Individuals coming to the U.S. Consulate General for consular services are required to wear protective masks prior to entry. Masks are not available at the Consulate. You will not be allowed entry without a mask.
American Citizen Services at the U.S. Consulate General Hong Kong and Macau has returned to full notarial services. For these services, please make an appointment here: Appointment System. We are opening appointment slots on a week-by-week basis. We encourage you to keep checking the online appointment system if you do not immediately find an open slot.
Please enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to receive the latest COVID-19 and American Citizen Services updates.
For up-to-date information on how COVID-19 is affecting American Citizen Services operations worldwide, please visit travel.state.gov. Detailed information for visitors traveling to or through Hong Kong is available here.
For us to notarize your documents, you must:
- Make an appointment. All notarial services are provided by appointment only.
- Bring your government-issued photo ID. A passport or Hong Kong ID card is best.
- Bring documents with the appropriate names, places, dates, initials, etc. already filled in. Please don’t sign them; you’ll sign at the Consulate in front of the consular officer.
- Familiarize yourself with your documents and know where notarizations are required.
- Be able to explain to a consular officer what the documents are and for what purpose they will be used.
- Bring the notarial fee of $50 USD or $400 HKD per notarial signature/stamp.
Payment options are as follows:
- U.S. or local currency cash
- Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express or Diners Club. All credit card transactions are in U.S. dollars, as if the transaction occurred in the United States.
Please note that the Consulate cannot accept Hong Kong currency in denominations larger than $500 bills. Please also note that US $100 banknote series 1990 and also series 1914-1990 are no longer accepted.
Power of Attorney
A Power of Attorney allows you to empower someone to act in your place, for example, to take some action on real estate in the U.S. on your behalf while you are in Hong Kong.
The preparation of legal forms is typically the task of an attorney. Examples of legal forms are available on-line (PDF 8.54 KB), but please keep in mind that the forms and their purposes can vary widely from one jurisdiction to another. We cannot advise you on the specific language needed in your Power of Attorney; please consult a lawyer or other advisor for assistance before coming to see us to notarize the document.
Affidavits
An Affidavit is a sworn statement made by an individual. Please write out the statement you wish to attest or swear to, but do not sign the form until instructed to do so by the Consular Officer.
The preparation of legal forms is typically the task of an attorney. Examples of legal forms are available on-line (PDF 7.55 KB), but please keep in mind that the forms and their purposes can vary widely from one jurisdiction to another. We cannot advise you on the specific language needed in your Power of Attorney; please consult a lawyer or other advisor for assistance before coming to see us to notarize the document.
Medallion Signature Guarantee
Unfortunately we cannot perform a Medallion Signature Guarantee, which is a special type of signature acknowledgement sometimes required for the exchange of securities. The Consulate does not have a list of Medallion Program member institutions. Please contact your financial institution for guidance on this matter.
A Medallion Signature Guarantee can only be obtained from a participant in one of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved programs, such as a commercial bank, brokerage firm, credit union or savings and loans institutions that are members of the Medallion Stamp Program. For more information on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Medallion Program, please visit “Signature Guarantees: Preventing the Unauthorized Transfer of Securities” web page.
Notarial Alternatives
Both the United States and Hong Kong are parties to the Hague Convention. Therefore, documents notarized in both places will be recognized in either country. A list of attorneys in Hong Kong who provide notarial services is available at “Legal Assistance (Notary Matters)” web page.
After notarizing your documents at a law firm in Hong Kong, please take your documents to the Hong Kong High Court for an apostille. A certification (Apostille) affixed by a competent local authority, in this case the High Court, on the document concerned will legalize the document which will then be recognized in the United States. For details on procedures to authenticate Hong Kong documents during this period, please contact the High Court Registry at Tel: 2825-4426, Monday through Friday, 8:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. and see apostille service for additional information.
Please note that the Consulate cannot assume responsibility for the professional ability or integrity of the law firms or persons whose names appear on the above Legal Assistance (Notary Matters) list. They are arranged alphabetically; the order in which they appear has no other significance.
Limitations
Please note that the Consulate cannot authenticate or provide copies of documents such as birth, marriage, divorce or death certificates, U.S. driver’s licenses, academic transcripts, diplomas or the like.
Authentication
Authentication or legalization is the procedure by which the authority of persons who issue or execute documents in one country may be recognized by another country. It is possible to have documents notarized by a local notary public for use in the United States if the notary public’s signature is authenticated. The United States, Hong Kong, and Macau are parties to the Hague Convention which abolishes the requirement of diplomatic and consular legalization for public documents originating in one Convention member and intended for use in another. Because of the Convention, consular officers are prohibited from authenticating documents in Hong Kong or Macau for use in the United States.
For information on authenticating U.S. documents for use in either Hong Kong or Macau, please contact the State Department’s Office of Authentication. That website also maintains information on other members to this Hague Convention and their designated Central Authorities.
For information on authenticating documents in Macau for use in the United States, please contact the Chief Executive of the Secretary for Administration and Justice or the Director of Justice Affairs, Department of the Macau Special Administrative Region.
For details on procedures to authenticate Hong Kong documents during this period, please contact the High Court general hotline at Tel: 2825-0586, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and see apostille service for additional information.
Last modified: November 5, 2020
