Apostille Convention Hague

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Followingthe entry into force of the Apostille Convention in Canada on January 11, 2024, authenticated documents now include a standard certificate called an apostille. The apostille eliminates steps required to get documents accepted in countries where the convention is in effect, including the legalization by a consular office of the country of destination. This will simplify the acceptance of Canadian public documents in the more than 120 countries that have signed the convention.

Since January 11, 2024, the competent authorities of certain provinces are exclusively responsible for the authentication and issuance of apostilles for documents issued or notarized in their respective province. Global Affairs Canada will continue to authenticate and issue apostilles for documents issued by the Government of Canada and for documents issued or notarized in specific provinces and territories. Below, you will find full details of the changes.

Some documents need to be notarized before a competent authority can authenticate them. This may include some documents issued by the Government of Canada. Since the Apostille Convention came into effect, the province or territory where your document was notarized is what determines the competent authority where you must send it. Check the existing requirements before submitting them.

Canadian embassies, high commissions and consulates may also offer authentication services on behalf of the Authentication Services Section. The Canadian offices abroad may authenticate the same type of document as the Authentication Services Section, as well as documents issued by the Vital Statistics office of any Canadian province or territory. To find out if your nearest Canadian embassy, high commission, or consulate offers authentication services, please check with them directly. Note that the Canadian offices in the United States do not generally offer authentication services.

If we received your request before January 11, 2024, and it is still pending processing, we will issue an apostille instead of an authentication certificate, which were discontinued on January 10, 2024. Note that we will issue apostilles for all authenticated documents, even if you intend to use them in a country that is not a signatory of the Apostille Convention.

Following the changes indicated above, documents may now qualify for authentication by a provincial competent authority. If you wish to withdraw a request that is pending processing at Global Affairs Canada to submit it to one of those offices for authentication and an apostille, email the Authentication Services Section at do...@international.gc.ca with the following details.

The request will be returned using the return method included in it. Note that if when your originally submitted your documents you included a prepaid envelope or shipping label to get them forwarded to an embassy or a consulate after being authenticated, this will be used to ship them back to the applicant. If no prepaid return method was included but wish us to return your documents by courier, you may purchase a prepaid shipping label online and attach it to your email. If neither of these options are chosen, it will be returned by regular mail.

The request will be returned to the applicant using the return method included in it. Therefore, if in your original submission you included a prepaid envelope or shipping label to get them forwarded to an embassy or a consulate after being authenticated, this will be used to ship them back to the applicant. If no prepaid return method was included but wish us to return your document by courier, you may purchase a prepaid shipping label online and attach it to your email. If neither of these options are chosen, it will be returned by regular mail.

Documents authenticated before the Apostille Convention came into effect on January 11, 2024, may need to be legalized by the foreign representative office of the country of destination before they can be used in a country that is a signatory of the Apostille Convention.

If you need to use a document in a country that is not a signatory of the Apostille Convention, you may need to get it authenticated by a competent authority in Canada and then have it legalized by the foreign representative office of the country of destination.

Canadian law does not require the authentication or legalization of foreign public documents before they can be used in Canada. This is not expected to change when the Apostille Convention comes into effect.

However, some individuals or institutions in Canada may still choose to accept only foreign documents that have been authenticated or have an apostille. How you apply to authenticate foreign documents will depend on where they were issued:

The Apostille Convention greatly simplifies the authentication on public documents to be used abroad. It abolishes the traditional legalization process, which often takes a long time and is quite costly. It replaces it with a single formality, an authentication certificate issued by the appointed authority in the State where the public document was executed. Such certificate is called an Apostille.

In theory the Apostille Convention will make it much easier for foreign business to do business in and with China. After all, from setting up a company, to doing litigation in China, for all of these things notarized and legalized documents from the home State to China are needed. The Apostille Convention could make this costly and time-consuming process easier with the apostille as a new way of legalization.

However, this all depends upon what China considers public documents under internal law. Only those documents fall under the apostille convention. Therefore, it will be interesting to see what China has understood under public documents under internal law.

From a litigation point of view, it will be crucial that PoA, legal representative statements and company incorporation certificate fall under the category of public documents under internal law. This will help foreign business tremendously.

Now the contracting States will be informed of the accession, and there will be a 6-month objection period for contracting States. However, if a State objects, it does not mean that China will not be part of the Apostille Convention. It only means that the Convention will not be applicable between the State that objects and China. The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has stated that the Apostille Convention will come into force on 7 November 2023.

No, authentication is not necessary or valid when interacting across the United States or its territories (Puerto Rico, Guam, Virgin Islands, etc.). You must contact the courthouse where the notary took their oath and request a Notary Certification of Good Standing.

A Special Commission met from October 28 to November 4, 2003 to discuss many issues regarding practical operation of the Hague in connection to Apostille, evidence and service conventions. The formal requirements of the Apostille were discussed and the Special Commission concluded that there are a variety of means of affixing an Apostille to a public document. These means may include rubber stamp, glue, (multi-colored) ribbons, wax seals, impressed seals, self-adhesive stickers, grommets, staples, etc. It is noted by the Special Commission that all these means are acceptable under the Convention, and that, therefore, these variations cannot be a basis for the rejection of Apostilles. Virginia has chosen the staple method of affixing the Apostille to the document.

Our office does not provide notary services. Many local banks, FedEx stores, UPS stores, and USPS have notary services. You may find notary services in other locations throughout Virginia at your discretion as well.

Our office is not affiliated with any apostille companies or services. The Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth provides all Authentications from the State of Virginia. You may use any company at your own discretion but please be aware; they are not representatives of nor connected in any way to the Authentication Division of the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth.

Any discrepancies or differences created in translating this content from English into another language are not binding and have no legal effect for compliance, enforcement, or any other purpose. If any questions arise related to the accuracy of the information contained in these translations, please refer to the English version of the website.

China has officially acceded to the Apostille Convention. On November 7, 2023, the Apostille Convention took effect in the country. This will save time and costs for companies and individuals, as foreign documents for use in China will no longer need to undergo multiple rounds of authentication by different authorities. We discuss how certain administrative procedures will be made simpler after China joins the Apostille Convention.

The Apostille Convention, or the Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents, is an international treaty that simplifies the process of authenticating public documents for use in foreign countries.

The apostille is a form of authentication that verifies the authenticity of the signature, the capacity in which the person signing the document acted, and, where appropriate, the seal or stamp attached to the document. It eliminates the need for further certification or legalization by consular or embassy officials, simplifying the process and saving time and costs for those who need to use foreign public documents for legal purposes.

Currently, in order to use foreign documents in China for administrative purposes ranging from applying for a visa to establishing a business, they need to first be notarized and authenticated by local parties and then be further authenticated by the Chinese embassy or consulate in the country in which the documents are issued. This is both expensive and time-consuming for the applicant.

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