Marriages in China are registered according to the laws of China, regardless of the nationality of those being married. The current Marriage Law of the People's Republic of China was passed in September 1980 and went into force on January 1, 1981. Under this law, marriage registration procedures are administered by the local civil affairs office minzhengju, in each jurisdiction.

Persons planning to marry should visit one of these offices for specific information. If one of the partners is a Chinese citizen, the appropriate civil affairs office will be the one in the jurisdiction in which the Chinese citizen is registered (the location of the hukou). If both are foreigners, it will be the civil affairs office in the city in which they live. In general, at least one of the partners must reside in China. Two foreigners visiting China temporarily on tourist visas are unlikely to be able to register a marriage here.

The Sino-foreign couple must go together, in person to the appropriate marriage registration office and submit a completed marriage registration application form (available at the marriage registration office). Chinese translations must accompany foreign-language documents.