BEIJING -- The Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents entered into force in China, and this will bring huge institutional benefits to China and other contracting parties, foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Tuesday at a daily press briefing.

Wang said that in China, various agencies have coordinated with each other to complete the revision of relevant domestic laws and regulations, the system development of issuing Apostille Certificates stipulated by the Convention and the establishment of the verification mechanism since China acceded to the Convention on March 8.

China is now fully prepared for compliance with the Convention, the spokesperson said, noting that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and relevant local foreign affairs offices held ceremonies for the issuance of the first Apostille Certificates this morning, officially announcing the entry into force of the Convention in China.

From today on, official documents sent between China and other contracting countries for use require only an Apostille Certificate issued by the countries they come from. Consular authentication is no longer required, said Wang.

He said that in China, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government agency responsible for managing Apostille Certificates and issues them for public documents issued in Chinese mainland, while relevant local foreign affairs offices, entrusted by the ministry, may issue Apostille Certificates for public documents issued within their respective administrative divisions.

The entry into force of the Convention in China will bring huge institutional benefits to China and other contracting parties. China looks forward to working with all parties to promote the application of the Convention in more countries to further facilitate international travel and business cooperation, Wang added.