Use Stripe & WeChat Pay to get paid by Chinese parents (as an independent teacher)

[@GorgieClarissa]

geeeezes. i'm so glad I follow you... i know this video is three years old, but you seriously just have answers to everything i have questions to! i can't thank you enough - especially as a teacher who's client base is half chinese. i'm planning on going independent in the next TWO months.... soooo this was one of my BIGGEST concerns.

[@nicholeann2886]

谢谢! I finally sat down and force myself to finish setting up my Stripe account and then enabling WeChat Pay. My account was approved automatically and WeChat was only pending for about 10 minutes. Thank you for a simple, straightforward, and easy to follow video. Now my parents don't have to navigate PayPal invoices!

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

So happy to hear this - thanks for sharing Nichole!

[@huashanhuaihai7242]

Thanks OTD! It would've taken me ages to figure that out on my own. On my first attempt, Stripe didn't allow me to enable WeChat my first try, and customer service didn't help. I closed my Stripe account and reopened following the instructions you gave. I registered as a Sole Proprietorship and chose 'customers receive good immediately'. I think in the end my tax ID name was not the same as my website name, but I was able to get approved regardless. Stripe approval came in a few minutes; WeChat pay approval came within 2 hours.

[@christinewalsh5900]

Great video, Tim! 👍

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Thanks Christine!

[@vocaltransformations1535]

Wonderful video! Thanks for sharing these information! Exactly what I was looking for!

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

I am so glad you found it helpful!

[@gustavtarankov3899]

Thank you for the video, yoru videos always have great content, your videos have helped a ton!

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Thank you so much!

[@michaeldubery3593]

Hoping that wechat gets accepted now! Curious, do you find the subscription product options in Stripe useful, or do Chinese clients prefer to be invoiced sort of manually each time?

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

I dont believe you can offer subscriptions for WeChat pay - invoicing is the only option I believe through Stripe. But if you find out that you can, let me know!

[@brycm5937]

Excellent video Tim. Keep it up, thanks

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Thanks so much Brian!

[@mapasova88]

Hi OTD. Thank you for the information! I am wondering if you linked your actual OTD website or a different site that is not directly related to teaching English? Have you ever heard of cases of Stripe revoking WeChat pay - say months after they have approved it?

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

my OTD website is the only site I have. What are you referring to? Yes, stripe can revoke anything at anytime if something goes against guidelines or policies but its rare unless you are doing something nefarious.

[@4Yards4Him]

Thank you so much for more wonderful information! I have sent my first invoice and the parent said it was showing as USD. Is there something I need to do to make this change? Thank you!

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Yes, when you create your customer profile, you can change their currency but once you set it , you can't change it so you have add a new customer and go to customer profile or something when setting up the invoice and select rmb. Regardless of how you set the invoice, you will still receive in USD (or where ever your bank is) and the parent will pay in RMB.

[@justanothervagabond]

Thanks for this video! It was really helpful in getting everything set up to use WeChat pay. Everything was approved within minutes, thanks to your advice! I do have one question though. One of my student's parents tried to pay and it was declined by the issuing bank. Have you experienced this before? I'm sure there could be a million reasons for this but I was curious if this is a relatively common issue when sending payments this way and if there is a quick fix!

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

They have to use 2 devices to pay and not alter any of the images - I responded to you on insta :)

[@rustyreebs]

Hi Tara, would you mind sharing some of the wording for your website, assuming you specified one? Thanks!

[@bensawesomemedia]

This is the problem I am having as well. Parents are getting very annoyed by this problem and I am not sure what to do about it.

[@justanothervagabond]

@@bensawesomemedia HI! I was able to resolve this by making sure they were using Firefox or Chrome as their browser! Safari, Baidu, 360, etc will not work. Hope this helps!

[@justanothervagabond]

@@rustyreebs I didn't spend much time on the written content of the website. I have a header, one about me section explaining my work experience, and then a 3rd section below everything that's divided into three parts highlighting: my experience (again); the type of content I currently apply to my classes; and how I can individualize each lesson based on students' levels, interests, and goals. My main focus here was simply making it look official. I didn't intend to send this website to parents or really utilize it for anything other than getting the approval for receiving payments. I used Canva to simplify the process of building a cohesive brand for my website and I feel like that really helped! It was great for creating a logo I could use in my header and footer and for any other design elements/graphics that I wanted to add to my site. And I was able to add this branded touch to my Stripe invoices, too!

[@elizabethsaxena9060]

I don't see "Other Digital Goods" under tax settings. The choices that seem close are General - Electronically Supplied Services General - Services Other - Article Delivered Electronically Which do you recommend? Thanks! Great video.

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Other digital goods is for the industry. For tax settings, I would use general - services.

[@englishwitherica]

Another super straightforward and easy to follow video. Thanks Tim. I’ve already set up my stripe account but I didn’t know that we can’t invoice using Alipay. I haven’t run into it yet, but do you know how the client would pay using Alipay?

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

I don't know much about receiving payments through Alipay but you could get the app and set things up however I have no idea how it works.

[@futureproof001]

At approx 7 min. into the video you mention you will have a wechat link on wechat pay guidelines in the description. I did not see it. Can you provide it? Thanks

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Hi Dwayne, sorry about that - I have updated the description of the video now!

[@thekillingfloorskateboards]

Looking for resources online but I can't seem to find anything, so it's worth a shot here. I am a US expat with about 50% of my teaching income coming in through wechat/stripe clients in China. How do you pay taxes on this income? I know how to file the independent contractor stuff to pay US taxes on my teaching platform job, but I don't know how this type of income would be categorized, or if taxes need to be paid in China. Thank you!

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Awesome! Paying taxes is very individual and depends where you are a tax resident. I'm not from the US. I am from Canada and I am not a tax resident of Canada. No you would never pay taxes in China unless you work and live there. You need to know where you are a tax resident and follow those laws. Good luck - taxes are messy!

[@kcg6268]

Hello, has anyone else had their Stripe account shut down? We opened an account about a month ago and parents have been making payments through their WeChat Pay and Alipay and we got notification from Stripe saying our business seems to present a high risk of customer disputes. They have completely closed down our account indefinitely. On our end the parents have not expressed any problems paying in this way🤔

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Oh I just saw your previous message. So you don't have Stripe anymore...gosh, bummer! Appeal this with them and see what you can get!

[@kcg6268]

@@onlineteacherdude1284 yes we tried with no success. Super frustrating because they gave us very little information. PayPal has worked well for our Chinese students for the past year but we will also look into Payoneer just as a backup 👌 thanks for your response 🙂

[@helloapple556]

Great

[@melmartinez5]

Wondering if you can advice how to get wechat and alipay out of the pending status... its been weeks!

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Have you reached out to support? That might help. Or, starting again perhaps but I would try to bug them through their support channels first and hopefully that helps. Good luck...I know it can be frustrating while you are in the waiting game!

[@sebloo6770]

Is there a reason why WeChat keeps declining me automatically? I followed your steps but seems its getting deleted. Can I just delete the stripe account and do it again?

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

WeChat is an app that you don't get denied from. Are you talking about activating wechat pay as a payment method on your stripe invoices? If so, they have certain criteria that has to be met when they approve / disapprove your application for wechat pay as a payment method. It's best to reach out to them or read the email with the instructions on what was missing.

[@kcg6268]

Has anyone had success with Payoneer for students in China? We have PayPal but would like another option for payment….

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

I have not but if Payoneer accepts payments, it could be an option. I don't know. However, if you are working with C hinese students, the best payment method is through their WeChat pay or Alipay.

[@_GlobalNomad]

I have a italki account would it be ok to use my profile page instead of a website when registering WeChat on stripe? I want to target Chinese students via WeChat but it’s not possible until my WeChat pay is approved on stripe.

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

I would say probably not. Get a simple free website with Strikingly or use a Facebook business page.

[@_GlobalNomad]

@@onlineteacherdude1284 Thanks Tim!

[@chrisblack8985]

Hello, thank you for giving your time to provide advice and suggestions for others trying to teach English in other countries. Setting up a website in China can be a delicate situation as you know. What wording do you suggest you use in your website that would not attract the attention of the authorities? I, myself, was thinking of something like “homework help”. What are yours or anyone else’s thoughts on this subject? And I hope everyone has a safe and joyous Christmas holiday. God knows we all deserve it.

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Im not worried about the wording. The site is mainly for setting up Stripe. No need to use a website for Chinese parents in my opinion.

[@chrisblack8985]

@@onlineteacherdude1284 I live in Thailand, Stripe will not work as it requires a US phone number for OTP purposes. Although, you in in Asia, so how did you get around that requirement?

[@chrisblack8985]

“No need to use a website for Chinese parents”. I just spent time and money setting up a website for Chinese parents. #1 to promote services #2 to process payments. You say you in in S.A , but for Stripe you need OTP, from a US based phone number. Confusing….

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

@@chrisblack8985 You can promote teaching in WeChat. You can accept payments via stripe. A website just would add extra costs and you would need a plugin to do the payments. Im not in SA.Stripe does not require a US phone number.....I certainly do not have one as I am Canadian. I used my Malaysian phone number I believe.

[@chrisblack8985]

@@onlineteacherdude1284 How precisely would you use WeChat to promote your business?

[@darrenmitchell199]

Hi, I've gone through the steps of connecting WeChat Pay to Stripe, but it came back ineligible. I'm in Thailand like you. Any ideas why this happened?

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Hi Darren. My bank is in Canada so maybe that's how I got around it - I started my Stripe account when I was in Malaysia - that could also have something to do with it. Can you use "non Thai" information so that they don't think you live in Thailand?

[@chrisblack8985]

Ksher, Thailand’s version of stripe

[@sabrinacabral2961]

DO you necessarily need a wechat account to make this work? or will it suffice with just having the wechat option enabled in your stripe account?

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

No, this has nothing to do with WeChat. You got it - just the option enabled :)

[@tryingcake101]

I set this up 2 years ago and they have been using wechat pay this whole time. I bill monthly. For some reason, I don't know why, the parents can't pay with wechat pay this month. They were able to pay with their credit card, but many are really upset about it. Do you know of anything new happening? It just stopped working.

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Are you talking about invoicing through WeChat? Is it enabled in your Stripe account? If so, then is it on the invoice when you send the invoice - you can check all this before sending the invoice. If wechat pay is a payment method on the invoice then they can pay.

[@georgeharalambous261]

Any videos on what kind of website i need to make on Strikingly?

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Strikingly is just the service that gives you the templates - you can choose and customise based on your liking.

[@SPadventurOUS]

I'm trying to sign up but running into an issue- I live in MExico but am a US citizen. I use my Mexican address to file US taxes (foreign income) with my SSN, but I have a mexican phone number. I can't figure out how to fill out the forms because if I say I am in Mexico so I can put a Mexican phone number, will I have trouble when I use my US tax information?

[@alexsouza9533]

That's exactly me. I'm in Mexico, and from the States. I just completed the Stripe part of this process without a problem today.. The forms don't leave you a choice. You have to use your SS number which means you have to use an American phone #. I used my American landline phone number and throughout the verification process, it wasn't asked for it. I proved my identity with the third party Authenticator that they had me use at the end of the process. I used my American Address too. (note: if you try to go Mexico they won't give you the opportunity to fill out your SS, which is NEEDED. And if you try the US it is impossible to enter a Mexican phone number with the prefix 52). It all worked well and I got a Stripe account. I was really careful too and opened a website and got a linked in account as suggested because I really want this to work. I hope this helps.

[@SPadventurOUS]

@@alexsouza9533 thank you that's really helpful! I haven't lived in the USA for nearly ten years now so I'll probably have to use my mom's phone number or something but fingers crossed it works out!

[@kimmagaway4113]

Hello Sir! In terms of charges, which is cheaper, stripe or paypal? 😊 Currently, I'm using Paypal for my payment method.

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Stripe charges 2.9% + 0.30/transaction so Stripe is considerably cheaper than paypal.

[@kimmagaway4113]

@@onlineteacherdude1284 Alright Sir. Thank you for your reply. Big help.👍

[@kimmagaway4113]

Sir, I tried to register, but I found out, my country isn't in its list. Is there any way I could go around this?

[@annietrinh1452]

I have alipay and wechat account without china bank account. There's anyway that i can receive Rmb to alipay or wechat account? I always use agent for top up service. I also have e-commerce website, this Stripe payment gateway can receive money to my alipay or wechat account?

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Hi Annie, no, Stripe has nothing to do with your wechat or alipay account. It just allows people using WeChat pay to pay you and you receive into your Stripe account and then into your bank account.

[@annietrinh1452]

@@onlineteacherdude1284 thank you for replying.

[@martq2283]

@@onlineteacherdude1284 does this always work?

[@nightshadehelis9821]

Isn't the CCP cracking down on private tutoring?

[@chrisblack8985]

This relates to my question you have to be very clever with the wording in your website.

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

No, not on private tutoring. Yes on companies and tutoring platforms.

[@jinhuang9934]

Isn’t it to pay by PayPal？

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Are you asking if it's possible? I think so but not popular.

[@bahadartv1196]

Hello bro Tim, I am Lawrence from pakistan ..I'm an English teacher with master degree in English..I am jobless due to religious discrimination in Pakistan 🇵🇰. Kindly do me a favour to get online Chinese students to teach ... Looking forward to hearing from you... Thanks

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

I would suggest researching and looking for jobs online - they are out there!

[@chriscoles7764]

Thanks for all the great content Tim. It really helps teachers like me. I recently setup Stripe as you suggested and got approved instantly. I used my LinkedIn account because I don't have a website. However, when I tried to enable WeChat Pay I received an email from Stripe that said, "While we hate to give you anything less than a great experience, it seems that your business falls into a category that is prohibited by Stripe's Terms of Service for WeChat Pay." I followed your instructions exactly, but no luck. Do you have any suggestions?

[@onlineteacherdude1284]

Hi Chris, sometimes it just depends on who reviews your application. go through their support and if all else fails, just close it and make a new one.

[@onlineeslsarahbhs936]

Hi! I had my stripe account approved a week ago and suddenly today I received an email from them saying my website was unclear. I put in digital goods and am literally about to pay like at least a hundred dollars to work the Wordpress website for a year.. only to have the website get rejected is so discouraging. I admit if you look at the website I made its not great and nobody probably knows what I’m selling but technically I thought just putting in digital goods would be good enough. What else would I have to add?? I heard ppl make it like a clothing website or something random is that the only way.. and is there a FREE alternative.. that’s current. I heard some ppl just used FB pages months ago and they got theirs easily approved… man wish I could get some guidance on this by stripe support but :( they just make things more complicated