The Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau introduced that since October 1 last year, residents with registered permanent residence in Pudong have been able to process marriage registrations for foreign nationals, residents from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, and overseas Chinese right (hereinafter referred to as foreign national-related marriage registration) in their neighborhoods. Starting from June 1 this year, this pilot reform will be conducted successively in Jing’an, Huangpu, Xuhui, Changning, and Minhang districts. This means that residents whose registered permanent residence is in one of the pilot districts can choose to process their marriage registrations either at the municipal marriage registration organ or at the district-level marriage registration organ within the pilot districts. This year’s pilot reform also integrates Apostille, the use of foreign national permanent residence permits, and other convenient policies. How to handle foreign national-involved marriage registrations in Shanghai? See below for details.

I am a native of Huangpu District, Shanghai, and my fiancee is a Singaporean. We intend to get married on June 1 this year. In this scenario, where can we proceed with the marriage registration process?

This situation falls under the category of marriage registration involving a foreign national. Simply put, in cases where one party has registered permanent residence in Shanghai and is marrying a foreign national, a resident of Hong Kong, Macao, or Taiwan, or an overseas Chinese, the marriage registration can be processed in Shanghai. Since Huangpu District is one of the five districts in the second batch of pilot areas (including Huangpu, Xuhui, Changning, Jing’an, and Minhang), residents of Huangpu District can process the foreign national-involved marriage registration either at the city’s or Huangpu District’s marriage registration center.

My household registration is in Jiading District. I intend to marry a foreign national. Can I go to Huangpu District for the marriage registration process?

No. Only residents with permanent residence registration in the pilot districts (Pudong, Huangpu, Xuhui, Changning, Jing’an, and Minhang) can handle foreign national-involved marriage registration at the city’s or a pilot district’s marriage registration organ. Residents whose permanent residence registration district has not been included in the pilot program must handle the registration for foreign national-involved marriages at the municipal marriage registration center. However, with the continuous progress of reforms, the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau will further expand the pilot areas. It won’t be long before residents can fulfill their desire to handle foreign national-involved marriage registration right at their doorstep.

What documents and materials do I need to bring when registering for marriage at the marriage registration center? What conveniences can foreign permanent residents with a “Five-star Card” enjoy?

Building upon the initial pilot program, this year’s trial implementation has introduced two major convenience policies.

Policy 1: Foreign nationals can now use a valid passport or other valid international travel documents as proof of identity for marriage registration. Additionally, they can present a permanent residency permit as an alternative proof of identity for registration. Those using a permanent residency permit as proof of identity must also provide a valid passport number.

Policy 2: On November 7 last year, China became a member of the Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents (also known as the Apostille Convention). For instance, Singapore is a signatory to the Apostille Convention. Now, the certificate of no marriage issued by the notary organ or competent authority of the country of residence no longer requires consular authentication but must be accompanied by an additional certificate issued by the competent authority of Singapore and its Chinese translation. This convenience policy also applies to certificates submitted by overseas Chinese whose country of residence belongs to a Contracting State, proving that they do not have a spouse and that they do not have direct blood relation or collateral blood relation within three generations with the other party. To safeguard the legitimate rights of the parties involved in marriage, the marriage registration center will verify the additional document. To learn about the requirements for consular legalization, Apostille certification, and the documents needed for registering a marriage, please scan the QR code to access the specific guidelines.

If the marriage certificate is lost, where can I go to apply for a replacement?

The replacement of a lost marriage certificate can be processed at the original marriage registration organ, the municipal marriage registration organ, or a district-level marriage registration office if one of the parties has registered permanent residence in the pilot districts (Pudong, Huangpu, Xuhui, Changning, Jing’an, and Minhang). For example, if the marriage registration was originally processed at Huangpu District’s marriage registration center but the registered residence has later moved to Xuhui District, in the event of a lost marriage certificate, one can apply for a replacement at the original marriage registration organ, namely Huangpu’s marriage registration center, the municipal marriage registration center, or the marriage registration center of Xuhui District where the updated registered residence is located.

How can I make an appointment?

You can make an appointment to handle foreign national-involved marriage registration through various channels such as the Shanghai Citizen Cloud App or the “Marriage Registration Appointment” feature on the Alipay App. The addresses and contact numbers of the pilot districts’ registration centers and municipal marriage registration center are listed in the table below.