1. The change
China acceded to the Convention on 8 March 2023, and it entered into force for China on 7 November 2023.
2. What changed for Chinese documents
For use in other parties, the apostille replaced consular legalisation.
3. What changed for foreign documents
Documents from other parties with apostilles are accepted in China without further legalisation.
4. The two directions are not symmetrical in practice
Outbound
Chinese exporters apostille documents for parties.
Inbound
Companies receiving foreign documents for use in China can accept apostilles.
5. What did not change
Consular legalisation for non-parties.
Requirements of receiving authorities about document type and translation.
6. The early confusion
In the months after November 2023, some destinations and some domestic institutions had not updated their procedures.
Documents apostilled and then queried.
7. The current state
Practice has largely stabilised.
Exceptions remain, chiefly the India objection, the Oman split, and customs-level requirements in some parties.
8. Closing view
China’s accession was the largest single change in Chinese export documentation in decades.
Its limits are the subject of the rest of this series.
*This article is based on the Apostille Convention and China’s accession, effective 7 November 2023.*