My understanding is the new resident "card" is in your passport now, it is not a separate "book" as it was previously. I understand this as I'm looking at mine. The resident permit has always been and remains the more important document. The Z Visa doesn't have an expiration date but you need it to get the resident card. The new resident card will allow you to go home during a break and re-enter the country with out a re-entry visa, which was required previously. Your resident card does have a expiration date. Mine is for one year. They were previously issued for 3, 6 or 12 months, I don't know about the current status but it probably will be issued for a year. It seems they are making it easier for us and also making it more difficult to convert other visa types to Z visas. Of course as with most things, if you have enough Guangxi, you probably can get that done too. It's always best to be legal! Please excuse my Pinyin if I miss spelled that word.
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