Legalisation/Apostille details

An Apostille is a certificate that is attached to an official legal document to verify that the signatory on your document is genuine and person who signed your document is a recognised and authorised person of the organisation that issued the document. Each Apostille is dated, given a unique reference number and registered.

When you present a legal document in a foreign country, it is often very difficult to determine whether the document is genuine and legal. In 1961, the process for legalising documents for use abroad was abolished and replaced by a simple certificate of authenticity, called an ‘Apostille’, under the Hague Convention.

UK GRO Certificates can acquire acquire this Certificate on your behalf for your document and return it direct to your door or to a third party.

Why do I need an Apostille?

In order for documents to be accepted and recognised abroad in another country, they will most likely need to be legalised for authenticity. The body or organisation which you are presenting the  documents to should be able to advise you whether you need to have them Legalised / Apostille. You can obtain advice generally from the relevant Government Department, Educational Establishment, Embassy, Consulate or High Commission of the country concerned in London.

Countries which accept the Apostille Certificate

The following countries are all members of the Hague conference and have entered into force Convention 12 of 5 October 1961, Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents.

These countries will therefore accept the Apostille Certificate in place of any further legalisation.

Countries not listed will often still require an Apostille but will then also require further legalisation via their embassy. Please contact us for guidance on this.

Countries A to G

A
Albania
Andorra
Antigua and Barbuda
Argentina
Armenia
Austria
Australia
Azerbaijan

B
Bahamas
Barbados
Belarus
Belgium
Belize
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Botswana
Brunei Darussalam
Bulgaria

C
China (Hong Kong)
China (Macao)
Colombia
Cook Islands
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech Republic

D
Denmark
Dominica
Dominican Republic

E
Ecuador
El Salvador
Estonia

F
Fiji
Finland
France
FYR of Macedonia

G
Georgia
Germany
Greece
Grenada

Countries H to P

H
Honduras
Hong Kong
Hungary

I
Iceland
India
Ireland
Israel
Italy

J
Japan

K
Kazakhstan
Korea, Republic of
L
Latvia
Lesotho
Liberia
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg

M
Malawi
Macao (China)
Macedonia (FYR of) Malta
Marshall Islands
Mauritius
Mexico
Monaco
Mongolia
Montenegro

N
Namibia
Netherlands
New Zealand
Niue
Norway

P
Panama
Poland
Portugal
Pakistan

Countries R to Z

R
Republic of Moldova
Romania
Russian Federation

S
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Samoa
San Marino
Sao Tome and Principe
Serbia
Seychelles
Slovakia
Slovenia
South Africa
Spain
Suriname
Swaziland
Sweden
Switzerland

T
The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
Tonga
Trinidad and Tobago
Turkey

U
Ukraine
United Kingdom
United States of America (USA)

V
Vanuatu
Venezuela

Embassies we provide servies for include: