American marriage certificate certification process:
1, county secretary's office certification (county secretary's office)
Marriage certificates are generally issued by county courts, and most marriage certificates in the United States will be signed by county clerks in the lower right corner. If the marriage includes the signature of the county clerk, this step of certification can skip the direct entry into the US Secretary of State certification; If the American marriage certificate does not have the signature of the county clerk, you need to go to the county for certification first. Common areas requiring county certification are new york City, California and Tennessee.
2. Secretary of State Certification (Secretary of State)
Due to the different countries that use American marriage certificate certification, the Secretary of State certification is divided into two forms, one is certification and the other is annotation. Certification uses China, and China Consulate does not accept annotations.
3. the State Council Certification (the State Council)
The State Council certification is only applicable to the states under the jurisdiction of the Chinese Embassy in the United States (Washington), including Washington, D.C., Maryland, Delaware, Idaho, Kentucky, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming. If the wedding place is not in any of the above States, you don't need to apply for state legislature certification.
4. Proof of the Consulate of China in the United States (Embassy/Consulate of China)
The ultimate goal of county secretary certification, secretary of state certification and the State Council certification is to submit the American marriage certificate to China's embassy and consulate in the United States, so as to prove the authenticity and validity of the American marriage certificate and get the approval of domestic institutions.
To apply for consular certification of American marriage certificate, you only need to provide a scanned copy of American marriage certificate and a scanned copy of both spouses' passports. The normal processing time is 12- 15 working days, and the emergency processing time is 7- 10 working days.