Apostille & Document Legalisation Services

An apostille is a certificate from a government-designated authority in the country that issued a public document. It confirms that the signature, seal or stamp on the document is genuine. It does not certify that the document's contents are true.

Countries in the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention accept an apostilled document without further legalisation.

An apostille can only be issued in the country the document comes from. That is why we work through a partner in each issuing country.

• Document check. Our partner reviews your scans and confirms the document can be legalised, before you send anything.

• Certification. Private documents are certified by a solicitor or notary first, in the same order.

• The apostille. The partner submits your document to the competent authority and obtains the apostille.

• Return. Your original is posted back with the apostille attached, or the e-Apostille is emailed to you.

• Embassy legalisation. Quoted for countries of use outside the Hague Convention.

• Translation. A certified or sworn translation can be added per page.

The decision to issue an apostille always rests with the authority. Our job is to get your document to the right authority, in the right form, the first time.

Choose the country that issued your document, not the country where you live or will use it.

Standard turnaround

• Sweden: 1 working day

• Most countries priced upfront: 3 to 7 working days

• South Africa: about 40 working days through DIRCO, with a faster High Court route for eligible documents

• Quoted countries: confirmed in your quote

Turnaround runs from when our partner receives your document. Certification, translation and postage add to it, and priority or urgent options are not offered at present. The country cards below show the current figure for each country.

Apostille only

Public documents that already carry an official signature or seal:

• Birth, marriage and death certificates

• Divorce decrees and other court documents

• Police certificates and criminal record checks

• Documents signed by a notary, solicitor or other public official

Certification, then apostille

Private documents the authority only accepts once a solicitor or notary has certified them:

• Degree certificates, transcripts and professional certificates, in most countries

• Company documents, such as certificates of incorporation and board resolutions

• Powers of attorney, declarations and affidavits

• Copies of passports and other identity documents

South African documents can also follow the High Court, SAQA, Umalusi or HPCSA routes. Not sure which route applies? Upload the document and our partner will confirm it before any work starts.

Do not post anything when you order. Once our partner confirms your document can be legalised, we email you the next step.

• Post it. We give you the partner office's address and an order number to write on the envelope.

• Have it collected. Book a courier from your address at the rate shown on the order form.

• Use a digital copy. Where the route allows it, upload the PDF and nothing is posted.

South Africa accepts original documents only. Paper apostilles are returned by tracked post, and e-Apostilles are sent by email.

An apostille is only recognised between countries that apply the Hague Apostille Convention. A country outside it will usually ask for consular legalisation instead: the document is authenticated in the issuing country, then legalised by the embassy of the country of use.

Tell us the country of use on the order form. Where embassy legalisation is needed, we send you a fixed quote. Nothing is charged until you accept it.

If the receiving authority works in another language, add a certified or sworn translation to your order. We translate from the scan of the apostilled document, so the apostille itself is translated too.

Need an apostille on a certified translation we produce, rather than on the original? Add it when you order the translation. Need a document notarised instead? See our online notary service.

Most delays and refusals come from a few avoidable problems. Check these first:

• The issuing country. The apostille comes from the country that issued the document, whatever your nationality or address.

• The document's condition. Authorities may refuse documents that are laminated, damaged or altered.

• What the receiving authority asked for. Some want a recently issued original, some accept a certified copy, and some want a translation too.

• The country of use. Outside the Hague Convention, you need embassy legalisation.

If the authority refuses a document, we tell you why and what is needed before it can be resubmitted.

An established apostille agent, notary or law office in the issuing country handles your documents and deals with the authority directly. Documents are posted to and returned from that partner's own office.

Translayte is operated by BDXL Ltd, a UK company based in London, and is an accredited member of the Association of Translation Companies (ATC). We have served more than 150,000 customers. Your documents travel over encrypted connections, and our partners, translators and project managers are bound by confidentiality agreements.