The Chinese Embassy and Consulates authenticate documents which are executed in the United States and will be used in China. Type of documents include: birth/death certificates, power of attorney, marriage certificates, diplomas, adoption application papers, business license, etc. Authentication is also called certification or legalization sometimes.
Procedures:
1. Sign before a notary public.
2. Certified by the Secretary of the State Office of the state where the document is executed.
*Some states require the notarized document to be sent to the notary public's county clerk for verification before presenting to the Office of Secretary of State. Please contact Secretary of State Office of the state where your document is executed for details.
**Certain government or court document can be certified directly by the Office of Secretary of State, like Court Decree, Marriage License, Birth Certificate, etc. Please contact Secretary of State Office of the state where your document is executed for details.
3. Certified by the relevant Consulate General. You must apply to the correct Consulate General which holds consular jurisdiction over your area of residence. The Consular District of the Chinese Consulate General in Houston covers: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Texas. Only documents certified by the Secretaries of State Office of the above listed 8 states (Click Here for Their Contact Information) can be certified by the Chinese Consulate General in Houston.
Note: (1) You may come to the relevant Embassy or Consulate Generals for application, or send a representative to apply for you. No appointment is required. (2) Mailed applications are also acceptable. Make sure you read the Mail Application Instructions.
Documents to be included with applications:
1. One Authentication Application Form (G1). The form must be completed and signed by the applicant himself.
2. Photocopy of the applicant's passport.
3. The original of the documents to be authenticated. For documents related to property, business or commercial use, a complete photocopy of all pages of the original documents must be enclosed. For all other documents, please enclose the photocopy of the pages with seal and signature of notary public and all other certification agencies/officers.
4. Photocopy of Articles of Incorporation, if the document to be authenticated is a corporate or company document.
Fees and processing time
Category |
Fee |
Civil documents, e.g. Adoption, power of attorney, marriage, birth/death, kinship certificate, etc. |
USD20.00 |
Property or Commercial documents, e.g. Business license, labor agreement, inheritance, property transfer, etc. |
USD40.00 |
- For mail service, an additional 5 dollars PER PACKAGE for handling will be charged. Make sure you read the Mail Application Instructions.
- The regular processing time is 4 working days. For express service, additional fees of $30 for 1 working day processing, or $20 for 2-3 working days processing will be charged.
- Please pay by Money Order, Cashier's Check, Company Check or Cash. Personal checks are not acceptable. Please make the check or money order payable to Chinese Embassy or Chinese Consulate.
Contact Information of the Secretaries of State of AL AR FL GA LA MS OK TX (For Reference Only, Subject to Change)
Alabama Office of the Secretary of State Authentication Section State Capitol, Room E-204 600 Dexter Ave. Montgomery AL 36104 Tel: 334-242-7210 http://www.sos.state.al.us/authenticate/index.htm
Arkansas Office of Secretary of State Corporations Division or Elections Division State Capitol, Little Rock AR 72201 Tel: 501-682-1010 http://www.sosweb.state.ar.us/elections_filings.html
Florida Department of State Division of Corporations/Apostille Certification P.O. Box 6327 Tallahassee, FL 32314 Tel: 850-245-6945 http://notaries.dos.state.fl.us/notproc7.html
Georgia Office of Secretary of State Elections Division, Suite 1104 - West Tower 2 Martin Luther King Jr.Drive SE Atlanta GA 30334 Tel: 404-656-2871 http://www.sos.state.ga.us/elections/great_seal.htm
Louisiana Office of Secretary of State Commissions Division P.O. Box 94125 Baton Rouge, LA 70804 Tel:225-342-4983 http://www.sec.state.la.us/elections/commis/commis-index.htm
Mississippi Office of Secretary of State P.O. Box 136 Jackson, MS 39205 Tel:601-359-1350 http://www.sos.state.ms.us/
Oklahoma Office of Secretary of State P.O. Box 53390 Oklahoma City, OK 73152 Tel:405-521-3912 http://www.sos.state.ok.us
Texas Different address applies to different application Please call or visit web site for detailed information Tel: 512-463-5705/5650/5578 http://www.sos.state.tx.us/authinfo.shtml
Source: Chinese Embassy and Consulate General in the USA
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