Legalisation & Apostille

We have two apostilles services on offer for you. There is a standard apostille service, which takes 25 to 30 days; alternatively, you can use our premium apostille service, which takes 5 to 7 days.

Once the FCDO has finished issuing your documents with an apostille, we can further process the documents if needed through any Chamber of Commerce, embassy or consulate and return the documents to you. Alternatively, we can forward them directly to the foreign destination on your behalf. Scanned copies and tracking numbers will be emailed to you.

We manage the legalisation of our clients’ documents from start-to-finish. Whether you need to go abroad very soon and so need a fast turnaround, or if you have plenty of time to prepare, we have an apostille service for you.  

An apostille certificate confirms that the signature, seal or stamp of a Notary Public on a UK document is genuine. This ensures that it will be accepted when presented in another country outside of the UK.

Apostilles were introduced following the Hague Apostille Convention that took place in 1961 as a way to make legalising documents easier between signatories of the convention. Over time, more and more countries have adopted apostilles. Now, most of the world’s countries accept them.

Many countries have their own unique legalisation requirements. The costs of legislation can also vary widely depending on whether an apostille is enough or whether full legalisation at the country’s embassy is also required. For example, some countries, such as the UAE, accept apostilles but use them as part of the longer embassy legalisation process. 

Many individuals and businesses have had documents returned to them as a result of them not getting their documents legalised. This not only wastes time of both you and the people checking your documents, but it will also waste your money as well. Ensure that you get your documents legalised before sending them to another country. If you are unsure about how to begin the process or do not have the time, then experts such as ourselves at Kent Notary Public can help you.

Below is a list of all the countries that currently accept apostilles. We will keep this list updated if there are any changes in the future.

There are many different types of documents that we have assisted our clients in getting apostilles for. These documents include:

• ACRO Police Certificates
• Affidavits
• Birth certificates
• Degree certificates
• Marriage certificates
• Powers of Attorney

Some types of documents must have the original legalised, such as birth, marriage and death certificates. Other documents such as education documents or Powers of Attorney can have copies legalised.

We also offer document translation services if required.

Get in touch with our experts to find out more about our competitive pricing packages.