I. On 8 March, 2023, China joined the Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents ( hereinafter referred to as "the Convention"). On 7 November, 2023, the Convention will enter into force between China and Australia. The Convention will continue to apply to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the Macao Special Administrative Region of China.
II. As from 7 November, 2023, any public documents
when properly executed in Australia within the scope of the Convention, can be
sent to Chinese mainland for use with the APOSTILLE issued by the competent
authority of Australia from which the document emanates,and the
consular legalisation from the Australian side and the Chinese
Embassy/Consulate-general in Australia are no longer required.
All public documents within the scope
of the Convention sent from China to Australia will no longer be subject to
consular legalisation by the Chinese authority and the Australian
Embassy /Consulate-general in China, but will be subject to APOSTILLE. The
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China is the competent authority for issuing
APOSTILLE for public documents executed within Chinese territory. Entrusted by
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China, the Foreign Affairs Offices of
relevant local governments in China can issue the APOSTILLE for public
documents executed within their respective administrative regions (see the list
attached). The APOSTILLE can be verified online by visiting this
website:https://consular.mfa.gov.cn/VERIFY/. Specific procedures and
requirements for applying APOSTILLE can be checked by visiting the China
Consular Service website(http://cs.mfa.gov.cn/) or the websites of relevant
local Foreign Affairs Offices.
III. As from 7 November, 2023, the Chinese
Consulate-General in Brisbane will terminate consular legalisation services.
For public documents executed in Australia, which intended for using in Chinese
mainland, please apply for APOSTILLE from related Australian authorities.
IV. According to the Convention, APOSTILLE may be required in order to certify
the authenticity of the signature, the capacity in which the person signing the
document has acted and, where appropriate, the identity of the seal or stamp
which the document bears.
The completion of APOSTILLE issued by
relevant Australian authority does not mean that the public document will be
accepted by the receiving organization in China. It shall be inquired in
advance with the receiving organization about the specific requirements for the
format, content, time limit, translation, and other aspects of foreign public documents
before proceeding with the relevant APOSTILLE application.