Most embassies remain closed to the legalization process, but China has adopted some procedures to allow legalizations to proceed, but only as an emergency!  Send us an email at dcorders@incserv.com for help.  This blog outlines the steps we have learned to complete this process.  Note that this process is subject to change without warning.

1)  Submission of preliminary form. A preliminary form (or template) must be sent to the embassy, outlining details of the legalization and explanation for why an emergency exception should be granted.

2)  Preliminary acceptance or rejection of emergency explanation.  If the preliminary form is accepted, the embassy will schedule an appointment to drop off the necessary documents, generally on a Friday one or two weeks after acceptance.  If the preliminary form is not accepted, the embassy may offer an explanation and allow the applicant to update the form.

3)  Drop off and pickup of legalized document.  Documents must be delivered to the embassy at the scheduled drop off time, and document pickup is generally a week after drop off.  Wait time for dropping off and retrieving documents are each between one and three hours.

4)  Official acceptance (fingers crossed).  Only at the time of document pickup will the embassy inform the submitting agent if the documents are accepted.  If the documents are accepted, payment is made at the time of pickup.  If the document is NOT accepted, submitter will have to wait until the embassy is accepting routine legalizations.  Pickup of completed documents can take anywhere from one to three hours.

As of the time of this blog (8/19/20), the process takes at least two weeks and total wait times in the embassy can be anywhere from two to six hours.  The process can be time consuming and very expensive.

In spite of the difficulty in the process, we have had success in ushering documents through this process.  If you need an emergency legalization in China — reach out to us at dcorders@incserv.com.