A certified copy is a copy (often a photocopy) of a primary document, that has on it an endorsement or certificate that it is a true copy of the primary document. It does not certify that the primary document is genuine, only that it is a true copy of the primary document. For Hong Kong company who need to apply for bank account opening in a foreign country, clients are required to a prepare for a set of incorporation and financial documents with apostille.
In Hong Kong, the High Court offers service to certify a true copy of a document, the certified copy will be deposited a red ribbon for attach all pages. Since documents served by apostille in Hong Kong is in accordance to Hague Convention, documents must fulfill the requirement of Hague Convention and in turn get qualified by other countries who recognize this convention.
A document will usually first have to be notarized and/or apostilled before it can be legalized. Whereas legalization is normally only required if the document will be used in a country that is not a party to The Hague Convention. Only the embassy or consulate of the foreign country in which the document will be used can legalize a document.
The common needs of notarization in Hong Kong for commercial uses are as follows:
prepare for Powers of Attorney (POA);
statutory declaration for company documents (for businesses).
Only a notary public can notarize a document, either certifying a legal document as genuine or an original, authenticating a signature or certifying or witnessing a person’s identity. Depending on what the notarization is being used for and what is required the notary public may:
• Issue a notarial certificate;
• Make a certified copy of an original document; and/or
• Witness the signing of a document.
In most cases, a Hong Kong Notary Public is sufficient, but there are some exceptions. For example, when setting up a WOFE, a Chinese Notary is usually required.
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If you have further inquires, please do not hesitate to contact Tannet at anytime, anywhere by simply visiting Tannet’s website english.tannet-group.com, or calling Hong Kong hotline at 852-27826888 or China hotline at 86-755-82143422, or emailing to tannet-solution@hotmail.com. You are also welcome to visit our office situated in Unit702-703, 7/F, Fourseas Bldg, 208-212, Nathan Rd, Jordan, Hong Kong.
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