Apostille Convention Member Countries
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The Hague Apostille Convention of 1961
Apostille or Legalization?The Convention of 5 October 1961, Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents, also known as the Hague Apostille Convention of 1961, simplifies the recognition of public documents in foreign countries.
The main goal of this Convention is to eliminate the need for time-consuming and expensive document legalization procedures. Instead, the Convention has introduced a simplified process where a Competent Authority in the document's country of origin issues a single Apostille certificate. With over 125 member countries, the Convention has gained extensive adoption and is now one of the most widely embraced multilateral agreements in legal cooperation. This international agreement leads to the issuance of several million Apostilles annually, effectively streamlining cross-border document validation.
List of Member Countries
- Albania
- Andorra
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Argentina
- Armenia
- Australia
- Austria
- Azerbaijan
- Bahamas
- Bahrain
- Barbados
- Belarus
- Belgium
- Belize
- Bolivia
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Botswana
- Brazil
- Brunei Darussalam
- Bulgaria
- Burundi
- Cape Verde
- Chile
- China, People's Republic of (Hong Kong & Macau Only)
- Colombia
- Cook Islands
- Costa Rica
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Dominica
- Dominican Republic
- Ecuador
- El Salvador
- Estonia
- Fiji
- Finland
- France
- Georgia
- Germany
- Greece
- Grenada
- Guatemala
- Guyana
- Honduras
- Hungary
- Iceland
- India
- Indonesia
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Japan
- Jamaica
- Kazakhstan
- Korea, Republic of
- Kosovo
- Kyrgyzstan
- Latvia
- Lesotho
- Liberia
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malawi
- Malta
- Marshall Islands
- Mauritius
- Mexico
- Moldova, Republic of
- Monaco
- Mongolia
- Montenegro
- Morocco
- Namibia
- Netherlands
- New Zealand
- Nicaragua
- Niue
- North Macedonia, Republic of
- Norway
- Oman
- Pakistan
- Palau
- Panama
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Philippines
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Russian Federation
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Lucia
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- Samoa
- San Marino
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Saudi Arabia
- Senegal
- Serbia
- Seychelles
- Singapore
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- South Africa
- Spain
- Suriname
- Swaziland
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Tajikistan
- Tonga
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Tunisia
- Turkey
- Ukraine
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- Uruguay
- Uzbekistan
- Vanuatu
- Venezuela
Main Rules of the Apostille Convention
It applies to public documents only. Public documents include birth certificates, marriage certificates, death certificates, diplomas, educational records, court orders, and company extracts.
It only applies between countries that are party to the Convention. As of 2023, there are over 125 countries that are party to the Convention. You can find a list of member countries on the Hague Conference website.
It abolishes the requirement of legalization. Traditionally, when you wanted to use a public document in a foreign country, you had to get it legalized by a series of government officials in your own country. This process could be time-consuming and expensive. The Apostille Convention eliminates this requirement.
It requires the issuance of an apostille. An apostille is a certificate that is attached to a public document. It certifies the authenticity of the document and the official who signed it. An Apostille or Certificate of Authentication issued by the New York Secretary of State is a one-page document with a blue laser-printed New York Department of State Seal facsimile. The Apostille and Certificate of Authentication include the facsimile signature of the New York Secretary of State or his deputy.
A competent authority must issue the apostille. Each country party to the Convention has designated a competent authority (in New York State, it is a Secretary of State) to issue apostilles. You can find a list of competent authorities on the Hague Conference website.
The apostille does not guarantee that the document will be accepted in the foreign country. The foreign country may have its own rules and regulations governing the use of foreign public documents.
Here are some additional things to keep in mind:
- The Apostille Convention excludes certain administrative documents related to commercial or customs operations from its scope.
- The Apostille Convention does not apply to documents issued by diplomatic or consular agents. These documents are usually subject to a different set of rules.
- The Apostille Convention does not apply to documents intended to be used in the country where they were issued.