What Is Apostille And Where Do We Use It?

What Is Apostille And Where Do We Use It?



Public documents, such as birth, marriage or death certificates or even notarised documents, are sometimes needed to be used abroad. However, before it is used abroad, the origin must be authenticated. The legalization process is normally costly and cumbersome as it includes a chain of individual processes.

An 'Apostille' certificate is attached to an official legal document in order to verify that the document is genuine and contains the signature of a genuine person who is recognized and authorised to act on behalf of the organisation that issued the document.

When a legal document is presented in a foreign country, it can be extremely difficult to verify the legality of the document. The process for legalising documents that can be used abroad was abolished in 1961, under the Hague Convention, and was replaced by a simple certificate of authenticity, known as an Apostille. Each Apostille is identified by unique reference number, dated and registered.

Apostilles are recognized in 69 member states of the Hague Convention. There are governing bodies or organizations in foreign countries that can tell you whether the documents that you are presenting to them will need to be made legal or authenticated. By attaching the certificate, you can eliminate the chances of your foreign document not being recognized as being legal. Advice on the legality of documents can be obtained from the relevant government agency, the embassy of the country, or consulate or High Commission of the country in which the documents are to be presented.

If neither the country where the document was issued, nor where it is to be presented recognize the Apostille Convention, you can find out what your options are by contacting the consulate or embassy of the country where the document is to be used. Almost all public documents will need an Apostille certificate when they are used abroad; they can include, but are not limited to certificates, patents, notarized attestations, court documents, academic diplomas from schools and universities or public institutions. The law of the country will designated when a document is to be considered as public.

Entities that are entitled to issue Apostilles are known as Competent Authorities. Some countries may have only one Competent Authority, while others may have several, because different governmental agencies may be responsible for different public documents. If there are several authorities, ensure that you use the right one to fill your request.

Apostilles are usually available on the same day that they are requested, and before you request an Apostille, there are a few things that should be considered.

The certificate should be applicable to both the country where the original document was issued and where it is to be used.
• The document must be considered as a public document under the law, in the country where it will be used.
• You may or may not be able to request a certificate by mail, and this may be difficult if you live abroad.
• Multiple certificates may be needed for multiple documents
• The cost of the Apostille certificates and acceptable payment methods.

how to apostille a document