Foreign Office Agreements between China and Germany

" China has acceded to the Hague Apostille Convention effective November 7, 2023. 
From this day on, the apostille issued by German apostille authorities for German 
documents and by Chinese apostille authorities for Chinese documents serves as 
proof of authenticity for German documents in China and for Chinese documents 
in Germany. Legalization of German documents by a Chinese diplomatic mission abroad
and Chinese documents by a German diplomatic mission is therefore no longer necessary."

"A signature or a show of hands can be authenticated if it was executed or recognized in 
front of the notarist. Therefore, it is always necessary to meet in person with the person 
whose signature or hand sign is to be certified.
During signature certification, the identity of the person signing is checked and confirmed. 
There is no instruction about the meaning and consequences of the declaration. 
However, the consular officer is obliged to ensure that the person signing is aware of wha
t is being signed. The foreign mission can neither produce translations nor carry out an 
ad hoc oral translation of the submitted declaration into the Chinese language. 
We therefore ask you to provide a Chinese translation of the declaration that is to be signed
at the diplomatic mission abroad, as well as, if applicable. additional required documents must 
be submitted. English translations are sufficient if the consular officer is satisfied that the 
applicant has a sufficient command of the English language "