Date: Wed, 3 Nov 1993 22:40:15 PST Reply-To: ccf-editor@ifcss.org Sender: China-Net From: ccf-editor@ifcss.org Subject: CCI #9302, 11/4/93: Rate Schedules and Survey on Phone Calls to China To: Multiple recipients of list CHINA-NT ==+==+==+==+ CHINESE CONSUMERS INFORMATION +==+==+==+== Thursday, Nov 4, 1993 (Issue No. 9302) +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= Chinese Consumers Information (CCI) provides the overseas Chinese community with consumers information of their GENERAL concerns. For example, it serves as a barometer of international airfares, telephone rates and duty-free goods prices, contains descriptions, comparisons, evaluations and tips on products and services (communication, finance, health, travel, insurance, Customs, passports) commonly used by the Chinese community. Promotions of any products are excluded. Contributions are subject to strict selection and edition by the Editing Board of CCI (EBCCI). However, neither EBCCI nor its Executive Editor in no way guarantees the accuracy of information or recommends any products or services mentioned contained in the issue. It is solely at readers' own risk to take any advantage of it. CCI is posted to China-net. Information on subscription is provided at the end of this issue. In her coming issue(s), CCI plans to cover health insurance policies that are commonly used or accessible to the Chinese community. Contributions of brief summaries or personal experiences of such policies are welcome. At present, EBCCI is also open to volunteer editors. If you'd like to help CCI, please send a message to . +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= Table of Contents Sender | # of Lines ============================================================================ 1. Survey: Telephone Services for Calling China..........................13 2. Telephone Rates Schedules for Calling China............................72 3. An Experience with Sprint's IFCSS Special Program.................xie 5 4. Comments on Air Ticket to China in CCI 9301....................niejun 5 5. Readers' Questions Need Answers........................................16 6. Q & A's on Some Immigration and Visa Issues............................70 ============================================================================ ===========***==========***==========**==========***==========***=========== 1. Survey: Telephone Services for Calling China..........................13 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Please mail your answers to this survey to . Sample return: a1 b3 c3 Results will be published in the next issue of CCI. Thanks for your help. a. Who is your long-distance telephone carrier? a1. ATT; a2. MCI; a3. Sprint; a4. Other(specify): b. How are you satisfied with the services from your long-distance carrier? b1. Excellent; b2. Above-average; b3. Average; b4. Below-average; b5. Bad c. If you have ever switched your carriers, has the switching(s) saved you money? c1. Yes; c2. No; c3. Not sure. ===========***==========***==========**==========***==========***=========== 2. Telephone Rates Schedules for Calling China............................70 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rates, in US$/min, are for direct dials from residential phones only. All rates are subject to change. Please call individual companies to verify these rates or get their up-to-date rates schedules. A T & T ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Period || Regular || Current Special Rates (before 11/30/93) | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | || Everyday || Mon.-Fri. | Sat. | Sun. | | || 1st | after || 1st | after | 1st | after | 1st | after | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | 5pm- 2am || 5.58 | 1.63 || 4.46 | 1.30 | 2.19 | 0.64 | 2.50 | 0.73 | | 2am-11am || 4.18 | 1.43 || 3.34 | 1.14 | 0.43 | 0.43 | 0.49 | 0.49 | | 11am- 5pm || 3.35 | 1.18 || 2.68 | 0.94 | 1.31 | 0.46 | 1.50 | 0.53 | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- AT&T also offers the Most Country Plan (no fee), which gives a 15% discount on calls to a country of your Choice. You can change that the country of your choice every 30 days. This plan is not applicable to the above special rates. M C I ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Period || Regular || Current Special Rates (before 11/30/93) | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | || Everyday || Mon.-Fri. | Sat. | Sun. | | || 1st | after || 1st | after | 1st | after | 1st | after | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | 5pm- 2am || 5.57 | 1.63 || | | 2am-11am || 4.17 | 1.43 || May also have the special offer similar | | 11am- 5pm || 3.34 | 1.18 || to ATT's. | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- MCI also offers the Around The World plan (for a monthly fee of $3), which gives a 15% discount on calls to the country you make the most of your calls during the month even if the numbers you call change from month to month. And people can get 20% based on the discounted price when you phone the Friend and Family Circle No. You can have two international No. and twenty domestic MCI No. as your friends and family circle. Between 11:00pm and 7:00am and on Saturday is Economic time for domestic phone call. Normally when I call China, I paid 0.79 per minute after all the discount and I always called between 11.00 am and 5.pm on Saturday. From September 1 to November 30, only on Saturday and Sunday, between 2:00am and 11.00 am, MCI has a special program. People can get $0.61/min instead of 15% discount for around world program before you get 20% discount from F & F circle for your two international telephone No. That is, 49 cent per minute for the two No. you chose as F & F. And 0.61 for all others. S p r i n t ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Period || Regular || Current Special Rates (before 11/??/93) | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | || Everyday || Mon.-Fri. | Sat. | Sun. | | || 1st | after || 1st | after | 1st | after | 1st | after | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | 5pm- 2am || 5.58 | 1.63 || | | 2am-11am || 4.18 | 1.43 || May also have the special offer similar | | 11am- 5pm || 3.35 | 1.11 || to ATT's. | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sprint also offers the Most Worldwide plan (for a monthly fee of $3), which gives a 20% discount on calls to the people you talk to the most during the month even if the numbers you call change from month to month. Contributors to the above rates information are: Shusheng Luan Yimin Zeng Jia Amanda Wo Gongming Wang Changqing Yang cqyang@chemistry.umass.edu> ===========***==========***==========**==========***==========***=========== 3. An Experience with Sprint's IFCSS Special Program.................xie 72 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- My dear country fellows, I want to share some experience with you. It's about my switching long distance phone company from MCI to Sprint. Last June (1993), some Chinese sales representative called us to promote some special program. At the same time we saw IFCSS's advertisement about Sprint's special program for members of IFCSS. Since this sales representative was a Chinese, and the two program's names sounded very similar. (It turned out one was "Most World Plan" , and the other was "Most World Wide Plan") So without any doubt, we thought they were promoting the same thing. We agreed to switch to Sprint. Then my mother was going to come at end of August, so we made lots of phone calls to China without much hesitation thinking that we were on IFCSS's special program. During that time, there was another sales representative from Sprint called us to introduce IFCSS's program and I told her we were already on this program and hang up on her. But when we got our phone bill in September we were very surprised. Instead of .93/minute as advertised by IFCSS, they charged us from 1.75 to 1.95/minute, and the several calls to China amounted to over 200 dollars. I complained to IFCSS,they contacted Sprint in about ten days, a Sprint representative Mr. Chan contacted me and tried to appeal my case to his supervisor. After 20 days or so, I called him and he told me his appeal was denied. I contacted IFCSS again two days ago, they immediately contacted Sprint and Sprint called us last night to settle our phone bill. They finally agreed to charge us .93/minute instead of 1.95/minute. We got over one hundred dollars credit back because of IFCSS's direct intervention. This experience taught me the following things: a). Never assume anything when dealing with sales representative. I should have specificly asked them about IFCSS. Most sales representatives try to confuse you, give you false impression with many kinds of tricks. Pay close attention to small prints and provisions. Don't be mislead and get yourself into a false conclusion or implication. b). If this program was only through Sprint, not through IFCSS, the denial of Mr. Chan's appeal to his supervisor would be the end of the story. There would be no way to get my credit back. Since it was ourselves who got confused between these two programs. c). IFCSS is very responsible for their programs. d). IFCSS is very effective to settle any dispute and protect its member's interest. You know why. Because IFCSS represents tens of thousands of CSS - including you and me. It's a very strong organization. As an individual, nobody would care that much of our complaint. But as a strong organization, everybody will care and will pay close attention to whatever we say and whatever we do. We need our own organization to represent and protect our own interest. And our support (emotional and financial) is a key for the survival of our own organization. There are lots of traps, unfairness and discrimination against Chinese immigrants in this society (of course there are lots of wonderful people and wonderful things on this wonderful land as well). Our organization can do a lot more for us in the years to come. (From: Oct-28-1993; Source: CCNL) (Forwarded by: Weihe Guan ) ===========***==========***==========**==========***==========***=========== 4. Comments on Air Ticket to China in CCI 9301....................niejun 5 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- For the ticket tips, as I know as a New Yorker, the price of Korea Airline from Shanghai to New York could be as low as $600 (I bought two at the last high season) and the price from New York to Shanghai could be cheaper. This is for your information. (From: Oct-14-1993) ===========***==========***==========**==========***==========***=========== 5. Readers' Questions Need Answers........................................16 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Please share with others your knowledge about the following by mailing to . Thank you.---Editor. a. Do you have any idea about the price range for any flights from Minneapolis/St.Paul to Shanghai, Beijing, or Hongkong? b. Where and how do I subscribe some Chinese magazines? c. Where and how can I get some information about new car prices and tips on buying a new car? d. Do you know where I can get info on the Chinese heating industry? How they get their heat (oil, gas, coal)? I am particularly interested in the Southern and Coastal areas of China. I am told that it is here that they use oil and gas for boiler. ===========***==========***==========**==========***==========***=========== 6. Q & A's on Some Immigration and Visa Issues............................70 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I heard someone said that starting form Sept 1, 1993 F-1 students cannot work 20 hours per week even if they had been in U.S. for 1 year. Is it true? A: INS regulations allow F-1 students, with the appropriate approval, to work a maximum of 20 hours during the academic term and full-time during vacations. The 1-year (i.e., academic year) reference is to off-campus employment. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I'm going to invite my parents, to vistit us some time next year. I was told that it's getting harder for those parents to get a visa to visit US where their children stay. I wonder if some experienced netter could give me some hints how to satisfy the US Ambassador/Consul when my parents apply for their visa to US, before they get in trouble. a). What documents do my parents need to submit when they apply for a visa? (invitation letter? my passport? my green card? BTW, I just got my PR application approved. Now I have only a stamp on my passport stating my PR status before I receive the final green card.) A: It is hard to say exactly what is needed, since it is up to the discretion of the consular officer. An invitation letter might help, but your PR materials might not. The latter might raise questions about whether your parents intend to return home after a visit--or perhaps immigrate to the USA. Financial support in the USA is always a factor; provide documentation. Intent of your parents to return home is also crucial. Document that, also, either verbally or in writing. b). What kind of reason do my parents have to explain (is it an acceptable reason/excuse that we are too busy in working/studying and they will come to help us to take care of our child? and if my wife is pregnant, do we need to provide doctor's certificate of pregnancy?) Any successful experience? A: Again, it is hard to say what is most needed. If child care is the reason for the visit, you need to state so. However, the consular official might wonder why you are not going to use existing services in the USA. Make a solid argumentation if you respond about the need for child care. As for pregnancy, a doctor's letter would seem appropriate, particularly if there are possible complications. c). How to convince the US Ambassador that my parents just want to see their son and grand daughter and they have no intention to stay here forever? A: Among the things considered are financial assets in the home country, family ties, employment situation and opportunities for advancement, and the return rate of your compatriots. If the balance of these issues (and others) tip in the direction of the USA, they might have trouble that is hard to overcome--i.e., the presumption of immigration. d). What kind of evidence of financial support we need to provide (any bottom line of the annual income and personal fund?) A: Send copies of documents such as bank statements and employment contracts. The determination of whether the amount is adequate or not is somewhat subjective, but probably tied into the cost of living in the area and the projected length of the visit. [Editor's note: A's are kindly provided by Dr. William H. Smart, Foreign Student Advisor at Oregon State University. He mentioned that these are his opinions, not necessarily anyone else's.] +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= + Executive Editor: Shusheng Luan Executive Moderator: Ning Luo + +--------------------------------------------------------------------------+ + For subscription: mail "SUB CHINA-NT Your-First-Name Your-Last-Name" + + to LISTSERV@UGA (bitnet) or listserv@uga.cc.uga.edu (internet) + + For back issues of CCI: + + anonymous ftp to cnd.org[132.249.229.100]:pub/community/CCF + + For contribution and inquiry: mail to ccf-editor@ifcss.org + +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=++