Getting Notarized PRC Documents

for Your

U.S. Immigrant Visa Application

Rev’d: Dec. 10, 2010

This presentation is for you if

• You are born in China;

• You are applying for a K-1, K-3, or immigrant visa; and

• You want to know what notarized documents to submit to

U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou U.S. National Visa Center

Depending on your situation,

you may need:

1. Birth certificate 出生公证书 or 出生证明书

2. Marriage certificate

3. Unmarried certificate 未婚证明书

4. Divorce certificate

5. Death certificate of prior spouse 妻(夫)的死亡公证书

6. Police certificate

7. Military records

8. Custody certificate

Tip: Get all your certificates in duplicate.

What do notary publics do?

By notarizing a document like a

birth certificate or police

certificate, we are certifying that

its contents are true.

Apply at the notary office where

(a) You are domiciled, i.e., your hukou (户口簿) is registered; or

(b) You habitually reside, i.e., you have

lived for more than one year with a

temporary residence permit (暂住证).

Consider giving a power of attorney (委托书) to a friend or relative to handle your notarial affairs.

But it’s not convenient

for me to travel to that

notary office.

Except: A power of attorney

can’t be used for documents

that require your personal

declaration (声明).

See below.

委托人：__________（男/女）身份证建号________

受托人姓名： _______（男/女）身份证建号_______

我委托上述受托人办理____________事项，特此授权。

___________________

（委托人签字或盖章）

年 月 日

Sample Power of Attorney

Call ahead: Application procedures may vary at

each notary office.

• You will need to provide your national ID card (身份证)

and hukou (or temporary residence card).

• You may need to submit 2-inch photos.

• Processing times and fees vary.

What to look for in a notarized certificate:

Cover page The individual notary’s signature

or seal, and the office’s seal.

If you tell the notary that your purpose is immigration, you will receive an English translation with a certification like this.

This is to certify that the English

translation of the Notarial Certificate

(2010) J.C.A.W.M.Z.Zi, No. 13482,

attached hereto is in conformity with the

Chinese original.

Tip: The State Department isn’t picky, but

USCIS requires that translators’ certifications be

signed by hand (not chopped). Ask the notary to

sign in case you need to file any application or

petition with USCIS in the future.

Birth Certificate

You need a birth certificate (出生公证书 or 出生证明书).

A certificate of relationship (关系公证书 or 关系证明书) is not acceptable.

Bring either:

• Health department (卫生部门) birth certificate: A green official birth certificate was introduced country-wide in 1996; or

• A letter from your personnel file management department (人事档案管理部门 ) with your name, gender, date and place of birth, parents’ names, and current addresses.

1

This is to certify that Zhou Mei (female) was born in

Zhongjiang County, Sichuan Province, on January 12, 1970.

Her father’s name is Zhou Jintao and her mother’s name is

Gong Li.

兹证明周美（女）一九七〇年一月十二日

在四川省中江县出生；周美的父亲是周锦涛，

母亲是巩俐。

Sample Birth Certificate (Excerpt)

Double-check that your name, date/place of birth, and

parents names in English are correct.

Marriage Certificate

Needed if you were married in China.

Documents to bring:

• Both spouses national ID cards and hukous.

• Marriage certificate issued by the marriage registration office(婚姻登记处).

2

Unmarried Certificate

Get this if you are a man 22+ or woman 20+ who is not now married.

Bring evidence of termination of any prior marriages—divorce certificates and/or death certificates for prior spouses.

Get either of these:

• A declaration by you that you are not married (未婚声明书). This requires that you personally appear before the notary; or

• First get a certificate from the marriage registration office that they have no record of your marriage, then ask that it be notarized (未婚姻登记记录证明 ).

The unmarried certificate is valid for 1 year.

3

I declare: I have never been registered to be married up to

now during my residence in China, and I promise that I will

not register to be married before I leave China. I assure that

the above-mentioned statement is true; otherwise I will

undertake the legal liability.

我声明到目前为止，我在中国居住期间未

增登记结婚。并且声明我到离境之前也不准

备登记结婚，本人保证上述声明完全真实，如有不实，原承担一切法律责任。

Sample Based on Applicant’s Declaration (Excerpt)

Having been inquired, this is to certify that there is no marriage

registration record of Gong Li (born on January 1, 1980, female,

nationality: Chinese, ID card # XXX) in the Marriage Registration

Office of Taierzhuang District from January 1, 2000 to Oct. 19,

2010.... This certificate only certifies that there is no marriage

registration record in our district but not in other places.

经查，当事人巩俐性别女国籍中国出生日期1980年一月一日身份证件号XXX自2000年1月1日达到法定婚龄至2010年10月19日期间没有在台儿庄区民政局婚姻登

记处结婚登记的记录。。。。注：不包括在本辖区域外的其他地方的婚姻登记。

Sample Based on Certificate from the Marriage

Registration Office (Excerpt)

Divorce Certificate

Visa applicants must provide notarial certificates for all prior divorces in China.

Bring evidence of your divorce:

• For uncontested divorces, a divorce certificate (离婚证) issued by the Marriage Registration Office; or

• For contested divorce or divorce involving a foreign spouse, either a civil mediation certificate (民事调解书) or a formal divorce decree (判决书) issued by the court.

4

Sample Divorce Certificate issued by the Marriage Registration Office

By mediation of this court, the two parties expressed their

willingness to reach the following agreement: 1. Wang Tao and

Zhou Mei be divorced….

本案在审理过程中，经本院主特调解，双方当

事人自愿达成如下协议：1。原告王涛与被告周美

离婚。。。。

Sample Civil Mediation Certificate (Excerpt)

Death Certificate

of Prior Spouse

Provide for any prior spouse(s) who died in China.

Where should you apply? The notary office where deceased’s hukou is registered or place of birth.

Documents needed:

• Marriage certificate (to prove relationship to deceased).

• Evidence of death, such as a certificate from hospital or health department or evidence of cancellation of the hukou.

5

Police Certificate

• China

• USA: Not available.

• Third country: You need a police certificate from any third country where you (a) reside at the time of your visa application, (b) have resided in the past for 1 year or more after age 16, or (c) have been arrested or convicted. For information about how to apply for police certificates in third countries, see the State Department’s “Reciprocity Table” at http://goo.gl/UkrWF.

If you are born in China and age 16 or older, you need

the following police certificates:

6

If you have been arrested, detained, or

convicted of any offense in any

country, contact our firm for specific

instructions on getting the police

certificate. You’ll also need

court/prison records.

• Step 1: Some notary offices require you to pick up a form to be completed by the public security bureau (PSB).

• Step 2: Bring the form to the police station (派出所) where your hukou is registered or where you temporary residence card is registered. Exception: If your unit has a public security department (保卫部门), go there.

• Step 3: Bring the completed certificate and other documents back to the notary office to get the notarized certificate.

• Notes:

• This certificate is valid for 1 year.

• The certificate covers the entire country, so you don’t need separate certificates for each place you’ve lived.

Getting a “Certificate of No Criminal Record”

This is to certify that Zhou Mei (female, born October 14,

1970, now residing in Chaoyang District, Beijing) has no

record of committing offences against the criminal law

during her residence in China up to July 29, 2010.

兹证明周美（女，一九七〇年十月十四日

出生，现住北京市朝阳区）至二〇一〇年七

月二十九日止，在中国居住期间未受过刑事

处分。

Sample Police Certificate (Excerpt)

Military Records

• Military records are the record of a person’s service and conduct

while in military service, including any convictions by military

tribunals.

• According to the U.S. State Department, these are generally

“not available” for China, so are not needed.

• Still, the Consulate may ask to review any enrollment book (入伍通知书) or discharge certificate (复员证 or 转业证).

7

Custody Certificate

• Who needs this? If you are divorced and want your child (under

age 18) to immigrate to the U.S. with you, then you need one of

the following:

• A notarized custody agreement currently in effect that gives you legal

custody. This may be part of your divorce agreement (离婚协议书); or

• A notarized statement from your ex-spouse giving the child permission to

immigrate to the U.S.

8

The son, Huang Jintao, will be raised by his mother. The

father will pay child support of 600 RMB per month, paid

not later than the 5th of the month. This sum is to be paid

until age 18. Afterward, the parties will reach a new

agreement regarding child support.

儿子方黄锦涛由女方抚养，由男方每月给付抚养费600元，在每月5号前付清；直至付到18周岁止，18周岁之后的有关费用双方日后重新协商。

Sample Custody Provision (Excerpt from a

Divorce Agreement)

Questions? Contact the author

Gary Chodorow is chief representative for the Beijing office of Frederick W. Hong Law Offices. His practice has focused on U.S. immigration and nationality law since 1993. He is a frequent author and speaker on related issues, and a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

Beijing Office

Tel.: +86.10.6506.1180

Email: gary@fwhonglaw.com

Web: www.fwhonglaw.com

Blog: www.LawAndBorder.com

Frederick W. Hong Law Offices has a proven track record advising companies and individuals on China and U.S. business law, intellectual property, and immigration law.

The firm was founded in 1977 in Los Angeles. After developing business in China in the 1980s, we became in 1993 the first U.S. law firm licensed by China's Ministry of Justice to open an office in Guangzhou. In 2002, the firm was authorized to open another office in Beijing.

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