PROVISIONS FOR THE REGISTRATION OF MARRIAGE BETWEEN CHINESE CITIZENS AND FOREIGNERS

(Approved by the State Council on August 17, 1983 and promulgatedby the Ministry of Civil Affairs on August 26, 1983)

1. When Chinese citizens and foreigners (including foreign residents andthose who come to China for a short visit, Chinese of foreign nationality,and foreigners who have settled down in China) decide to get married oftheir own free will within the boundaries of China, both the man and thewoman concerned shall appear together at the marriage registrationdepartment, designated by the province, autonomous region, or municipalitydirectly under the Central Government, and stationed in the locality wherethe Chinese citizen has his/her residence registration and apply formarriage registration.

2. Both the man and the woman, who apply for marriage registration, shallabide by the Marriage Law of the People's Republic of China and thepertinent articles and items of these Provisions.

3. Chinese citizens and foreigners who apply for marriage registrationshall respectively hold the following certificates:

A. For Chinese citizens:

(1) certificates of the applicant's residence registration;

(2) certificate signed and issued either by the people's government at thecounty level or above which is stationed in the locality where theapplicant has his/her residence registration, or by a governmentdepartment, a school, an institution, or an enterprise at the county levelor above, which is the applicant's place of work; the certificateindicates the applicant's name, sex, date of birth, nationality, maritalstatus (single, divorced, bereft of spouse - the same below), occupation,nature of work, name of the person to marry.

B. For foreigners:

(1) the applicant's passport or other documents certifying his/heridentity and citizenship;

(2) "Residence Permit for Foreigners" signed and issued by the publicsecurity department, or identification certificate issued by foreignaffairs department, or entry permit and residence permit for foreignerswho come to China for a short stay;

(3) marital status certification issued by the notary office of theapplicant's country and confirmed by both the Ministry of Foreign Affairs(or a department authorized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) of theapplicant's country and the Chinese embassy or consulate in the saidforeign country; or marital status certification issued by the embassy orconsulate of the said foreign country in China.

C. For resident foreigners in China:

(1) the applicant's passport, or identification certificate or nationalitycertificate used to substitute for passport (those who have no nationalitymay be exempted from presenting their nationality certificates);

(2) "Residence Permit for Foreigners" signed and issued by the publicsecurity department;

(3) certificate signed and issued either by the people's government at thecounty level or above, which is stationed in the locality where theapplicant has his/her residence registration, or by a governmentdepartment, a school, an institution, or an enterprise at the county levelor above, which is the applicant's place of work; the certificateindicates the applicant's name, sex, date of birth, marital status,occupation, name of the person to marry.In addition, both the man and the woman applying for marriage registrationshall also present the pre-marital health check-up report signed andissued by a hospital designated by the marriage registration department.

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