Your First Month in China: A Practical Settling-In Checklist

The paperwork usually gets planned for. The first few weeks of actually living somewhere new usually don't -- here's what to handle, roughly in order.

Week 1: Register and Get Connected

• Register your residence with the local police station within 24 hours of moving in -- hotels typically do this automatically, but a private rental does not.
• Get a local SIM card -- you'll need it for almost every app and delivery service, and registration requires your passport.
• Set up mobile payments (Alipay or WeChat Pay) -- cash and even cards are far less usable day-to-day than in most countries; a linked international card gets you through the first stretch before a local bank account is possible.

Week 2: Health and Banking

• Complete any required health check if you're on a work visa -- this is usually a prerequisite for the residence permit, not optional.
• Open a local bank account once your residence permit is issued -- this is the step most people underestimate the wait time for. See Relocating to China for Business: The Complete Guide for the sequencing.

Week 3-4: Build Your Routine

• Find a regular grocery/delivery routine -- apps handle most of daily life once set up, from groceries to laundry to ride-hailing.
• Locate the nearest hospital or clinic that handles English-speaking patients, before you need one, not after.
• If you're there for business, start scheduling the supplier or client visits you actually moved for -- the admin steps above exist to get out of the way of this part.

What Nobody Tells You in Advance

The single biggest adjustment isn't cultural -- it's how much of daily life runs through a phone. Almost nothing works well without the apps set up first, so treat that as day-one priority, not a nice-to-have.

If you'd rather have someone handle the logistics above so you can focus on the business reason you moved, our moving assistance service covers this end-to-end, and our relocation hub has the full range of support available.