A semiconductor wafer-processing apparatus has a plurality of support members provided respectively for the processing units of a processing apparatus, and designed for supporting wafer receptacles each containing semiconductor wafers, and receptacle-inserting/extracting mechanism for inserting a wafer receptacle from the support members into the processing units, and for extracting the wafer receptacle from the processing units back to the support members. Receptacle-transporting mechanism is provided, operated independently of the receptacle inserting/extracting mechanism, for transporting the wafer receptacle between each support member and a predetermined position.