Apostille

An apostille is a certificate that is attached to a document to verify that the document is authentic. It is commonly used to authenticate legal documents for use in foreign countries. The certificate is issued by the government and certifies the authenticity of the document’s signature, the capacity in which the person signing the document has acted, and identifies any seals or stamps on the document. The purpose of an apostille is to provide an easy way to verify the authenticity of a document without having to go through the time-consuming process of obtaining legalizations from the embassy or consulate of the country where the document will be used. Apostilles are governed by the Hague Convention of 1961, which provides for the mutual recognition of public documents between countries that are signatories to the convention.