China can be a funny place sometimes… Expats can seemingly get away with behavior here that would normally get them in trouble in their home countries (*cough* public drunkenness *cough*), while getting in major trouble for what most countries would view as minor offenses. So what small things can cause big trouble in China? Read on for some of the more innocent "infractions" that can cause expats time, money, or just a good old fashioned grilling.

1) Having any sort of mark on your Chinese visa
Chinese authorities take their visas seriously. Very, very seriously. So they don't like thinking that perhaps other people don't take their visas quite as seriously as they do. Case in point: A friend of mine (let's call him "John") was filling out some forms at a bank that required his Chinese visa number. When a bank teller was pointing out some information he had forgotten to include, she circled, with a pen, the last number on his visa. When John went to apply for a new Chinese work visa a few months later, it was denied. Why? The authorities told John that he had disrespected China by marking on his visa. Luckily, John was told that he could remedy the situation by writing a personal letter to the Chinese consulate, apologizing for his disrespect and basically begging to be given permission to stay here. Done and done.

2) Speaking English in front of police officers
This one I learned the hard way when I first moved to China. A few days after arriving, my husband and I went with his Chinese coworker (let's call her "Jane") to the local police station in order to register our address. Jane spoke English fairy well, so she was helping to translate everything the police officer was saying about what documents we needed, etc. After a four-hour ordeal of being told we needed one form, only to be told after we produced that form that we actually needed a different form (you know how it goes…), we were all getting a bit fed up – including Jane.

Finally, my husband signed the last form we needed in order to finish the registration process. After signing it, the officer told Jane that he'd signed it about three inches above where he actually needed to sign it, so the officer would have to print out a new form and have him sign it in the proper place. Jane looked at us and told us what the officer had said, then added "Stupid policies." Well, apparently the officers knew just enough English to recognize the word "stupid" and assumed Jane was calling the officer stupid. The three of us watched in horror as the officer tore up every single piece of paper we had just spent hours producing and signing, all the while screaming that "that woman" (meaning Jane) was never allowed to set foot in that police station again, and that if my husband and I wanted our registration process completed, we would have to come in again with a new translator to start the process all over again. Jane immediately burst into tears and started screaming back at the officer, which predictably ended with her talking to the police chief and the security tape footage being reviewed. So yeah, don't think you're safe speaking English in front of police officers – most know just enough to cause problems.

3) Trying to spend currency with "offensive" writing on it
Just keep in mind that the definition of "offensive" differs drastically in China from other countries. This happened to a friend of mine (let's call her Julia) who was paid in cash by her company. As it happened, in order to pay her six months' worth of rent, she had to charge her bank account with some of her earnings. She went to the bank clerk and handed over her card and a fat load of 100 RMB bills. The clerk fingered the bills, blinked, and suddenly went stone-faced. Julia was told to wait a moment, after which three equally stone-faced policemen showed up and took her to the police station.

Julia was taken in and questioned (in English – again, don't underestimate police officers' language skills) for three hours about who she was, what she did in China, whether she liked China, and many other pleasantries. Unsurprisingly, Julia was at this point very distressed, and interrupted the unending question-stream by asking what she'd done and whether she should contact her consulate. The officers replied politely it would be best not to, as she wasn't in any trouble. All they wanted to know, they explained, was why every single one of her money bills had the name of a certain, shall we say, disreputable political/philosophical movement – one starting with an F and ending with a G and banned in China – written all over them. Julia's complete ignorance of the Chinese language proved her saving grace, and she was released with only a warning to be more careful in the future.

Though foreigners will probably be given a little leeway, considering that many don't know the meaning of those Chinese characters (hell, most expats can't even write their names in Chinese characters, never mind the name of an underground philosophical movement), it's nevertheless best to be extra careful if you find any sort of writing on your currency.

4) Hitting on a Chinese person
With all the foreigners you see walking hand in hand with Chinese partners (I'm going to go ahead and be stereotypical here and cite the much more common example of expat men with Chinese women), you would think that this sort of relationship must be openly accepted here in China. Alas, not everyone is as open and tolerant of interracial pairings – especially the young Chinese men who are "losing their women" to foreigners. This can, and does, result in foreign men sometimes getting the bejeezus kicked out of them by a mob of disgruntled scorned lovers, as was the case with a friend of mine (let's call him "Jim") after a recent trip to a nightclub. He said he had been talking to (ie: flirting with) a Chinese girl all night and walked out with her towards a taxi. As he was about to get in, he was yanked out by a group of four Chinese men who then proceeded to punch and kick him. While the Chinese girl stood screaming, my friend managed to tear himself away and ran for his life. He managed to lose them and is able to (now) laugh about the story, but it's a good reminder to be on your guard – especially if you're into Chinese girls.