Don't pay a deposit, don't hand over your ID, don't sign a “training loan” (培训贷), don't join a pyramid scheme (传销), don't borrow at loan-shark rates

Cost

Free. When you hear “pay first and then start work,” “train first and we'll arrange a job afterward,” or “recruit people,” refuse on the spot. Keep your chat records and transfer receipts. The hard part is that the more you need money, the more you want to gamble, and saying no on the spot is not easy.

What you get

A company may not hold your ID card or other documents, may not require you to find a guarantor, and may not collect money or goods from you under any other name. Violators are ordered to return what they took and fined 500 CNY or more but no more than 2000 CNY per person. A professional employment agency likewise may not hold documents or collect deposits, and if it did not get you a job it must refund its fee to you. Using the name of recruitment to lure you into paying training fees first or taking out a loan first is the “hire-to-train” (招转培) and “training loan” (培训贷) scam flagged by five departments including the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (人社部). Schemes that pay commissions for recruiting people and that you can join only by paying are pyramid selling (传销), and participants can be fined up to 2000 CNY. For private lending, a court will not support the part of the interest that exceeds 4 times the one-year LPR at the time the contract was signed. This new rule replaced the old three-tier method drawn around the 24% and 36% lines (nationwide, from August 2020)

Notes

4 times LPR is the interest ceiling a court is willing to protect. It does not mean you can borrow and not repay; the principal is still owed. This judicial interpretation was amended again in December 2020 and its article numbers changed, so go by the current text. For how to convert the fees on installment plans and online loans into an annualized rate, see §5.7 (convert interest into an annualized rate). The more urgently you need money, the easier it is for these tricks to find you. First use the legitimate channels earlier in this section: unemployment insurance benefits, a labor inspection complaint, legal aid, a rescue station, temporary assistance.

Evidence grade

A : Specific numbers from meta-analyses, large cohorts or randomized trials; for law and policy, the statute or official text.

Sources

1. National People's Congress Standing Committee (2007). Labor Contract Law [in Chinese] (Presidential Order No. 65, Articles 9 and 84). https://www.gov.cn/gongbao/content/2007/content_711013.htm
2. Ministry of Labor and Social Security (2007). Provisions on Employment Services and Employment Management [in Chinese] (Ministry of Labor and Social Security Order No. 28, Articles 14, 55 and 58). https://www.gov.cn/zhengce/2022-11/28/content_5711307.htm
3. Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security and four other departments (2026). Risk Warning: Beware of "Recruitment Turned into Training," "Training Loans" and Similar Schemes [in Chinese]. https://chinajob.mohrss.gov.cn/h5/c/2026-05-18/543038.shtml
4. State Council (2005). Regulations on Banning Pyramid Selling [in Chinese] (State Council Order No. 444, Articles 2, 7 and 24). https://www.gov.cn/gongbao/content/2005/content_80604.htm
5. Supreme People's Court (2020). Decision on Amending the Provisions on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Private Lending Cases [in Chinese] (Fa Shi [2020] No. 6, Article 26). https://www.court.gov.cn/fabu/xiangqing/249031.html
6. Supreme People's Court (2020). Judicial Protection Ceiling on Private Lending Interest Rates Adjusted to "4 Times the One-Year LPR" [in Chinese]. https://www.court.gov.cn/zixun/xiangqing/249051.html

Translated from the Chinese original. Original book, section 7, tip 15. Content may be out of date and rules differ by place. When you actually deal with an agency, a doctor or a court, follow what local officials, doctors and lawyers tell you. Disclaimer