Apostille Certificate Service

We provide the apostille certificate for UK documents that need to be presented in other countries.   

The apostille certificate verifies that the document to which it relates is authentic and has been checked in its country of origin. Once the Apostille certificate and stamp has been attached the document is legalised and is acceptable in countries which have joined the Hague Convention. Many countries that have not joined the Convention also recognise the apostille certificate and often request this on documents.  

Why do you need an apostille?

It is often the case that the first time you hear of the apostille is when you have been asked for one. It is likely that a foreign organisation or government office has requested that you have a UK document legalised by apostille as proof of its authenticity. Common examples are:  

  • Birth, Marriage and Death Certificates
  • Certificates of No Impediment and court documents for marriage abroad
  • Education certificates and diplomas for overseas students returning to their home country
  • Academic and Qualification documents for employment overseas
  • Powers of Attorney, deed polls, contracts, letters, and other personal paperwork
  • Company documents, certificates, and agreements for international business and banking
  • Criminal record checks, CRB and disclosure documents for work abroad

This list is a sample only of the hundreds of documents we handle. See our list of documents that can have an Apostille here >> Apostille Documents  

How to get the Apostille Certificate?

We arrange for your Apostille Certificate and take care of everything for you. Simply send us your documents with a completed order form and we will return the legalised documents in approximately 3-4 days. There are no hidden charges just a quick apostille service.  

How does it work? 

The Apostille Certificate is a paper attachment which is fixed permanently to your supplied papers by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). The documents will then be accepted as authentic in any of the Hague Convention countries that will accept the Apostille (and some others). As it is glued and embossed with the FCO Legalisation Office Apostille seal you may wish to legalise a certified copy so that the originals remain unchanged.  

What is the Apostille Certificate?

The apostille certificate follows a prescribed format and contains the following information:  

Country of origin
Name of signatory on the document
The capacity in which that signatory has acted (for example solicitor or public notary)
If the document has been sealed/stamped instead of signed then the details of the authority (for example the issuing court)
Place of certification
Date of certification
Issuing authorities details
Certificate number
Stamp of issuing authority
Authorised signature of authority
  

The apostille certificate is a small certificate that is attached to your document (normally on the back). It is permanently glued to your document and embossed with the apostille stamp.  

How do i pronounce apostille?
We hear many pronunciations so please do not worry when calling us.
Put simply it is ‘a – poss – teal’ – The correct spelling is apostille, but again we see many variations in our customer communications.
 
   
The definition of apostille
An apostille is used to certify a document for use in another country. Members of the Hague convention use the apostille to reduce the burden placed on local legal systems.
 
 Apostille is a French word which means a certification. The word ‘apostille’ has been adopted by many countries under the terms of the 1961 Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents. When a document has been issued with an apostille certificate under the Hague Convention it will be accepted for legal use in all the countries that have signed the Hague Convention.
There is no longer an apostille service in London for members of the public. We provide our legalisation direct with the apostille milton keynes service.