Rhonald, since you're Canadian you're the guy for me to ask, did either of these documents take long to get? My divorce is just being finalized now.
http://calgary.china-consulate.org/eng/lsfw/gzrz/t225620.htmhttp://calgary.china-consulate.org/eng/lsfw/gzrz/t225619.htmNeil, once I recieved my divorce certificate, I took this with a filled out Affidavit of Single Stauts to a lawyer. I signed the Single Status document in front of him and he notarized it. (oh make sure your divorce certificate can be used for international purposes). I then sent the Affidavit and my divorce certificate to Edmonton for certification. The lawyer explained to me that Canada did not sign an international agreement about notarization. So any document notarized by a Canadian lawyer for international purposes, needs to be certified by the proper goverment authority.
What really happens is that the provincial authority compares the lawyers signature and seal used in the notarization with their copy on file. If it matches, then they certify the document. The certification is a fancy legal size paper that covers the original document. They have a candle wax seal (just like days of old) with a ribbon that ties the two papers together. The certification just states that the lawyer is registered with the Government and the signature matches.
For the Chinese consulate I filled out the requested form and submited a photocopy of my passport with the original and photocopy of the certified Affidavit of Single Status. Payed the fee, waited 4 days and picked up the documents. The consulate placed an embossed holographic seal on the back of the Single status document.
All told, it took about 10 days to meet the lawyer, send the documents rush to Edmonton, and submit the documents to the chinesse consulate. I will look for my documents and scan them and upload a picture here for you.