Consular Legalisation of Documents to  China

　　Documents issued in foreign  countries and to be used in Chinese mainland shall first be notarized and  legalised by the competent authorities in that country, and then be legalised by  Chinese Embassies or Consulates in that country. Specific requirements and  information for document legalisation, please refer to the website of the  Embassy or Consulate of China.

　　For documents issued by member  countries of the Apostille Convention*, after getting Apostilles from the  competent authorities, they can be used in Hong Kong SAR and Macao SAR of China  directly.

　　*:Refer to the Convention of  Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents

Legalisation of Documents  in China

　　1. Introduction to Legalisation of  Documents in China

　　In line with international practice and Chinese  regulation, documents issued by Chinese agencies to be used in foreign  countries, in general, shall first be legalised by the Department of Consular  Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China(hereafter referred to as  "the Department") or authorized Foreign Affairs Offices of local  governments(FAO) ,and then be legalised by the embassies or consulates of the  countries in which the documents are to be used. The Department and its  authorized FAOs are the competent authorities handling legalisation affairs in  China.

　　After finishing its legalisation,The Department  and FAOs could help the applicants to transfer the documents to embassies or  consulates to apply for their legalisation.

　　Generally, documents required for legalisation  are as follows: birth, death, marriage, no criminal record, kinship, academic  qualification, professional qualification, declaration, entrustment paper, power  of attorney, contract, articles of association, certification of inspection and  quarantine of animals or plants, certificate of origin,invoice, and other  notarial certificates, certifications or notes for civil or business purposes  etc.. These documents are issued by Chinese notary public offices, entry-exit  inspection and quarantine bureaus, and China Council for the Promotion of  International Trade(CCPIT). 

　    2. Instructions for Applying Documents  Legalisation to the Department of Consular Affairs

　　(1) When applying for legalisation of documents  for business purposes, the original notarial certificate(or CCPIT certificates  or commercial bills),one original authorization letter issued by the enterprise  concerned, one copy of valid passport of the authorized person, and other  materials required by the concerned embassy must be submitted. The enterprise  shall authorize its own personnel to file the application for legalisation.

　　(2) For documents needed to be leglised by the  Department and the foreign embassies in Beijing,some FAOs or other authorized  agencies can help applicants transfer the above said material to the Department*  .

　  　 For documents needed to be legalised in  foreign consulates in cities other than Beijing,provincial and some municipal  FAOs in the jurisdiction region of the consulates are authorized by the  Department to legalised the documents*.