In short
For a China work visa, the criminal record check must come from a police, court or other authorised body in your country of nationality, or in a country where you lived for at least one consecutive year, and it must be issued within the last six months. Since 7 November 2023, China accepts the apostille, so for most Western countries an apostille from your own government replaces consular legalisation. Ask your employer for the submission date and order the check about six to eight weeks before it.
Last updated: 19 October 2026. Document rules for the Chinese work permit are set by Chinese authorities and by each city, and they change. This guide reflects the official pages we could read in October 2026: confirm the details with your employer and with the Chinese embassy or visa centre that handles your application.
If you are applying for a work visa, the China criminal record check is usually the slowest document to get. The short answer: it must come from a police or court authority in your country of nationality (or the country where you have lived for at least a year), it must be issued within the last six months, and it must be authenticated. On authentication, many guides are out of date. Since 7 November 2023, China accepts the apostille, so for most Western countries an apostille from your own government replaces the old trip through the Chinese embassy.
This guide explains what the check is, how authentication works now, a country-by-country starting point, and the mistakes that make people redo the whole process.
What is the China criminal record check?
It is a certificate, issued by an official body, showing that you have no criminal record. Chinese authorities ask for it with the work permit application. Beijing’s official work permit page lists it among the required documents and describes it as follows:
- it is issued by a police, security, court or other authorised department in your country of nationality or your country of habitual residence;
- “habitual residence” means a country where you lived for at least one consecutive year after leaving your home country (not counting China);
- it must have been issued within the past six months.
Your employer files the application, but you are the one who orders the certificate, because only you can request your own record. Our step-by-step work visa guide shows where this fits in the full process, and our free checklist PDF lists every document in one place.
Apostille or consular legalisation: what changed
For years the standard advice was “get it notarised, then legalised at the Chinese embassy”. Plenty of articles and background-check companies still say this, and some even say China is not part of the Hague Apostille Convention. That is no longer true.
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| 8 March 2023 | China deposited its instrument of accession to the Apostille Convention |
| 7 November 2023 | The Convention entered into force for mainland China |
Both dates appear in the Hague Conference (HCCH) status table and in its news item of 8 November 2023. Hong Kong and Macao were already covered separately.
What it means in practice, according to the Chinese Embassy and Consulates in the UK: from 7 November 2023, UK public documents with an apostille “can be used in the Chinese mainland directly without the need to apply for consular legalization”, and the embassy and consulates stopped providing consular legalisation. A law-firm summary (Morgan Lewis) says the same: a single apostille from the competent authority in the country of origin is now recognised in China, between China and other member states.
Two cautions:
- The apostille only works between member countries. If your country is not part of the Convention, you still need the older chain (notarisation, foreign ministry, then Chinese embassy). The Hague Conference status table lists every member.
- An apostille does not guarantee acceptance. The Chinese consulate’s own notice warns that apostilled documents “may not necessarily be accepted by relevant Chinese authorities”. Some local offices were still adapting to the change. Ask your employer, or the Chinese authority handling your file, before you pay for the apostille.
Beijing’s work permit page, which pre-dates the change and has no visible update date, still says the record must be “certified by China’s embassy or consulate”. We read this as outdated wording, not a conflict with the Convention, but it is a good reason to confirm the current requirement with your employer’s immigration contact rather than rely on any website, including ours.
Step by step: how to get it ready
- Ask your employer what they need. Which certificate, which authentication, whether a translation is needed, and the deadline. Get it in writing.
- Order the right certificate from the issuing authority in your country (see the table below).
- Get it authenticated. For a member country, request the apostille from your country’s designated authority. Otherwise, follow the legalisation chain your Chinese embassy describes.
- Check names. The name on the certificate should match your passport exactly, middle names included.
- Plan the translation. Beijing’s page says non-Chinese certification materials must come with Chinese translations bearing the employer’s official seal, and that the authority can ask for a corrected version if a translation differs from the original. Your employer normally handles this.
- Send the original to your employer in time. The six-month clock runs from the issue date of the certificate, not from the apostille.
Where to start in your country
This is a starting point, not a full guide. Always check the issuing authority’s current page.
| Country | Typical certificate | Authentication |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | ACRO police certificate (England and Wales) | Apostille from the Legalisation Office, £45 per document (standard, paper) in October 2026. An e-Apostille is not available for ACRO certificates, so use the paper service. |
| United States | FBI Identity History Summary | Federal document: ask the US State Department how to get it apostilled |
| Canada, Australia, Ireland, France, Germany and others | National police certificate | Apostille from the national or regional authority named by your government |
For the UK, the details come from the GOV.UK page on getting a document legalised, which also warns that fees are not refunded if a document cannot be legalised. For the other countries, we did not read the official pages for this guide, so check with the issuing police authority and your foreign ministry.
Timing: when to order
Between accepting an offer and being legal on the ground, plan for at least two to three months, and most of that time is usually documents. Because the certificate has to be issued within six months of the application, the trap works both ways:
- Too early: if your visa process slips, the certificate can expire and you start again.
- Too late: the apostille and the postage can take longer than the application window.
A sensible approach is to ask your employer for the exact submission date, then order the check about six to eight weeks before it. The other documents sit in the same window. On Beijing’s list, the medical report and photo must also be recent (six months), while the degree and work experience certificates do not expire in the same way.
Common mistakes
- Expired certificate. Ordered months before the file was ready.
- Wrong authority. A local or state check when your employer needs a national one.
- Name mismatch. The record says “Alex Smith”, the passport says “Alexander James Smith”.
- Reversed steps. Authenticating before the document is complete, or notarising a document that should go straight to the apostille authority. Follow the order your authority gives.
- Following old advice. Paying for embassy legalisation your employer no longer needs.
- Missing translation seal. The translation needs the employer’s official seal.
What about Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macao?
Beijing’s page treats records and degrees from Hong Kong, Macao or Taiwan differently: they must be notarised by a notary in that location. If you have lived in one of them, ask your employer which route applies. For work in Hong Kong itself, the rules are different: see our Hong Kong work visa guide.
Next steps
If you have not yet found the job, start with how to get hired in China and browse current jobs in China. Teachers should also read teaching English in China, since schools often ask for the same documents. Our China visa guide covers the visa types, and students can read about the legal routes for internships.
Notarisation, apostille and certified copies: what each one means
These words are often mixed up. Notarisation is when a notary public certifies a signature or a copy; some countries ask for it before a document can be apostilled. An apostille is a single certificate, added by the competent authority of the country that issued the document, which confirms its origin for use in another member country of the Hague Convention. The Hague Conference publishes the competent authority of each member country. Consular legalisation is the older chain (foreign ministry, then Chinese embassy) that non-member countries still use. Keep the original apostilled document safe, and ask your employer whether they need the original or a scan for the visa application.
Next steps: our step-by-step guide on how to get a work visa in China shows where the certificate fits; if you will teach, read teaching English in China in 2026; and to plan your budget, Shanghai vs Chengdu cost of living. Looking for work first? See the best job boards in China for foreigners, or, for Hong Kong, the Hong Kong work visa guide.
FAQ
Does China accept an apostille for a criminal record check?
Yes, if your country is a member of the Apostille Convention. The Convention entered into force for mainland China on 7 November 2023, and the Chinese consulate in the UK says apostilled UK documents can be used directly without consular legalisation. An authority can still reject a document, so confirm with your employer.
How long is a China criminal record check valid?
Beijing’s official page says it must be issued within the past six months at the time of the application. Check the date on the certificate, not on the apostille.
Which country’s criminal record do I need?
Your country of nationality, or the country where you have lived for at least one consecutive year after leaving your home country (not counting China). If you have lived abroad a long time, ask your employer which one they want.
Do I need a Chinese translation?
Non-Chinese certification materials must be provided with Chinese translations bearing the employer’s seal, according to Beijing’s page. Your employer normally arranges this.
Can I get the check after I arrive in China?
We did not find an official source for this. Some consultancies say the certificate must be obtained abroad and then authenticated, so order it before you travel and confirm with your employer.
Sources
- Beijing Municipal Government, work permit application for foreigners (criminal record check, six-month rule, translations; page undated, appears to date from 2020), accessed 18 October 2026: english.beijing.gov.cn
- Hague Conference on Private International Law, Apostille Convention status table (China: accession 8 March 2023, entry into force 7 November 2023), accessed 18 October 2026: hcch.net
- Hague Conference on Private International Law, news item “Apostille Convention enters into force for the People’s Republic of China” (8 November 2023): hcch.net
- Chinese Consulate General in Manchester, notice on the Apostille Convention (26 October 2023): manchester.china-consulate.gov.cn
- GOV.UK, get a document legalised (apostille, fees, ACRO certificates), accessed 18 October 2026: gov.uk
- Morgan Lewis (November 2023), Hague Apostille certification to replace the legalisation process in China: morganlewis.com
- SilkPath, how to get a work visa in China: silkpath.org
