If you want to conduct official business or personal activity in China, and need an official document to do so, you will probably need more than an apostille. In addition to an apostille, it’s likely that the Chinese authority will also require your documents to be legalised by a UK-based Chinese Embassy.
This is largely down to China not being part of the Apostille Convention, which means they require documents to be legalised in a different way to countries that are.
Not being part of the convention essentially means that the documents you want to use in China need to be legalised by both the Chinese Embassy and the FCDO, rather than with a simple apostille.
While this may be confusing for many, our team of experts can take the hassle out of dealing with your consulate or embassy, and ensure that everything runs smoothly.
We can assist you with obtaining both an apostille, and embassy legalisation for your documents. We can also arrange a courier to deliver your documents to a place of your choice.
Some of the documents that commonly need require legalisation are:
- University degree certificates
- Marriage certificates
- Birth certificates
- Proof of criminal convictions (usually a DBS or ACRO certificate)
- Corporate documents (e.g. Certificate of Incorporation)
Documents that do not bear the signature of an authorised official or department may need to be notarised by (or another official) before they can be legalised. We can talk you through all steps necessary to use your documents in China.Â
The process
The process of notarising Chinese documents includes two steps:
- The documents must first be notarised by a notary public and legalised by the FCDO.
- The legalised documents must then be authenticated by the Chinese Embassy in the UK.
We have a good professional relationship with the Chinese consular and are able to ensure that all the correct steps are followed. This means your documents are double-checked to make sure they comply with the rules and regulations of the Chinese Embassy.
The following is a list of documents we commonly get processed by the Chinese consular on behalf of our clients:
- International documentation
- authenticate degrees
- legalisation of TEFL certificates and documents
- translations
- passport and visa applications
- healthcare documentation
Contact us for our expert advice
Fast Legalisation is highly experienced in assisting with your legalisation needs.
Contact us if you need any assistance on +44 (0)20 3576 1980 or email info@fastlegalisation.co.uk.