An apostille (french for certification) is a special seal applied by a government authority to certify that a document is a accurate copy of an original.

criminal records check are obtainable in nations, which signed the 1961 Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization of Foreign Public Documents, popularly known as The Hague Convention. This convention replaces the previously utilized time-consuming chain certification course of action, exactly where you had to go to four unique authorities to get a document certified. The Hague Convention gives for the simplified certification of public (including notarized) documents to be utilised in countries and territories that have joined the convention.

Documents destined for use in participating nations and their territories should really be certified by a single of the officials in the jurisdiction in which the document has been executed. With this certification by the Hague Convention Apostille, the document is entitled to recognition in the country of intended use, and no certification by the U.S. Division of State, Authentications Workplace or legalization by the embassy or consulate is needed.

Note, while the apostille is an official certification that the document is a accurate copy of the original, it does not certify that the original document’s content material is correct.

Why Do You Need an Apostille?

An apostille can be employed anytime a copy of an official document from another nation is necessary. For example for opening a bank account in the foreign nation in the name of your company or for registering your U.S. company with foreign government authorities or even when proof of existence of a U.S. organization is necessary to enter in to a contract abroad. In all of these cases an American document, even a copy certified for use in the U.S., will not be acceptable. An apostille should be attached to the U.S. document to authenticate that document for use in Hague Convention countries.

Who Can Get an Apostille?

Considering the fact that October 15, 1981, the United States has been part of the 1961 Hague Convention abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents. Any individual who wants to use a U.S. public document (such as Articles of Organization or Incorporation issued by a Secretary of State) in 1 of the Hague Convention countries may perhaps request and obtain an apostille for that precise country.

How to Get an Apostille?

Obtaining an apostille can be a complicated process. In most American states, the method entails acquiring an original, certified copy of the document you seek to confirm with an apostille from the issuing agency and then forwarding it to a Secretary of State (or equivalent) of the state in query with a request for apostille.

Nations That Accept Apostille

All members of the Hague Convention recognise apostille.

Countries Not Accepting Apostille

In countries which are not signatories to the 1961 convention and do not recognize the apostille, a foreign public document ought to be legalized by a consular officer in the nation which issued the document. In lieu of an apostille, documents in the U.S. usually will get a Certificate of Authentication.

Legalization is generally accomplished by sending a certified copy of the document to U.S. Division of State in Washington, D.C., for authentication, and then legalizing the authenticated copy with the consular authority for the country where the document is intended to be utilised.