When you import from China, the embassy certification is an important shipping document that is essential for customs clearance in some countries. This blog will make everyone understand:

What is embassy certification?
How much does the embassy certification cost?
The most cost-effective way to apply for embassy certification?
Why is the embassy certification so expensive?
How much does the embassy certification application cost?
The process and steps of the embassy certification application.

 

As China’s exports to Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and other countries and regions have increased year by year, especially light industrial products have obvious advantages, these countries and regions have become China’s main export markets. These countries are in need of protecting their own markets and have formulated strict trade protection policies. Many of these countries require that the documents of goods imported from China must be certified by the embassy of the importing country in China before they can go through the customs clearance procedures at the destination port.

 

When you ship from China, the main countries that require embassy certification are the following countries:

Argentina, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran, United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Indonesia, Chile, Kuwait, Oman, Colombia, Philippines, Brazil, Mexico, Vietnam, India, Ecuador, Nigeria, Costa Rica, Italy, Peru, Slovakia, except for the Middle East, South America, In Africa and other regions, some European and American countries are also joining the ranks.

 

The embassy certification refers to the fact that a country’s diplomatic institution and its authorized institution confirm the authenticity of the seal of the notary office or some special institution of the host country or the signature of the person in charge of the institution on the foreign-related documents.

 

Certified certificates are legally binding.

 

 

What are the main contents of the embassy certification?

Embassy certification mainly includes civil certification and commercial certification, civil certification, such as birth, education, income certificate, etc.; commercial certification, such as certificate of origin, pro forma invoice, bill of lading, insurance, etc.

 

 

What are the precautions for embassy certification when you import from China:

 

1. Pay attention to the correct stamp.

All kinds of commercial documents that need to be authenticated should be stamped with the seals of the entry-exit inspection and quarantine bureaus at all levels or the CCPITs of various places, or corresponding certificates should be issued.

 

2. How long does the embassy certification take?

Different countries have different regulations on the time for embassy certification. The Argentine embassy stipulates that the time for embassy certification is 20 days, and that of Saudi Arabia is 25 days. At the same time, since the embassies of various countries are often closed during the holidays of China and their own countries, export enterprises should pay attention to the embassy’s regulations on the certification time limit when applying for embassy certification, and apply as early as possible to facilitate smooth customs clearance and foreign exchange settlement.

 

3. Note that some countries require the certification of some trade documents to be processed at the same time.

When you ship from China to the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Iran, Jordan, Syria, and other countries, the invoice must be certified together with the certificate of origin.

In addition, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and other countries also require that four kinds of documents must be certified for meat products exported to the country at the same time: invoice, certificate of origin, inspection, and quarantine certificate, and slaughter certificate.

 

The United Arab Emirates also requires that broiler chickens should be marked as virus-free, harmless, and flu-free on the inspection and quarantine certificate when exporting broilers.

Kuwait also requires that the invoice must be certified together with the certificate of origin and the white certificate of origin (the white certificate of origin is a certificate of origin in Arabic).

 

4. Note that some countries require additional documents or documents.

From China to Argentina, Argentina requires two invoices to be certified when the certificate of origin of the goods re-exported to Argentina from other countries or regions is certified.

 

When shipping from China to Libya, Libya requires the original invoice to be attached when the certificate of origin is certified separately, and an additional fee of 8.3% of the invoice amount is charged, and 4 copies of the invoice and certificate of origin are required.

 

5. What is the cost of the embassy certification?

Almost all countries charge a certain fee for embassy certification, some of which are even higher. Therefore, export enterprises should take into account the certification costs when conducting export trade to these countries, especially for trade with small transaction value. At the same time, it should be noted that some countries charge by batches, and some countries charge a certain percentage based on the invoice amount.

 

6. What language is the embassy certification written in?

For shipments from China to Libya and Kuwait, the two countries must attach relevant documents in Arabic when applying for embassy certification.

Shipping from China to Venezuela, Colombia, Uruguay, Bolivia, the application for embassy certification must be accompanied by a Spanish translation, etc.

 

 

How does applying for embassy certification affect imports from China?

1. The long application time for embassy certification obviously restricts China’s export of goods from countries that require embassy certification. These times are not available for normal imports from China, making the entire shipment very tight.
2. The higher cost of embassy certification has the most direct impact on the number of goods exported from China to these countries that need to provide certification;
3. Some countries require the certification of some trade documents to be processed at the same time, which makes the certification work of the CO embassy more cumbersome;
4. Some countries require that relevant documents or documents should be attached when applying for embassy certification, which makes it more difficult to apply for CO embassy certification;
5. The embassy certification of some countries has regulations on the language, which makes it more difficult to apply for embassy certification;
6. Some countries have special regulations for the documents of embassy personnel, which increases the difficulty and cost of embassy certification.

 

 

Procedures and steps to apply for embassy certification when you ship from China：

1. The applicant fills in the certification application form, submits the required certification to the Certification Office of the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and pays the corresponding certification fee;
2. After confirmation by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it will be handed over to the embassy in China for certification and endorsement;
3. The certificate certified and signed by the embassy shall be returned to the Certification Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs by the original route;
4. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs returns the certified certificate to the applicant

 

The time of the embassy certification is signed:

South China is divided into Hong Kong and Beijing, not the whole country, and some in East China can be signed in Shanghai.

The embassy certifications signed in Hong Kong are Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Argentina, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, Brazil. Among them, Argentina and Brazil only certify the documents of Hong Kong companies.

 

In Hong Kong, it is generally 3 working days, plus the time for postal leave, so it is usually 7 days. It usually takes 7-30 working days for Beijing to add a visa, depending on the country. Venezuela, Libya, Brazil, Qatar, and other countries take a longer time, but it is generally about three weeks.

 

The cost of signing the certificate of origin is lower than that of other commercial documents. The signing of commercial documents must be certified according to the new regulations of CCPIT, so there is an extra cost for the certificate. In addition, the endorsement of invoices in some countries is charged according to the invoice amount., such as United Arab Emirates, Libya, Iran, Qatar, the higher the invoice amount, the more the certification fee.

 

From September 2007, according to the new regulations of CCPIT, CCPIT signed documents cannot be directly stamped on the documents, but must be certified in the form of a certificate.

 

There are at least two types of the chamber of commerce certification: Certificate of Origin Chamber of Commerce certification, in which case a chamber of commerce seal can be stamped in the fifth column of the certificate of origin. Document Chamber of Commerce certification is to be in the form of a commercial certificate.

 

Because the embassy certification generally takes a long time, in order not to affect the customs clearance of foreign importers, it is best to do it when the documents are complete, that is, before the sailing. On the issue of stamping, it is necessary to communicate more with overseas importers, because the importer and his customs clearance broker at the port of destination are more familiar with the regulations of their own customs than Chinese exporters.

 

Due to the increasing number of products shipped from China to Argentina, the documents that need to be certified by the Argentine Embassy are also increasing. The Argentine Embassy in Beijing has accumulated many documents to be certified. Due to the shortage of stamps required for certification by the Argentine Embassy, ​​such stamps are in China cannot produce, and they can only be produced in Argentina and then shipped to China. Therefore, the certification that used to take only 7 working days may be extended to a month or more. Those who need to do it on their behalf need to prepare in advance. It is best to do it in advance before shipment.

 

 

Although the embassy certification is usually handled by the consignor or the consignee’s freight forwarder in China, because the embassy certification involves three stages of charges, CCPIT charges + Ministry of Foreign Affairs charges + embassy and consulate charges, even if it is handled by the consignor, Generally, the cost of embassy certification is allocated to the export quotation. The most economical method is to let your Chinese freight forwarder directly handle the embassy certification.

Contact Bestforworld to get the best embassy certification quotes when you import from China.

 

Brazilian Embassy certification template：