How to Notarise Hong Kong Documents in Australia

Hong Kong documents are proved in Hong Kong, not by an Australian notary. Most Hong Kong certificates are bilingual, so Australian bodies often need only the certificate or a certified copy, plus a translation of any Chinese-only entries. A notary matters more when you sign Hong Kong paperwork here, such as an MPF declaration or a property power of attorney.

Key takeaways

• Hong Kong keeps its own registers and processes, separate from mainland China. Do not follow mainland instructions for Hong Kong documents.
• Birth and marriage certificates are certified copies of register entries, usually in Chinese and English.
• A Certificate of Absence of Marriage Record covers marriages registered in Hong Kong only.
• Since 1 January 2026, Hong Kong Police take applications for a Certificate of No Criminal Conviction from people outside Hong Kong only through their online platform.
• An MPF declaration made in Australia is usually made before a notary or another person authorised to take declarations here. The trustee decides.

Do Hong Kong documents need a notary in Australia?

Usually not. An Australian notary can certify that a copy matches a Hong Kong document they have sighted. They cannot vouch for what a Hong Kong register records. For Australian uses, the questions are whether you hold the right certificate and whether any part of it needs translating.

For a visa, the Department of Home Affairs generally asks for clear colour scans of the originals and English translations of anything not in English. It asks for certified copies only in some cases. When it does, a copy certified by an authorised person is usually enough. Check the document list for your visa on the Home Affairs immigration site, and see our notary or JP guide for who can certify what.

What DFAT cannot do with a Hong Kong document

DFAT issues apostilles and authentication certificates only on Australian public documents and on the signatures of Australian officials, including notaries. It cannot apostille a Hong Kong birth certificate or a Hong Kong degree, even as a notarised copy. DFAT's page on documents it can legalise also says it does not deal with foreign education documents.

If a Hong Kong document needs an apostille, Hong Kong issues it. As of our last check of the HCCH status table, the Convention has applied to Hong Kong since 25 April 1965 and continued after 1997. China's notification named Hong Kong's own competent authorities, including the registrars of the High Court. Check the table on the day. Australian bodies rarely ask for an apostille on a Hong Kong certificate, and the receiving authority decides.

How are Hong Kong documents different from mainland ones?

Hong Kong has its own legal system, registries and authorities. The mainland route, where a Chinese notary office issues a notarial certificate proving a fact, does not apply to Hong Kong records. Hong Kong certificates are certified copies of entries in its own registers, and most are printed in Chinese and English.

The writing differs too. Hong Kong documents normally use traditional characters, while mainland documents use simplified ones. Names are romanised from Cantonese, so a family name shown as Chen on a mainland document may be Chan on a Hong Kong one. Tell your translator where each document came from. For mainland records, see notarising Chinese documents.

Which Hong Kong documents come up most?

Hong Kong document	Issued by	Common Australian use
Certified copy of a birth entry	Immigration Department, births registry	Visas, citizenship, a child's passport
Certified copy of a marriage entry	Immigration Department, marriage registry	Partner visas, name changes
Certificate of Absence of Marriage Record	Immigration Department, marriage registry	Showing no Hong Kong marriage was registered
Divorce decree	The Hong Kong court that granted it	Proving an earlier marriage ended
Certificate of No Criminal Conviction	Hong Kong Police	Character checks for visas
Degree and transcript	The university	Skills assessments, employers, study

What does a Certificate of Absence of Marriage Record prove?

It states that no marriage is recorded for you in Hong Kong's marriage registers for the period searched. It helps when you need to show you are free to marry, for example before a wedding in Australia or for a partner visa.

Its limits matter. It covers marriages registered in Hong Kong only, so it says nothing about a marriage on the mainland or anywhere else. If you have lived in more than one place, the receiving body may ask for evidence from each, or a statutory declaration about your marital status. Our statutory declaration guide explains how those are made in Australia.

Do Hong Kong documents need a translation?

Often only in part. Most Hong Kong certificates print headings and main entries in Chinese and English. Some entries, particularly on older certificates, may be handwritten in Chinese only. Names may appear in characters beside their romanised form. Any Chinese-only part an Australian body relies on needs an English translation.

A translation made in Australia should be by a NAATI-credentialled Chinese translator, told that the document is from Hong Kong. One made in Hong Kong needs the translator's full name, address, telephone number and qualifications for Home Affairs. Our NAATI translation guide explains what a certified translation must show. For translations that also need a notarial certificate, see NAATI translation with notary certification.

Why do Hong Kong names cause mismatches?

Many Hong Kong people have an English given name as well as a Chinese name, and documents show different combinations. A birth certificate might show only the romanised Chinese name, while a later identity card, degree or passport adds the English one. Use the name exactly as your passport shows it on every Australian form. Where a document differs, link the versions with translation notes or a statutory declaration if asked. Our guide to mismatched names shows how.

A Certificate of No Criminal Conviction from Australia

Home Affairs usually asks for a police certificate from each country or place where you have lived for a total of 12 months or more in the last ten years since turning 16. Check the current instructions for your visa. For Hong Kong, that is a Certificate of No Criminal Conviction, or CNCC, from Hong Kong Police.

Three points from the Hong Kong Police pages, as last checked, catch people out. The CNCC is issued only for visa applications, such as visit, student or resident visas, and for child adoption. From 1 January 2026, applications from people outside Hong Kong are no longer accepted by post, drop-in box or representative, only through the Hong Kong Police Online Applications Platform. And the certificate goes to the consulate or immigration authority only; the applicant receives a copy only when there is a conviction record.

On fingerprints, the Hong Kong Police FAQ said, when we checked, that some online applicants can skip them. The conditions were logging in with iAM Smart and an application unrelated to work with children or vulnerable people. Police may still ask for fingerprints to verify identity. No Australian notary is involved at any step. For an Australian police check going the other way, see our criminal record check guide.

Signing Hong Kong papers in Australia

Many Hong Kong people in Australia still hold property, bank accounts or Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) accounts in Hong Kong. Dealing with them from here often means signing a document in Australia for use there, and the Hong Kong body sets the rules.

• MPF withdrawal on permanent departure. The member makes a statutory declaration that they have left Hong Kong to live elsewhere with no intention of returning to work or settle. MPFA guidance says one made outside Hong Kong is made before a notary public or another person authorised locally to take declarations. The trustee also wants proof you may reside outside Hong Kong, and it decides what it accepts.
• Property. A power of attorney or assignment for Hong Kong property is prepared by a Hong Kong solicitor. The solicitor says who must witness it and whether a notarial certificate and apostille are needed.
• Banks. Hong Kong banks often want certified copies of your identity documents and may list who may certify them from overseas.

Where a notary is used, the notary checks your identity and that you understand the document, then witnesses your signature or declaration. If an apostille is also requested, DFAT issues it afterwards. For validity questions on property, see a solicitor. Our guides to apostilles for Hong Kong and foreign pension documents cover the Australian steps, and our document notarisation page covers the signing.

Preparing Hong Kong documents for an Australian application

1. Read the checklist and note whether it wants originals, certified copies or colour scans.
2. Check each certificate for Chinese-only entries, including handwritten ones, and arrange a NAATI translation of them.
3. Line up your names across every document, including any English name.
4. Order a Certificate of Absence of Marriage Record if you must show you are free to marry, and add evidence from other places you lived.
5. Certify copies through an authorised person only if copies are asked for.

Here is an illustration, not a real case

Karen moved from Hong Kong to Melbourne some years ago and is applying for a partner visa. She provides her bilingual birth certificate, a NAATI translation of its handwritten Chinese entries, and a Certificate of Absence of Marriage Record. A statutory declaration covers her years in Australia.

When Home Affairs asks for police certificates, she applies for her CNCC on the Hong Kong Police platform, knowing she will not see it herself. She also wants her MPF savings. She reads her trustee's current instructions, makes the permanent departure declaration before a notary in Melbourne, and sends proof of her Australian residence with it.

In short

Hong Kong documents are proved in Hong Kong: bilingual certified copies from its registries, a marriage record search for Hong Kong marriages, and a CNCC sent straight to the authority. In Australia you translate Chinese-only entries, line up your names and certify copies where asked. A notary helps when you sign MPF, property or bank papers here.

People also search for

• What documents does a partner visa need certified?
• Which Australian documents does a China visa need?
• What documents do you need to sell property overseas?
• How do you manage an overseas bank account from Australia?
• How do I notarise Korean documents in Australia?
• Which documents do you need to marry overseas?

Not sure what your Hong Kong paperwork needs? Send us the instructions you were given, and we will explain each step before you book.