China joined the Apostille (Hague) Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents on 7 November 2023. As a result, important documents presented for golden visas and citizenship by investment programs by chinese nationals in Europe and Caribbean, must have apostille certificate stamped, to be accepted abroad. These documents can be obtained quickly within 4 working days from chinese authorities.
The Apostille Convention allows Chinese citizens to apply for documents for use overseas quickly and easily. The convention applies to a variety of documents, including:
- Certificate of birth, death and marriage,
- Non-criminal record,
- Kinship documents
- Academic qualification degrees,
- Professional qualification, declaration paper, entrustment papers
- Power of attorney,
- Articles of association,
- Certification of inspection and quarantine of animals or plants,
- Certificate of origin, invoice, and other notarial certificates, etc.. These documents are issued by Chinese notary public offices, Chinese customs, and China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT).
The certification of documents really depends if the origin country is a member of Hague Apostille convention or not, depending on this rules apply
- Documents issued by member countries of the Apostille Convention*, can be used in the Chinese mainland directly after being apostillised by the competent authorities.
- Documents issued by non-member countries of the Apostille Convention and to be used in the 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. For specific requirements and information for document legalisation, please refer to the website of the Embassy or Consulate of China.
Competent Authorities
The list of competent authorities in China (Hong Kong, Macau and Mainland China) issuing apostille stamps on documents are shown below.
- China (Macao SAR) – Competent Authority (Art. 6)
- China (Hong Kong SAR) – Competent Authorities (Art. 6)
- China (Mainland) – Competent Authorities (Art. 6)
Processing time and fees for Apostillisation by MFA
| Processing Time | Fees (RMB Yuan/document) | ||
| Civil Affairs | Business Affairs | ||
| Regular | 4 working days | 50 | 100 |
| Express | 2 working days | 50 + 50 express fee | 100 + 50 express fee |
Agencies for Consulate Legalization/Apostillisation in China
| MFA（for nationwide public documents） | |||||
| MFA | Leg. | Apos. | Tel | Address | |
| Legalization Service Reception of Ministry of Foreign Affairs | √ | √ | 010-65889761 | 11th Floor, Zone B, Full Link Plaza, Chaoyangmen Waidajie, Chaoyang District, Beijing | |
| FAOs (for local public documents only) | |||||
| FAOs | Leg. | Apos. | Tel | Address | |
| Hebei | Foreign Affairs Office of Hebei Province | √ | √ | 0311-87807336 | Room 103, Zone B of Provincial Government Office Building( Min Xin Guang Chang ), No. 75 Shi Fan Street, Shijiazhuang City. |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Qinhuangdao Municipality ※ | √ | √ | 0335-3652320 | No.78, Youyi Road, Haigang District, Qinhuangdao | |
| Shanxi | Foreign Affairs Office of Shanxi Province | √ | √ | 0351-4083617 | 2nd Floor of Service Hall, No. 366 Ying Ze Da Jie,Taiyuan City, Shanxi. |
| Inner Mongolia | Foreign Affairs Office of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region | √ | √ | 0471-6946380/ 6946082 | Room 104 of Building 8, No. 63 Xin Hua Da Jie, Hohhot City, Inner Mongolia. |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Manzhouli Municipality ※ | √ | √ | 0470-6234991 | Room 1203, Party and Government Office Building, New District, Manzhouli City, Inner Mongolia. | |
| Liaoning | Foreign Affairs Office of Liaoning Province | √ | √ | 024-23271077 | No. 96-6, Huanghe Street, Huanggu District, Shenyang City, Liaoning Province，qiyun building. |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Shenyang Municipality ※ | √ | 024-23271077 | No. 96-6, Huanghe Street, Huanggu District, Shenyang City, Liaoning Province，qiyun building. | ||
| Jilin | Foreign Affairs Office of Jilin Province | √ | √ | 0431-82752831 | Legalization Counter of Foreign Affairs , 1st Floor of Provincial Government Affairs Service Hall( No 9999 Ren Min Da Jie, Changchun City.) |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Changchun Municipality | √ | √ | 0431-88775332 | No.3066, Nanhuancheng Road, Nanguan District, Changchun (10th Floor, Building A, 2nd Zone of Changchun Municipal People’s Government) | |
| Helongjiang | Foreign Affairs Office of Heilongjiang Province | √ | √ | 0451-53607560/ 53633973 | No. 300 Guo Ge Li Da Jie, Nan Gang District, Harbin City |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Harbin Municipality | √ | √ | 0451-84664237/ 84664247 | No.1 Century Avenue, Songbei District, Harbin City | |
| Shanghai | Foreign Affairs Office of Shanghai Municipality | √ | √ | 021-62470833 | Room 104, 1st Floor, Guidu Office Building, 228 Hua Shan Road, Jing’an District, Shanghai |
| Jiangsu | Foreign Affairs Office of Jiangsu Province | √ | √ | 025-83666440 | F District, 2rd floor, NO.145 Han Zhong Men Street, Nanjing |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Nantong Municipality | √ | 0513-85215932 | Room 308, Comprehensive Building of Administrative Center, No.6, Shiji Road, Nantong | ||
| Foreign Affairs Office of Yangzhou Municipality | √ | 0514-87883370 | Visa Center, No. 206 Si Wang TingStreet, Yangzhou City. | ||
| Zhejiang | Foreign Affairs Office of Zhejiang Province | √ | √ | 0571-87054949/ 87054901 | No. 1 Shi Han Street, Hangzhou City. |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Ningbo Municipality | √ | √ | 0574-87187512/ 87182007 | Counter 2046, 2nd Floor of Ningbo Administrative Service Center, No. 1901 Ningchuan Road, Yinzhou District, Ningbo City | |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Wenzhou Municipality ※ | √ | √ | 0577-88315299/ 88312577 | Overseas Service Center, 2nd Floor of Building A, Citizen Center, No.1288, Huizhan Road, Lucheng District, Wenzhou | |
| Anhui | Foreign Affairs Office of Anhui Province | √ | √ | 0551-62999842 | Counter 6, Hall 1, 1st floor of Building C, Government Affairs Service Center of Anhui Provincial People’s Government, No, 509 Ma An Shan Street, Hefei. |
| Fujian | Foreign Affairs Office of Fujian Province | √ | √ | 0591-87815074/ 87829733 | Service Hall, 2nd Floor of Fujian Foreign Affairs Office Building, No. 97, Hua Lin Street, Fuzhou City |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Xiamen Municipality ※ | √ | 0592-5142959 | 19th Floor of Xing Ye Building, No. 78 Hu Bin Bei Lu, Xiamen. | ||
| Foreign Affairs Office of Quanzhou Municipality ※ | √ | 0595-22110192/ 22110157 | 2th Floor, Building A of Dong Hai Citizen Center, Feng Ze District, Quanzhou City, Fujian. | ||
| Jiangxi | Foreign Affairs Office of Jiangxi Province | √ | √ | 0791-86739846/ 86739840 | Square Building, No. 993, Bei Long Pan Street, Hong Gu Tan District, Nanchang City (Window of Provincial Foreign Affairs Office, 4th Floor of Provincial Government Affairs Service Center) |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Jingdezhen Municipality※ | √ | √ | 0798-8210973 | 666 Cidu Avenue, Jingdezhen City, Jiangxi Province (Room 117, Jingdezhen Foreign Affairs Office, Building 2, Development Center) | |
| Shandong | Foreign Affairs Office of Shandong Province | √ | √ | 0531-51778592/ 51778757 | Shandong Foreign Affairs Service Hall, No. 28-1 Qian Fo Xi Road, Lixia District, Jinan City |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Jinan Municipality | √ | √ | 0531-86931248 | 7th Floor of Qianfoshan Building, No. 15 Wenhua West Road, Lixia District, Jinan City, Shandong Province | |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Qingdao Municipality | √ | √ | 0532-66200531 | 4th Floor, No. 17 Fuzhou Nan Lu, Shi Nan District, Qingdao City. | |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Yantai Municipality | √ | 0535-6601183 | No.9 Xin Yuan Lu,Laishan District,Yantai City. | ||
| Foreign Affairs Office of Zibo Municipality ※ | √ | 0533-5770439 | Room 502, North Building, Zibo Customs Building, No. 312 Liuquan Road, Zhangdian District, Zibo City, Shandong Province. | ||
| Foreign Affairs Office of Linyi Municipality ※ | √ | 0539-8726683 | Window 4302, Government Affairs Center, No. 8 Beijing Road, Lanshan District, Linyi City, Shandong Province | ||
| Foreign Affairs Office of Weihai Municipality | √ | 0631-5188696 | Foreign Affairs Counter, 3rd Floor of Government Affairs Service Center, No.86, Wenhua Zhong Road, Weihai | ||
| Henan | Foreign Affairs Office of Henan Province | √ | √ | 0371-65688864 | No. 15 Jin Shui Street,Zhengzhou City. |
| Hubei | Foreign Affairs Office of Hubei Province | √ | √ | 027-87301852 | No. 3 Ba Yi Street, Wu Chang District, Wuhan City. |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Wuhan Municipality ※ | √ | √ | 027-82847467 | Counter B29-30, 1st Floor of Wuhan Municipal Government Affairs Service Center, No. 117 Jin Qiao Da Dao, Hankou District, Wuhan City. | |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Yichang Municipality ※ | √ | √ | 0717-6733275 | No.37, Lv Luo Road,Xi Ling DistrictYichang City. | |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Xiangyang Municipality ※ | √ | √ | 0710-3756559 | No. 8 Zhongyuan West Road, High tech Zone, Xiangyang City, Hubei Province (Xiangyang City Citizen Service Center). | |
| Hunan | Foreign Affairs Office of Hunan Province | √ | √ | 0731-81127825 | 3rd Floor of Xiang Hui Building, No. 12 Shao Shan Bei Lu, Changsha City. |
| Guangdong | Foreign Affairs Office of Guangdong Province | √ | √ | 020-81217589/ 21219789 | No. 2 Chi Gang You Lin Yi Lu, Hai Zhu District, Guangzhou City. |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Shenzhen Municipality | √ | √ | 0755-88120331 | Administration Service Hall Citizen Center, Fu Zhong San Lu, Fu Tian District, Shenzhen City. | |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Zhuhai Municipality ※ | √ | √ | 0756-2125402 | Service Counter of Zhuhai Foreign Affairs Bureau, No.27, Zhong Xin Jie(kangling Lu),Xiang Zhou District, Zhuhai City. | |
| Guangxi | Foreign Affairs Office of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region | √ | √ | 0771-5595561 | Foreign Affairs Office, Counter 5, 2nd floor, Government Service Center, No.6 Yi Bin Lu, Qing Xiu District, Nanning City |
| Hainan | Foreign Affairs Office of Hainan Province | √ | √ | 0898-65316350 | Counter of Social Management Services, 2nd Floor, Government Affairs Center, No.3, Wuzhishan Nan Road, Haikou City, Hainan |
| Chongqing | Foreign Affairs Office of Chongqing Municipality | √ | √ | 023-63873733/ 63626820 | No. 57 Hong Hu Dong Lu, Yu Bei District, Chongqing City. |
| Sichuan | Foreign Affairs Office of Sichuan Province | √ | √ | 028-84392778 | No. 100 Dong San Duan of Yi Huan Lu, Chengdu City. |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Chengdu Municipality | √ | 028-86635279 | 2nd Floor of Foreign Affairs Service Center, No.2, Renmin Xi Road, Chengdu | ||
| Guizhou | Foreign Affairs Office of Guizhou Province | √ | √ | 0851-8661599 | No.172 Guan Shan Xi Lu,Guan Shan Hu District, Guiyang City, Guizhou. |
| Yunnan | Foreign Affairs Office of Yunnan Province | √ | √ | 0871-64098094 | No. 230 Da Guan Street, Kunming City. |
| Shaanxi | Foreign Affairs Office of Shaanxi Province | √ | √ | 029-83232980/ 82418705 | North Hall, 3rd Floor, Sheng Chan Li Building, No.1 Huan Cheng East Road, Beilin District, Xi’an City |
| Foreign Affairs Office of Xi’an Municipality ※ | √ | √ | 029-86787882/ 86787883 | No.109 Feng Cheng Ba Lu, Wei YangDistrict, Xi’an City. | |
| Gansu | Foreign Affairs Office of Gansu Province | √ | √ | 0931-8320709 | No. 805 Nan Chang Street, Lanzhou City. |
| Tianjin | Foreign Affairs Office of Tianjin Municipality ※ | √ | √ | 022-58785378 | 2nd Floor of Guang Yin Building,YouYi Bei Lu, He Xi District,Tianjin City. |
| Xizang | Foreign Affairs Office of Xizang Autonomous Region ※ | √ | √ | 0891-6328433/ 6335171 | No. 11 Lin Kuo Bei Road, Lasha City,Xizang. |
| Xinjiang | Foreign Affairs Office of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region | √ | √ | 0991-6176788 | No.226,Dong Huan Road,Tianshan District,Urumqi City. |
| Qinghai | Foreign Affairs Office of Qinghai Province ※ | √ | √ | 0971-8249837/ 8244069 | No.14 Jie Fang Street, Xining City,Qinghai. |
| Ningxia | Foreign Affairs Office of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region ※ | √ | √ | 0951-5044617 | No. 106 Feng Huang Bei Jie, Yinchuan City, Ningxia. |
| Xinjiang | Foreign Affairs Office of Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps | √ | √ | 0991-2327565 | Room 101, East Building, No. 8 Jian She Xiang ( No.12 Jian She Street), Tian Shan District, Urumqi City. |
| ※: The agency need to send the applications to the Provincial Foreign Affairs Office or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the processing time may be extended. | |||||
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Processing Time and Fees for Consular Legalisation/Apostillisation
(1)Processing time and fees for Consular Legalisation by MFA and the foreign embassies in China
| Processing Time | Fees (RMB Yuan/Document) | ||
| Civil Affairs | Business Affairs | ||
| Regular | (1) 4 working days + time needed by the Embassy | 50* + Embassy charges | 100* + Embassy charges |
| Express | (2) 2 working days + time needed by the Embassy | 50*+50express fee + Embassy charges | 100* +50express fee + Embassy charges |
Note: Fees of Consular Legalisation by MFA (marked with *) are different for foreign applicants of different nationalities on the reciprocal basis.
