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If you are getting married in China, see Getting Married in China Documents to bring to interview The hukou is the Household Registry which contains the information used to produce the white books. Notarial Certificate of Birth Most confusion with the Chinese Notarial Documents is with the Notarial Certificate of Birth. Prior to 1996, birth certificates were not issued at birth. A notarial certificate with translation must be generated from the hukou. Note that if the applicant is no longer in their parents' hukou, they may need to provide other certified evidence to indicate the parents' names. A notarial certificate is NOT necessarily a translation of an existing document. It is a statement BY the notarial official based on the evidence you present as to the facts of the matter. In other words, the Notarial Certificate of Birth will be generated ON THE SPOT at the Notarial Office, or Gong Zheng Chu (公证处). If they demand that you produce a "birth certificate" for them to certify, you may need to get creative, such as by going back to the PSB to get a certified statement of the facts needed for the Notarial Certificate of Birth. If the applicant is no longer on their parents' hukou, they MAY need to go to the hometown PSB where they were originally registered. The notation on the notarial birth certificate is 出生公证书, or chu sheng gong zheng shu, which is what you need to ask for at the Gong Zheng Chu, or 公证处֤֤֤. A sample Notarial Certificate of Birth may be found at http://candleforlove.com/forums/topic/48295-chinese-essential-documents-white-books/?p=626052 Chinese Notarial Documents - see DOS China Reciprocity Schedule NOTE: If the link is broken, try http://travel.state.gov/ and search for "Reciprocity by Country" (they seem to change this periodically) Most of the documents needed can be obtained from one of China's Notarial Offices (Gong Zheng Chu, or 公证处֤֤). All Chinese documentation to be used abroad is processed through the notary offices and issued in the form of notarial certificates (known as "white books"). Notarial offices are located in all major Chinese cities and in rural county seats Google 上海公证处, substituting the name of your home city. The documents required are the GongZhengShu (公证书֤) ֤֤ or Notarial Certificate. Sample application for documents (your province or hukou may vary): https://bjfy.egongzheng.com/flagship/online//bid/notary.html?notaryCode=223 - or - https://www.gongzheng.gov.cn/article/315 A discussion of the huji (or hukou system can be found at Hukou System. Chinese residents should go to their hukou for all notarial documents (birth, divorce, and/or single certificate, and police records). For the police record, one obtained at the hukou will cover all of China. A notarial document will be in the standard white notarial booklet, have an official red seal, an English translation, and an attestation to the true translation. Note that police records and single certificates are valid for one year from the date of notarization. Others are valid indefinitely. Marriage certification for I-130 or K-3 must be in the same format. Only ONE is needed. Your choice as to which. Marriage is bilateral. If ANY document is unobtainable or the document is unavailable, you should submit a statement of WHY it is unobtainable, and what effort you made to obtain it. Sample letter of attestation (for a non-professional translation of a non-required document (such as a relationship letter): What police certificates do I need and how do I get them - http://www.avvo.com/...w-do-i-get-them It is usually not necessary to submit police certificates for a stay in the United States. On Obtaining an "Unobtainable" Police Certificate (China) - Unobtainable police certificate from Beijing, China (a Visa Journey topic) Police Certificates for Foreigners Living in China An excellent write-up on this from the Gary Chodorow law firm - https://lawandborder.com/china-police-certificates/ If you need a police certificate for any reason from having lived in China, it may be possible to obtain one from the local PSB Entry and Exit Bureau. You will need a Chinese work permit and a letter from your employer. Contact the PSB folks for the details of what they need. A "crazy mixed-up process - mission accomplished" - a detailed account on Visa Journey You WILL NOT need one for the US visa process, unless you are notified otherwise. This thread from 2016 covers the (ultimately successful) efforts by a couple of foreigners - Police (criminal record) report process is broken from the British embassy http://ukinchina.fco...-other-services A report on their services Jan., 2016 - http://candleforlove.com/forums/topic/48344-translation-of-documents/?p=626584 Cost of Notarial Certificates One member reported this in 2013. Cost varies, of course, by province, and over time. Getting Married in China

My mom was born in GuangDong, China in 1929 and moved to Hong Kong in 1951. NVC asked for birth certificate which we were not able (or don't know how) to obtain from the Chinese authority since record keeping back in 1920s was very poor. Most of her childhood friends have already passed away or lost connection with. Can anyone please help on how to obtain the birth certificate for her to fulfill the NVC civil document request? Thank you so much.

My wife came to US on a B2 visa, we met and were married about 10 weeks later on February 17 and we are applying for adjustment of status and green card (I-130 and I-485). We have everything ready to submit but her birth certificate. She was born in 1976 and never had a birth certificate. Her brother has gone to the police and to the government for the city of Dazhou in Szechuan Province, the town of her birth. They told him my wife has to request this in person, which is of course not possible. I am concerned my wife's visa will expire before we can get the birth certificate for submission of a complete package into USCIS. Those folks who have been successful getting a birth certificate from China while you were in the US, please tell me how to do this. Any advice is much welcomed. Thank you much.

Hi, my wife was born in 1987 and has a Birth Medical Certificate (chu sheng yi xue zheng ming) that was issued in 1997. As far as I understand, Birth Medical Certificates are okay starting from 1996 based on some googling (https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/fees/reciprocity-by-country/CH.html). Would this document then suffice for US immigration purposes, or does it also require her birthdate to be after 1996? If not sufficient, what's the best way to obtain the Notarial Birth Certificate if we are not in China, and assuming that neither we or family members can travel back to her birthtown to obtain that document?

Greetings- We have finally scheduled our interview and are double-checking the instructions for paperwork to bring. In this set of instructions I see some things that I didn't find before in other places. We got the "white books" done a few months ago when home for the Chinese New Year, so I'm really hoping they don't need to be redone. In the Visa Instructions, it says this regarding the birth certificate, "The certificate must also indicate that the public office extracted the information from official records." I'm thinking this would be from the hukou. In my husband's notarized whitebook, I can't see anything that says where they got the information from, neither in the English or Chinese. Second, I just want to double-check that a notarization regarding his non-criminal record is good nation-wide. We don't need to get one from each city he has lived in, correct? Thanks so much! Cheers!

Hello Community ! I see that the Chinese spouse Birth Certificate is now not required when filling out the I-130, according the guide section on this forum. Will we need one later on in the CR-1 process? Also what is the recommended number of translated notarized copies ( white books ) you all suggest for the divorce and marriage documents? What about the fees for these pre copy? How many days does it usually take to have them translated and notarized?

My wife and I are petitioning for her parents from China to adjust status. They came here on a visitor’s visa and we decided to file I-130 and I-485 simultaneously prior to overstaying the visa. Regarding the I-485, application for adjustment of status, we recently received a RFE: You have submitted a family census register, family relation register or a notarial certificate. However, the evidence you submitted does not contain the applicant's name. You must submit a family census register, family relation register or a notarial certificate that contains the applicant's name. Title 8 Code of Federal Regulations, Section 103.2(b)(2)(ii) states: Where a record does not exist, the applicant or petitioner must submit an original written statement on government letterhead establishing this from the relevant government or other authority. The statement must indicate the reason the record does not exist and indicate whether similar records for the time and place are available. It must contain the following: A legible seal A legible stamp A signature with a title containing the words: secretary, registrar or births and deaths Prior to submitting the application, we knew there would be a possible issue. My parents in law have no birth certificate, as at that time the Chinese government did not issue them. Long story short, to obtain this document, my parents in law must travel to China to obtain it in person. The catch 22 is that if they travel outside of the country now, the I-485 petition will be considered abandon. Any advice? I plan to call the USCIS customer service line tomorrow to ask some specific questions, however my experience has been this is useless. We made every attempt to obtain the required certificate from the China office before sending the petition. We wrote, signed and notarized several different letters as requested by the China notarial office. Each time we submitted a document to the china notarial office, they requested a more outlandish document instead, saying the letter they requested previously was insufficient. Finally, we submitted with the I-485 all of the letters we had made attempting to obtain the certificate from the china office, along with an explanation of why we could not obtain it, and their Chinese Family Registration Book (and of course a translation of it). Again, catch 22. We can't get the document without appearing in China in person to get it, and we can't leave the US until the request for advance parole is approved or forfeiting the I-485 petition. The last requested document from the china notarial office was a request for notarized letters from the Chinese embassy here in the US, stating that her parents are in the US and request the notarial certificate. The nearest embassy is in Chicago, 500+ miles away. As a family of 6 with a 19 month old and a 3 month old, that is a difficult request. Based on the 3 previous attempts to provide letters, they would then request a more outlandish document to provide the requested certificate. None the less, we will attempt to contact the embassy to see if they could even provide such a document. Frustrated and turning in circles with both governments.

Hi guys. Very frustrated with the process of gathering white books and records for filing the i-130 in Guangzhou. We got married the other day, and went to get the white books the same day. The people at the office told us we would only need the white book for one of our marriage certificates, because both marriage certificates (red books) are essentially the same, the only difference being who's name comes first. I decided better safe than sorry and got white books for both of our marriage certificates despite their advice. Now my wife has just gotten her white books delivered for the police record and birth certificate... but with no original certificates, only the notarized copy and translation (white book). They apparently said that we won't need original copies, only the white books. Is this right? It doesn't sound right to me. Thanks!!

While preping the documents for step one, submitting the I-130 application here in Bejing, I'm a bit confused about the birth certificate for my (Chinese) husband. He was born in 1981 in Beijing, but there isn't a birth certificate - he only has the hukou. Will a certified/tranlated copy of it from the offical Chinese gov't office for this stuff (e.g. marriage licenses) suffice instead? Also, his hukou is for his parent's house, but we've been living together for 9 years (and married for over 4 years) in rentals around Beijing. Will this address difference be an issue? Many thanks!

hi. i submitted the supporting documents to the NVC. They stated that "The birth certificate we received is from the incorrect issuing authority" My wife went to her home town of Herjian to get the copy of her birth certificate. I believe she went to the police station. Where is she to go to get her birth certificate? thank you in advance for your assistance.

We got the white books back from the notary office today for the police record and birth certificate. They contain the Chinese document and the English translation, but none of the white books include a sheet from the translator stating that they're a qualified translator and that the translation is accurate. Do these white book notarial certificates actually need to include the statement from the translator or is that only for things that you're getting an "unofficial" or "unnotorized" translation of? Could you guys take a peak at your white books and see if that's actually included? Thanks a ton

After 7 years' waiting , finally hear from NVC. Now I have a question about birth certificate. The notarial certificate of birth is good enough ??? Thanks

Okay, we got approval from USCIS for my wife's son. He is 18, so no wait for visa. We had him get white book for police report and birth certificate. The notary made a mistake on the birth certifacte. It shows his birth date as xx/xx/98. Should be xx/xx/96. I assume we need to have birth certifactes for him and mom at the consulate interview. Is this correct? This means we need to make sure the date is correct.

HI all, my fiancée just went to a city-level notarial service (Gong Zheng Chu) in Guangzhou to ask about the birth certificate. Apparently, there are 2 types of birth certificates: a certificate created by the notarial service using the applicant’s supplied information (i.e. date of birth, Hukou book, etc.); and a certificate proves that the birth certificate from the hospital where my fiancée was born is legit. The staff from “Guangzhou(city-level) Gong Zheng Chu” told my fiancee that if he were to follow word by word of this sentence “The certificate must also indicate that the public office extracted the information from official records.” in K-1 Packet 3, "a certificate proves that the birth certificate from the hospital where my fiancée was born is legit" is more proper. Although the staff from the Gong Zheng Chu said the decision of which type of birth certificate to make is up to my fiancee. My fiancée then tried to contact the US consulate via phone in Guangzhou to clarify this issue, but she was ignored and told to visit www.ustraveldocs.com. She also tried to visit the US consulate in Guangzhou and was denied by the security guards outside the consulate. I am just wondering which of these two types of birth certificates the US embassy is really looking for. Thanks.

My wife was born at home and not in a hospital and thus never had a birth certificate, however she has recently obtained a Notarial birth certificate. Her green card application to the US is being handled by a US immigration lawyer who says the Notarial birth certificate is not enough and she must also get an unavailability statement. Is this correct, I thought the unavailability statement is required is a notarial birth certificate can't be obtained? If its correct then where can an unavailability statement be obtained from? Thanks

Hi, My fiancee is a HK citizen born in China and I am wondering how she would be able to get a notarized birth certificate in her home town Sichuan coz she got no huko in China now. Also, it would be much appreciated if one could provide me a sample in Chinese and so her mom could at least bring it along with her when go for asking/searching one. Btw, does she have to physically go back to China to obtain one or this is something her mom can help her with? Many thanks!!!

Hi, Being a non-chinese applicant, do my birth certificate and non-criminal record require an apostille stamp? The instructions request a "certified copy of his/her birth certificate" and my birth certificate is certified by the Ministry of Interior. Is that not certified enough?

My fiancee recently got her Notarial Certificate for her birth. I thought this would be the white book. But it's only three pages: a cover sheet, and one certificate in Chinese and one in English. I'm worried this won't be sufficient for her K1 visa interview. Everything I've read about white books indicates there should be more included. On visa journey someone posted the following should be in a white book: 1. official copy of notarized birth certificate 2. letter in chinese stating that the copy enclosed tallies 100 percent with the notarial birth certificate. 3. letter in english stating that the copy enclosed tallies 100 percent with the notarial birth certificate. 4. english translation of the chinese notarized birth certificate 5. translators statement in English that the English translation tallies 100 percent with what is in Chinese. 6. translators statement in Chinese that the English translation tallies 100 percent with what is in Chinese She has no actual birth certificate, only the notarial certificate. From what I understand, the notarial office entered her hukou, parents id numbers, etc into their computer and they printed one english and one chinese certificate. So there was no translation done, it was automated. So how can there be a letter saying the translation tallies with the original or that the copy tallies with notarial birth certificate? Does she need to go back and ask for more information? What does she need to ask for? She told them she needed a translation for an American visa. Does anyone have a link to a description in Chinese of the notarial translation / white book? We're feeling pretty desperate and appreciate any help.

Hi everyone. Reading these boards have been very helpful to my fiancee and I but we still have some questions regarding the K1 visa process. We're getting ready for her interview March 10. 1. She got her birth certificate from her local Gong Zheng Chu but no "white book" translation. Can anyone give me the name in Chinese of the translation/white book so I can be sure to correctly convey to her exactly what she needs to ask for? If she asks for bái běn 白本 will they know what this is? They seem pretty clueless thus far. 2. My fiancee has never been married. I've seen mention of certificates stating a person is single are available in China but I don't see anywhere in the K Visa Instructions that such a certificate is required. Is this something she needs to get? Thanks for any help you can give us.

Hello I'm trying to thoroughly educate myself regarding the birth certificate issue as the immigration lawyer dealing with my wife's immigration to Canada is saying a non- availability certificate is needed (http://candleforlove.com/forums/topic/46601-birth-certificate-versus-notarial-birth-certificate/). I'd be grateful if somebody could comment on what the difference is between these four different birth related documents? 1) Medical certificate of birth (mentioned here: http://www.ehow.com/how_6402241_obtain-chinese-birth-certificate.html) 2) Verification record (also mentioned here: http://www.ehow.com/how_6402241_obtain-chinese-birth-certificate.html) 3) Notarial birth certificate. (also mentioned here: http://www.ehow.com/how_6402241_obtain-chinese-birth-certificate.html) 4) Green official birth certificate (mentioned here: http://www.ecoi.net/local_link/143740/244570_en.html) Thank you

Hi all, this is my first post in any forum and the reason why I am posting is because I can't find anyone who has had the same problem elsewhere. I hope someone can help. I am trying to help my girlfriend get a visa to visit me and we have come across a problem which is birth certificate related. She can't get one. She was adopted from around two months and her adopted mother found her roadside. Because of that, there is no way of knowing who her biological parents are. She went to the place mentioned in other topics with the hukou and adoption papers and was told that if she doesn't know her birth parents, she can't get a birth certificate replacement. What can we do?

My IR1 visa status is in transit.Right now I am double checking the checklist and I have some questions.Please help! I sent all the original documents of police record and birth certificate to NVC.But the instruction says I will have to present the original copies at the interview. Will I get them back before the interview or do I have to get another one?( I chose the electronic process) I was living with my husband in Japan before I came back to China in the July of 2013. Since then I have been waiting for the immigrant visa in China. I have my police certificates from Japan.Do I need to get another one to cover the period of time from July 2013 till now? Approximately how long will it take before my interview is scheduled? My status just turned from "in NVC" to "in transit" yesterday.Happy new year to you all! Thanks! Wanbin

Two questions: Going to get everything translated and notarized soon. 1. How many copies of the "white book" should I get? Additional copies the day of are only 20 RMB per. If I return to get more copies later, I have to pay the base fee of 210 again. So, two copies today would cost 230; three 250 RMB, etc. One today and one tomorrow would cost 420 RMB. We're also translating the following: Wife's hukou Wife's birth certificate Son's birth certificate Wife's criminal background check Our marriage certificates 2. Am I missing anything? Thanks!

After some searching, I've yet to find the answer to my question: According to my wife, during the early 1970's in China there were no real Birth Certificates given out. From the information I have is that the birth date was registered in there huko. So, as we know the US Government in their wisdom want's a birth certificate. In that lies the question: How can we obtain a "birth certificate" if one was never issued? a letter from the local police? a copy of her hoku? thanks Dan

My fiancee was born at home in 1990 and never got a birth certificate. She is from the countryside (Nong Cun). Her parents also split up after she was born. Her mother tried to put her up for adoption, but then was eventually raised by her grandmother who has now passed away. She unfortunately continues to have bad relations with her biological parents. As we need a birth certificate to continue the K1 visa process, she gone and asked the Gong Zheng Chu (Public Notary Office) about obtaining a birth certificate, and they have told her that she needs to get a DNA test with her parents to prove that she is their child. The problem is that her mother refuses to take the test. I'm lost now and don't know how I should proceed. I don't want my petition to go up in flames over a birth certificate, but I don't see what else we can do. Does anyone have suggestions?