August 2026

There's a moment in most expats' first month here — usually when the fees on foreign-card payments start adding up, or an ayi asks to be paid by transfer rather than cash — when opening a local bank account stops being optional and starts being obviously necessary. Here's exactly what that involves in 2026, with no surprises. The one rule that decides your timeline Chinese banks do not open...

Ask a Shanghai resident where the Bund is and they'll point northeast, toward the stone banks and neon skyline everyone photographs. Ask where the West Bund is, and you'll get a different answer entirely: a few kilometres south along the same river, in Xuhui, where a stretch of former industrial waterfront has quietly become one of the best contemporary art districts in Asia — and one of our own...

You have found an apartment. You have sorted out the utilities and internet. You can navigate the metro and order coffee in passable Mandarin. But something is still missing. Shanghai is a city of 25 million people . It can feel impossibly crowded and profoundly lonely at the same time — especially in those first few weeks when you do not know anyone and the WeChat groups are still...

You land at Pudong at 11pm, you need a map, a ride-hailing app, and a message home saying you made it — and this is exactly the moment an eSIM for China earns its keep. Here's the complete, current picture: how it works, what it actually gets you, the one mistake that catches almost everyone, and how it fits alongside getting a proper local number once you're settled. What an eSIM actually is, in...

If you're relocating to Shanghai, one of the first questions on your mind is: can my pet come with me? Short answer: yes. Longer answer: it takes real planning, exact paperwork, and enough lead time — but it's entirely doable, and more people are doing it successfully every year. Here's what the process actually involves, based on China's official customs regulations. The Good News: Pet Travel...

If you are moving to Shanghai, one of the first practical questions you will ask is: Do I need to re-learn how to drive? The answer depends on whether you already have a license. The process is different for license holders compared to complete beginners. This guide covers both scenarios in detail, with the latest 2026 rules for Shanghai. The good news? If you already hold a valid foreign...

Short answer: yes — and the rules are currently the friendliest they've been in over a decade. But "yes" comes with conditions that surprise most first-time foreign buyers: one property, self-use only, a residency requirement, and a purchase process with a few steps Chinese buyers never see. Here's the complete picture as of 2026, from eligibility to keys. The core rules The national...

Sooner or later, every Shanghai resident goes to Disneyland. Your kids demand it, your visitors expect it, or — no judgment — you just want to ride TRON. And the difference between a magical day and an expensive queue-management exercise comes down to knowing how this particular park works. Tourists plan Shanghai Disneyland like a pilgrimage. Residents plan it like a heist. Here's the resident...

Stand at the junction of Wukang Road and Huaihai Middle Road on any weekend and you'll see them: hundreds of people, phones raised, photographing the same building. The Wukang Building (武康大楼) — that magnificent flatiron-shaped prow of brick and concrete — has become Shanghai's most photographed address, the face of the entire Former French Concession. Our office sits a few minutes up Wukang...

Ask any group of Shanghai expats about rental deposits and you'll collect the same stories: the landlord who deducted ¥3,000 for "wall repainting" after a spotless two-year tenancy, the agent who vanished at checkout time, the deposit returned five weeks late with no explanation for the missing ¥1,500. Here's the thing those stories obscure: most deposits in Shanghai come back in full, and the ones...