Notarized diploma and transcripts for a China scholarship: what the official notices ask for
Sources checked · Unofficial summary
Most of these programmes ask for a notarized highest diploma, and academic records that are not already in Chinese or English must be attached with notarized Chinese or English translations — but the exact wording is not the same in every notice. The Application Guide for Chinese Government Scholarship asks for a "notarized photocopy" of the diploma, while the MOFCOM Scholarship-CSC Program enrollment guide asks for plain photocopies and instead requires you to present original degrees and transcripts for on-site verification. None of the four official documents compared here says how a document is notarized in your country.
The comparison below uses four notices published by the China Scholarship Council on Campus China. Where a notice is silent, this page says so rather than borrowing a rule from another programme.
What the Chinese Government Scholarship guide asks for
The Application Guide for Chinese Government Scholarship lists, as item 3 of its application documents, "Diploma and certificate of highest education (notarized photocopy)." For current university students it adds a different document: "An applicant who is a current university student shall submit the certificate of expected graduation or student status issued by his/her university."
Item 4 covers academic records: "Academic records in languages other than Chinese or English shall be attached with notarized translations in Chinese or English." Under this guide, then, the notarization wording attaches to the diploma as a notarized photocopy, while the translation wording is triggered by academic records issued in a language other than Chinese or English.
The ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship and Silk Road Scholarship compared
The Guidebook to the ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship and the Chinese Trade Unions Silk Road Scholarship page use nearly identical wording. Both ask for a notarized highest diploma, and both attach the translation requirement to documents that are not in Chinese or English.
| Notice | Highest diploma | Academic transcripts / records |
|---|---|---|
| Application Guide for Chinese Government Scholarship | "Diploma and certificate of highest education (notarized photocopy)"; current students submit a certificate of expected graduation or student status | "Academic records in languages other than Chinese or English shall be attached with notarized translations in Chinese or English" |
| Guidebook to the ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship | "Notarized highest diploma"; documents in languages other than Chinese or English must be attached with notarized Chinese or English translations | "Academic report. This document in languages other than Chinese or English must be attached with notarized Chinese or English translations" |
| Chinese Trade Unions Silk Road Scholarship | "Notarized highest diploma"; documents in languages other than Chinese or English must be attached with notarized Chinese or English translations | "Academic transcripts. Transcripts in languages other than Chinese or English must be attached with notarized Chinese or English translations" |
| MOFCOM Scholarship-CSC Program (Enrollment Guide) | "Photocopy of highest diploma"; reminder: all documents should be in Chinese or English, otherwise a notarized copy in Chinese or English is required | "Photocopy of academic transcripts"; same reminder, plus the original transcripts must be presented for on-site verification |
Neither of the two guides says the transcript itself must be notarized. Both put the notarization on the translation: if the academic document is in a language other than Chinese or English, a notarized Chinese or English translation must be attached.
What the MOFCOM Scholarship-CSC Program asks for
The MOFCOM Scholarship-CSC Program enrollment guide lists "Photocopy of highest diploma" and "Photocopy of academic transcripts" in its online document list, and no notarization appears in that list. Notarization enters through the reminders at the end of the section: "All the documents to be submitted should be in Chinese or English. Otherwise, a notarized copy in Chinese or English is required."
So, for a diploma or transcript already written in Chinese or English, the guide does not add a notarization step for the submitted copy; the notarized-copy rule is written for documents that are not. The guide separately requires verification: "An original copy of degrees, transcripts, Foreigner Physical Examination Form and language certificates must be presented for on-site verification."
Under the offline submission rules, applicants submit the original documents — the permission or recommendation letter from the host government and the other application documents listed above — to the Economic and Commercial Counsellor's Office (ECCO) of the Chinese Embassy in the host country, and the scanned electronic edition of the documents is needed as well. The guide lists the ECCO emails and addresses at http://www.china-aibo.cn. It adds that applicants get all hard-copy materials back from the ECCO, and that admitted students must take the documents to China and submit them to the university for verification and archive.
What the four notices do not say
None of the four explains how notarization is carried out. They use the word "notarized" but do not say which authority in your country must do it, what the notarization must look like, or how to obtain one.
Only the Chinese Government Scholarship guide mentions a certificate of expected graduation or student status, and it does so for current university students. The ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship, Silk Road and MOFCOM guides do not mention such a certificate; they do not say what a current student should submit instead of a completed diploma.
The notices also do not state that a diploma already in English is exempt from the notarized-diploma requirement. The Chinese Government Scholarship guide asks for a notarized photocopy without a language condition, and the other two Campus China guides ask for a notarized highest diploma; the translation clause in those guides is separate and is triggered by the document's language.
On dating, none of the four pages carries an academic year or an application deadline date for the documents described here. The MOFCOM guide says applicants should consult the application receiving authority for the deadline of each year, the Chinese Government Scholarship page carries no publication date and no academic year, the ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship page gives no deadline (its focal-point list is headed "As of 2026"), and the Silk Road page gives no academic year and no deadline.
Questions people ask
Does my diploma need to be notarized if it is already in English?
The wording differs by notice. The Chinese Government Scholarship guide asks for a "notarized photocopy" of the diploma and certificate of highest education and does not make that condition depend on the language of the document. The ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship and Silk Road guides ask for a "notarized highest diploma" and then say documents in languages other than Chinese or English must be attached with notarized Chinese or English translations; those pages do not say that a diploma already in English is exempt from the notarized-diploma wording. The MOFCOM guide asks for a photocopy of the highest diploma and adds a notarized-copy requirement only for documents that are not already in Chinese or English.
Do transcripts need to be notarized, or only translated?
The Chinese Government Scholarship guide says academic records in languages other than Chinese or English shall be attached with notarized translations in Chinese or English; it does not ask for the transcript itself to be notarized. The ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship and Silk Road guides use the same structure, requiring notarized Chinese or English translations when the document is in another language. The MOFCOM guide asks for a photocopy of academic transcripts, requires a notarized copy only when a document is not in Chinese or English, and requires the original transcripts to be presented for on-site verification.
Does the Chinese Government Scholarship guide accept a certificate of expected graduation instead of a diploma?
Yes, for current university students. The guide states that an applicant who is a current university student shall submit the certificate of expected graduation or student status issued by his/her university. The ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship, Silk Road and MOFCOM guides do not mention a certificate of expected graduation, and they do not say what a current student should submit.
What does the MOFCOM guide mean by on-site verification of originals?
The MOFCOM guide's reminder says an original copy of degrees, transcripts, the Foreigner Physical Examination Form and language certificates must be presented for on-site verification. Its submission section says applicants submit the original documents of the host-government permission or recommendation letter and the other application documents to the ECCO of the Chinese Embassy in the host country, with the scanned electronic edition also needed; the offices' emails and addresses are listed at http://www.china-aibo.cn. The guide adds that applicants get all hard-copy materials back from the ECCO, and that admitted students must take the documents to China and submit them to the university for verification and archive.
Sources
- Application Guide for Chinese Government Scholarship — China Scholarship Council (Campus China, campuschina.org)
- Guidebook to the ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship — China Scholarship Council (Campus China, campuschina.org)
- Chinese Trade Unions Silk Road Scholarship — China Scholarship Council (Campus China, campuschina.org)
- MOFCOM Scholarship-CSC Program (Enrollment Guide) — China Scholarship Council (Campus China, campuschina.org)
Checked 10 October 2026
This page is an unofficial summary, is not published by the China Scholarship Council, Campus China or any of the bodies named above, and the official notice prevails if the two differ.