What Happens if Foreign Judicial Documents Served by Mail/E-mail/Fax to Litigants in China? | Service of Process and Foreign Judgment Enforcement Series (2)
What Happens if Foreign Judicial Documents Served by Mail/E-mail/Fax to Litigants in China? | Service of Process and Foreign Judgment Enforcement Series (2)

What Happens if Foreign Judicial Documents Served by Mail/E-mail/Fax to Litigants in China? | Service of Process and Foreign Judgment Enforcement Series (2)

What Happens if Foreign Judicial Documents Served by Mail/E-mail/Fax to Litigants in China? | Service of Process and Foreign Judgment Enforcement Series (2)

It is invalid under Chinese law.

Service by international mail or e-mail or fax is an invalid service pursuant to Chinese law. Where a foreign court issues a judgment based on this type of service, if this foreign judgment requires recognition and enforcement in China, such service of process will be regarded as a procedural defect, and hence the judgment would not be recognized and enforced by Chinese courts. The parties should explain the Chinese law to the foreign court in a timely manner, and request for service of process through the channels stipulated in the treaty (e.g., Hague Service Convention, bilateral judicial assistance treaties).

Source: Ministry of Justice of the People’s Republic of China, Frequently Asked Questions and Answers on International Judicial Assistance in Civil and Commercial Matters (国际民商事司法协助常见问题解答), 24 June 2022.


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