Get ready for take-off! - Talent Information Booklet UNLEASH Shenzhen 2019
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Get ready for
take-off!
Talent Information Booklet
UNLEASH Shenzhen 2019
1Contents
1 ONBOARDING PROCESS
2 REGISTRATION & PAYMENT GUIDELINES
3 TRAVEL BOOKING GUIDELINES
4 VISA APPLICATION GUIDELINES
5 CONTACT DETAILS
2Overview of onboarding process
Five things you need to do to secure a smooth arrival in Shenzhen
1) Register and pay: 25 June –7 July
Follow the link you received by email to the registration form and submit the information needed to
prepare for your stay in Shenzhen. As part of the registration process, you will be asked to pay a
participation fee – so please have a credit card at hand!
2) Confirm your flight: 8-22 July
UNLEASH works with a travel agency to book flights for all talents. Once the agency has identified
an itinerary based on your preferences, you will be contacted to confirm the selected flight.
3) Apply for a visa: 6-30 August
You will most likely need a visa to visit China. Please see the Visa Application Guidelines (p. 6) for
details on required materials for your visa application. Getting a visa can sometimes take 1-2
months, so we encourage you to initiate this process as soon as possible – but not before you have
received your ticket, which is a requirement for the visa application!
4) Upload visa: 1-30 September
Once you have your visa in hand, please upload it to the registration platform to finish the
onboarding process!
5) Form teams: 1-31 October
UNLEASH will be in touch with you in the weeks leading up to the event with details on what
insight you will be working on, what team you will be in, and any last-minute details you need
before you arrive in Shenzhen!
1 2 3 4 5
Register & pay Confirm flight Apply for visa Upload visa Form teams
25 June–7 July 8-22 July 6-30 August 1-30 September 1-31 October
3Registration and payment guidelines
To confirm your participation in the event, you are required to register (using the link you received by email) by
7 July 2019 at the latest. Applicants who have not registered by this date will lose their spots at UNLEASH.
Before you begin the registration process, please note:
1. The registration system does not allow you to save your information and return to submit later. We
therefore recommend that you start out by skimming the required fields and then fill out the form in
one go.
2. You will need a clear copy of your passport along with your preferred travel dates, banking information
and credit card (if you have access to one) to submit the form.
3. You must pay a participation fee of USD 150 minus estimated visa cost in order to submit your
registration form. *1
The USD 150 participation covers your full participation in the UNLEASH program. However, as some may
experience high visa application costs, UNLEASH subtracts estimated visa costs (varying from country to
country) from the participation fee. This calculation is done automatically through the registration system. If
your visa cost is estimated to be less than your participation fee, you are required to pay the balance.
Please note the following rules for subtraction of visa costs from your participation fee:
• The visa fees provided through the registration system are flat rate amounts for a standard, single-
entry F-visa determined based on extensive research and cost estimates provided by the Chinese
Foreign Affairs Office on 1 June 2019. While we acknowledge that some fee changes may occur, no
adjustments will be made to the provided list.
• The provided visa fees constitute application and handling fees at official Chinese Embassies,
Consulates and Visa Centers. Fees by privately-operated visa providers are not included in the list, and
any additional fees stemming from handling by private providers are not eligible for subtraction nor
reimbursement.
• The provided visa fees constitute the application and handling fees applicable for a person applying in
the same country of which they are a citizen (e.g. an Indian national applying for a visa in India). Any
additional costs arising from applying for a visa outside of your country of nationality are not eligible
for subtraction nor reimbursement.
Example: If you are a Kenyan national applying for a Chinese visa, your visa cost is estimated to be USD 40.
This amount will be subtracted from your participation fee during the registration process, leaving a remaining
balance of USD 110, which you must pay in order to submit your registration form.
You can make a payment to UNLEASH in one of two ways:
1. Pay directly via the registration system using a credit card (recommended).
The system accepts Visa, Visa Electronic, JCB International, MasterCard, and American Express. Once
you have entered your card details and made the payment, you will also receive an email confirming
that you have registered for UNLEASH Innovation Lab 2019.
2. Pay separately via TransferWise.
If you do not have access to a credit card, you can set up a personal TransferWise account at
www.transferwise.com, from which you can make a payment to UNLEASH. Should you choose this
payment option, you will receive an invoice detailing your balance payment as well as separate
instructions on account creation, payment details and UNLEASH’s account information. Please note
that the payment due date is the same as the registration deadline. Once you have made the payment,
your registration will be updated automatically, and you will receive an email confirmation.
* Please note that the participation fee is not applicable for talents who have applied for and received a scholarship, as well as talents
whose employers are sponsoring their participation.
4Travel booking guidelines
To ensure that everyone has equal access to the program, UNLEASH provides flight tickets to and from
Shenzhen for all participants who are not locally based.
Booking process
As part of your registration, you will be asked to specify your preferred location, date and time of departure.
We will do our best to accommodate your travel preferences to the extent possible given our budget and the
availability of flights. Should we not be able to identify a flight that perfectly aligns with your preferences, we
will book the closest possible alternative.
A travel agent will reach out to you between 8-22 July 2019 to confirm your flight itinerary. Should we not be
able to reach you, we will use your registration as an expression of approval and will automatically issue your
ticket. Once issued, flight tickets cannot be amended.
When submitting your information in our registration system, you will be able to state a first and second
preference for your flight itinerary. Before you submit, there are a few things we ask you to consider:
• Departure and arrival times
You must arrive in Shenzhen before 6 November at 12:00 noon and depart from Shenzhen no earlier
than 13 November at 20:00. When stating your preferred travel dates and times, you must therefore
allow sufficient travel time (including layovers) to arrive before the beginning of the program (e.g. if
travelling from São Paulo, Brazil, you should state your travel date to be 4 November 2019 at ‘Night’
at the latest.
If you arrive or depart outside of the program dates, UNLEASH will provide food and accommodation
from 5-14 November, both dates inclusive.
• Departure and arrival airport
Due to the large number of flights we will be handling, UNLEASH can only provide you with either one
single-trip flight or one round-trip flight.
For your airport of departure, you will be asked to indicate your preferred airport during registration.
Please note, however, that your actual flight booking may depart from a larger international airport
based on the availability of flight connections (e.g. your flight may depart from London Heathrow
Airport even if you indicate London Stansted Airport to be your preferred point of departure).
All flights will arrive at either Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport or Hong Kong International Airport
(HKG). Should the latter apply to you, UNLEASH with make arrangements for your transportation from
HKG to Shenzhen.
• Requests for special flights
Although we understand that some of you may want to travel before or after taking part of UNLEASH,
we cannot provide multiple single-trip tickets. We are also not able to guarantee direct flight
connections nor accommodate requests for specific layovers. If you wish to travel regionally after
UNLEASH, you may therefore ask UNLEASH to book a single-trip flight to Shenzhen and arrange your
own flights to your travel destination(s) and return at your own cost. Please note that UNLEASH will
not reimburse the costs of any flights you have purchased on your own.
5• In-flight services
All flight bookings will be made for economy class. UNLEASH cannot accommodate requests for
upgrades, except in circumstances where your physical condition requires special seating.
All flights will include the option to check in baggage of at least 20 kg, and all long-haul flights will
include complimentary meals.
Additional services offered at extra cost, such as meals and seat selection on short-haul flights, will not
be included, except in circumstances where you can provide documentation that these are necessary
for reasons relating to your health.
• Cancellation
Should you wish to cancel your participation in UNLEASH after a flight ticket has been issued to you,
you must immediately contact UNLEASH at secretariat@unleash.org. Please state your reason for
cancellation and provide documentation in the form of a signed doctor’s note or a visa application
rejection letter, if applicable.
If you cannot provide documentation showing a valid reason for cancellation, you will be required to
pay the applicable cancellation fee for your issued flight.
6Visa application guidelines
With the exception of nationals from only a handful of countries, most people who wish to visit China must
apply for a visa to enter. If required to have a visa, UNLEASH talents must apply for an “F-visa”, which is typically
issued to those who go to China for study tours, academic lectures, conferences, and similar activities.
Before you begin applying for a visa, UNLEASH recommends that you do the following:
1. Call your nearest Chinese Embassy, Consulate or Visa Center to confirm:
a. If you need a visa;
b. How long your visa would be valid for (varies from country to country);
c. Whether your visa would be for single-entry or multiple-entry (varies from country to country);
d. What documentation is required for your visa application.
2. If your passport expires in less than six months: Renew your passport and contact the UNLEASH
Secretariat to let us know that you will be travelling with a new travel document.
3. Apply for a visa – but not before 6 August 2019, as you cannot apply more than three months in
advance!
To apply for a visa, you must prepare the following documentation:
Note: The below list is guiding and in no way exhaustive as requirements vary between countries. Please
contact your nearest Chinese Embassy, Consulate or Visa Center to confirm if you need additional
documentation beyond what is listed.
1. Invitation letter You will receive this letter from UNLEASH in end-July 2019. The letter will contain
information submitted by you in your registration form.
While most visa centers will accept the invitation letter in the form of fax, photocopy or computer printout, some require
the applicant to submit an original letter. Please confirm this with your nearest Chinese Embassy, Consulate or Visa
Center! If you do need an original letter, please request one by contacting us at talent@unleash.org
2. Passport AND photocopy Your passport must have at least 6 (six) months of remaining validity left and at least 2
of passport data page (and (two) blank visa pages.
photo page, if separate)
3. Completed visa Please visit the website of the Chinese Embassy in your country to find the application
application form form and detailed instructions for submission.
4. Recent passport picture Please visit the website of the Chinese Embassy in your country to find detailed
instructions for what picture to use.
5. Scanned copy of visa page If you have previously traveled to China, you must provide a photocopy of any previous
and immigration record Chinese visa(s) and a record of entry and exit from your last visit to China. If you used a
previous passport, you can attach a photocopy of the visa page in that passport.
6. Proof of legal stay or If you are applying for a visa outside of your country of citizenship, you will need to provide
residence status the original and photocopied certificate or visa of stay, residence, employment, or
student status, or any other valid certificates of legal stay provided by the relevant
authorities of the country you currently reside in.
Example: If you are a Swiss national currently living in Brazil on a student visa, and you are applying for a visa to enter
China from the Chinese Embassy in Brazil, you will need to provide your original and photocopied Brazilian student visa.
After you have prepared the above materials, you must submit them to your nearest Chinese Embassy,
Consulate or Visa Center in person (note that fingerprints are often required) and pay an application fee (and
in some cases, a separate handling fee). The applicable fee varies from country to country. Once you have
received your visa, please upload a copy of it to the registration platform as part of your onboarding process.
7Contact information
If you have questions that have not been addressed by this booklet or our FAQ (www.unleash.org/FAQ), you
can contact us on either of the following email addresses:
For inquiries relating to your specific visa application (e.g. required documents or waiting period):
Contact your nearest Chinese Embassy, Consulate or Visa Center.
For inquiries relating to travel booking and visa documents (e.g. errors in your invitation letter):
Contact us at talent@unleash.org
For inquiries relating to registration, payment or other participation-related matters (including health
concerns or cancellation):
Contact us at secretariat@unleash.org
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