Using Philippine Documents Back in China: The Order of Authentication, Translation and Filing

Three stages, three different people to ask

Obtain the official version and apostillise. PSA versions for civil registry documents; the official NBI clearance; regulator certification first for academic records; notarisation plus a court CANA for private documents. Ask the DFA and the issuing agencies.

Translate. An apostille certifies signature, seal and capacity only; it carries no translation. Whether the Chinese receiving office wants a Chinese translation, in what form, and whether it must be bound with the original is entirely their call. Ask the receiving office — not the authentication authority, not the translator.

File. Household registration, marriage registration, school records and social insurance all have their own counters and their own requirements.

The hard part is asking the right party. Stage one is answered in the Philippines; stages 2 and 3 are answered in China. Most missed deadlines come from asking a stage-2 question of a stage-1 office.

Two ways the order goes wrong

Translating before obtaining the official version. The PSA version that arrives may not match the copy you had translated, and the translation is redone. Obtain first, translate that.

Translating after apostillisation when it had to be bound in. If the Chinese office requires the translation bound with the original and apostillised together, the order is fixed: obtain, translate, notarise the translation and obtain the CANA, then file the complete set. An apostille attaches to one specific document, so anything added afterwards falls outside it.

And on copies: one apostille per document, and paper originals submitted to a registry are usually not returned. Order the number of sets you need at the retrieval stage.

Unsure whether the Chinese office wants a Chinese or bilingual translation, notarised or not? → Send Yixing their written requirement and we will sequence the three stages

The electronic route, and one question to ask before ordering

Since 16 March 2026, PSA electronic certificates and CHED electronic credentials are apostillised fully digitally, ordered through a dedicated online channel and issued as electronic apostilles by email for convention states including mainland China. The DFA states a printed copy is invalid for submission and no printed version is provided.

So confirm one thing before you order: does the Chinese office accept electronic apostilles? The paper and electronic routes diverge at the ordering step, and choosing wrong means starting again.

Verify what you receive at e-app1.apostille.gov.ph for civil registry documents, e-registry2023.apostille.gov.ph for other public documents, or by email to [email protected]. The official portal is apostille.gov.ph.

Finally, the apostille has no expiry — the underlying document does. NBI clearance and CENOMAR age, and Chinese receiving offices commonly require civil registry documents issued within 3 or 6 months. Work the retrieval date backwards from your filing date.

Yixing is a private consultancy registered in the Philippines (SEC No. CS202009551, BI Accreditation No. CA-202624381-1). We are not affiliated with the DFA, PSA, NBI or any embassy. We check document versions and prerequisites, book appointments, file and collect on your behalf, and arrange translation; acceptance is decided by the issuing authority and the receiving party, and we do not promise outcomes. This article is general information, not legal advice; current practice is whatever the DFA Authentication Division publishes at the time.