Delays with Chinese Embassy Attestation

We are currently experiencing long delays with documents that are being submitted to the Chinese Embassy for attestation and legalisation. The latest information we have from the embassy is that documents will take at least 8 weeks to be legalised.

Unfortunately, this is something affecting all legalisation services and is not unique to us. There is no fast track, no way of expediting urgent orders.

Why is there a delay?

Delays Expected With China Shipments

Due to the recent Coronavirus outbreak in China we are expecting clients receiving and sending documents in the area to experience delays with the arrival of shipments. As some areas have been placed into quarantine and with travel restrictions widely in place this is affecting all forms of transport from air cargo to road transport and sea freight.

Chinese Legalisation

Changes to Chinese Legalisation - November 2019

As of the 8th of November 2019, the process for legalising UK documents for use in China will be changing. Applications will now be submitted to the Chinese embassy via a Chinese Visa Application Service Centre in either London, Manchester or Edinburgh.

The visa centres have been introduced to reduce the administrative burden on the embassy by handling submitted applications. The embassy will still ultimately be issuing the attestation stamps to documents and will still be in charge of decision-making with respect to the eligibility of documents for legalisation.

Legalising Documents for The Philippines

The Philippines Join Hague Apostille Convention

The Apostille convention will enter into force in the Philippines from 14th May 2019. This means the Philippines are the 117th party to agree to the convention which shows the increasing endorsement for the apostille legalisation process.

It is likely to take a number of months before the authorities in the Philippines will stop requesting embassy attestation as they adjust and alter their regulations. To accommodate this adjustment period the embassy should still provide attestation of documents before the service is stopped completely.

What is the Difference Between the Apostille and Legalisation?

What is the Difference Between the Apostille and Legalisation?

There are various terms used to refer to the process of legalising a document from one country in order to be recognised in another country. You may have been asked for your document to be notarised, authenticated, legalised, attested or issued with the apostille.

This can be confusing as different authorities use different terms that, more often than not, refer to the same process. We are frequently asked what the difference is between legalisation and the apostille.

Pages