1. Documents to be legalized
The certificates or notarized documents issued by the public departments of the Macao Special Administrative Region Government that have the right to do so (e.g. Civil Registration Bureau, Identification Bureau, etc.) and the Macao SAR public notarization offices (e.g. First Notary Office, Second Notary Office, Island Notary Office) as well as private notaries approved by the Legal Affairs Bureau of the Macao SAR Government to undertake notarization business and to be used abroad.
*Please note: The above-mentioned certification or notarization documents intended to be sent to signatory countries of the "Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents" (Hereinafter referred to as the "Hague Convention") require an additional certificate (Apostille) issued by the Legal Affairs Bureau of the Macao SAR Government. No consular Legalization is required. At present, 125 countries have ratified or acceded to the Hague Convention, which is applicable to Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions of the People’s Republic of China. List of signatory countries of the Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents (As of October 23, 2023)
2. Required materials
(1) Legal and valid identity documents (e.g., passports) of the parties concerned.
(2) Where an agent applies on behalf of the applicant, a copy of both the agent's valid identity certificate and the party's valid identity certificate should be submitted.
(3) For the legalization of company documents, a copy of the company's legal representative's passport and company documents that can prove the identity of the company's legal representative should also be submitted.
(4) A true, complete and accurate application form.
(5) The original documents for consular legalization.
(6) Other materials deemed necessary by the consular legalization authority.
3. Fees of legalization
For Chinese citizens: MOP60 per copy for civil affairs; MOP125 per copy for commercial affairs.
For foreign citizens: MOP190 per copy for civil affairs; MOP380 per copy for commercial affairs.
4. Processing time
The regular processing time is 4 working days.
If urgent processing is required under special circumstances, an additional urgent fee (MOP190 per copy) will be charged.
5. Consular Department of the Office of the Commissioner
Address: No. 992 Av. Dr. Rodrigo Rodrigues, Macao
Offices hours: 9:00-12:00, 14:30-16:30 (Monday-Friday, except for holidays)
6. Notarized documents issued by the Chinese mainland should go through the relevant consular legalization procedures in the mainland. The Office will not accept them.
7. Civil and commercial documents used between the Mainland and the Macao Special Administrative Region can be used directly in the two places without going through legalization procedures.
8. Special reminder
(1) The documents applying for legalization should be notarized in Macao.
(2) The document is authentic, legal, and contains no content that may damage China's national and social public interests.
(3) If the documents applying for legalization are more than two pages, they should be bound in ways that are not easy to be replaced, e.g., wax sealing, seam stamps or steel seals.
(4) The Commissioner's Office will review the documents applying for legalization. If problems are found, including incomplete notarization procedures, irregular formats, illegal content, alteration or replacement of documents, etc., the application for legalization will not be accepted.
(5) The Office may require the applicant to provide other materials related to the legalization.
(6) Documents legalized by the Office shall not be changed or replaced. The applicant shall be responsible for any problems and legal responsibilities caused by the applicant's own modification or replacement of documents.
9. Contact us
Tel: 00853-87915126 (available at 14:30-18:30, Monday-Friday, except for holidays)
Email: macao@csm.mfa.gov.cn