules consider residence, source of income, work performed in China and other facts, not just the location of the bank account.
03 · HOUSING
Test housing and relocation support against the real move
Housing support can look generous while still producing a large arrival cash-flow requirement.
Ask whether the employer provides:
- company-leased accommodation;
- a monthly housing allowance;
- reimbursement against invoices;
- a cap;
- temporary housing;
- deposit support;
- agent-fee support;
- utilities;
- shipping or storage;
- flights;
- settling-in expenses.
Then ask when the money moves.
If you must pay a deposit and several other costs before reimbursement, include that temporary cash requirement in your comparison.
Do not use an unsourced citywide rent average to decide whether the allowance works. Test the benefit against the actual housing options that fit the workplace, school and household constraints.
For relocation, separate one-off support from recurring support. A moving allowance may solve the shipment but do nothing for temporary housing or a delayed first payroll.
04 · FAMILY SUPPORT
Compare school, insurance and home-leave terms as policies
Family benefits need more detail than a tick box.
For school support, ask:
- which children qualify;
- which school types or institutions qualify;
- whether registration, tuition, transport or other fees are included;
- the cap;
- whether the employer pays directly or reimburses;
- what happens if the child joins mid-year;
- what happens when employment ends.
For medical insurance:
- who is covered;
- policy period;
- inpatient and outpatient scope;
- deductible/co-pay where applicable;
- provider/network rules;
- direct billing versus reimbursement;
- exclusions;
- pre-authorisation requirements.
The employer's policy, not the words “international insurance,” determines the value.
For home leave, clarify eligibility, frequency, destination assumptions, booking rules and whether unused travel has any value.
Do not convert these employer-specific benefits into a claim that foreign employees are generally entitled to them.
06 · COMPARE
Use an offer-comparison worksheet that exposes assumptions
Build one row per offer:
| Field | Offer A | Offer B | Evidence / question |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legal employer | |||
| Role / city / worksite | |||
| Fixed cash | |||
| Variable cash | |||
| Payroll currency | |||
| Housing | |||
| School | |||
| Medical insurance | |||
| Social insurance | |||
| Relocation | |||
| Home leave | |||
| Work-authorisation support | |||
| Upfront cash required | |||
| Unresolved tax question | |||
| Termination exposure |
Do not force unknowns into a fake number. An unresolved school policy or tax issue is information about the offer.
The strongest package is not necessarily the one with the highest notional value. It is the package whose important items are written, usable for your household, correctly timed and supported by an employment route that works.
Sources checked for this guide: State Taxation Administration IIT law and annual-reconciliation measures; Shanghai and national social-insurance guidance; State Administration of Foreign Exchange for cross-border payment boundary. Checked 14 August 2026. Employer package terms remain employer-specific.
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