SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 6-K

Report of Foreign Private Issuer

Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 or 15d-16

of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

For the Month of September 2018

Commission File Number 1-31517

China Telecom Corporation Limited

(Translation of registrant’s name into English)

31 Jinrong Street, Xicheng District

Beijing 100033, China

(Address of principal executive offices)

(Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F.)

Form 20-F  ☒            Form 40-F  ☐

(Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1):  ☐)

(Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7):  ☐)

(Indicate by check mark whether the registrant by furnishing the information contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing the information to the Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.)

Yes  ☐            No  ☒

(If “Yes” is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to the registrant in connection with Rule 12g3-2(b):82-                .)

EXHIBITS

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain statements contained in this Form 6-K may be viewed as “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act. These forward-looking statements are, by their nature, subject to significant risks and uncertainties, and include, without limitation, statements relating to:

The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “seek,” “will,” “would” and similar expressions, as they relate to us, are intended to identify a number of these forward-looking statements.

These forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions, some of which are beyond our control. In addition, these forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to future events and are not a guarantee of future performance. We are under no obligation to update these forward-looking statements and do not intend to do so. Actual results may differ materially from the information contained in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including, without limitation, the following:

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Please also see the “Risk Factors” section of the Company’s latest Annual Report on Form 20-F, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

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Exhibit 1.1

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited and The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited take no responsibility for the contents of this announcement, make no representation as to its accuracy or completeness and expressly disclaim any liability whatsoever for any loss howsoever arising from or in reliance upon the whole or any part of the contents of this announcement.

China Telecom Corporation Limited

中国电信股份有限公司

(A joint stock limited company incorporated in the People’s Republic of China with limited liability)

(Stock Code: 728)

PROPOSED ADOPTION OF SHARE APPRECIATION RIGHTS SCHEME

BACKGROUND

The Board has considered and approved the proposed adoption of the Share Appreciation Rights Scheme for certain key personnel of the Company. The Scheme will be submitted for the SASAC’s approval and for the Shareholders to consider and approve at the EGM. The Scheme shall become effective for implementation after obtaining the approval from the SASAC and the Shareholders at the EGM and may be subject to amendment upon the request from the SASAC and/or Hong Kong regulatory authorities. A supplemental circular setting out further details of the Scheme for the Shareholders to consider and approve at the EGM will be despatched to the Shareholders as soon as practicable.

The Scheme does not involve the grant of options over new shares or other new securities that may be issued by the Company (or any of its subsidiaries) and therefore, it does not fall within the ambit of, and is not subject to, the requirements under Chapter 17 of the Listing Rules.

CONTENTS OF THE SCHEME

A summary of major terms of the proposed Scheme is set out below. Further details of the terms of the Scheme will be set out in the supplemental circular to the Shareholders as mentioned above.

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REASONS FOR ADOPTING THE SCHEME

The Board is of the view that the Scheme will enable the Company (i) to establish and optimise the performance-oriented culture for value creation for the Shareholders; (ii) to further improve the Company’s corporate governance structure and to secure long-term stable development of the Group; (iii) to optimise the basic remuneration, short-term incentives and long-term incentives of the management, technical and skilled talents of the Company so as to retain different talents in a more flexible and effective manner for better promotion of the development of the Company; and (iv) to effectively motivate enthusiasm of key personnel to make best efforts to enhance their performance so as to strengthen the core competitiveness of the Group. The Board considers that the proposed terms and conditions of the Scheme are fair and reasonable and are in the best interests of the Company and the Shareholders as a whole.

The Board wishes to emphasise that the Scheme shall become effective for implementation after obtaining the approval from the SASAC and the Shareholders at the EGM. Shareholders and potential investors are advised to exercise caution in dealing in the securities of the Company.

DEFINITIONS

In this announcement, unless the context otherwise requires, the following terms and expressions have the following meanings:

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Beijing, China, 21 September 2018

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain statements contained in this announcement may be viewed as “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933 (as amended) and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (as amended). Such forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual performance, financial condition or results of operations of the Company to be materially different from any future performance, financial condition or results of operations implied by such forward-looking statements. In addition, we do not intend to update these forward-looking statements. Further information regarding these risks, uncertainties and other factors is included in the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and in the Company’s other filings with the SEC.

As at the date of this announcement, the Board of Directors of the Company consists of Mr. Yang Jie (as the chairman and chief executive officer); Mr. Ke Ruiwen, Mr. Gao Tongqing and Mr. Chen Zhongyue (all as the executive vice presidents); Mr. Chen Shengguang (as the non-executive director); Mr. Tse Hau Yin, Aloysius, Mr. Xu Erming and Madam Wang Hsuehming (all as the independent non-executive directors).

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