what is an apostille ?

What is an Apostille ?

An Apostille is a type of attestation in which documents are legalised in a particular format that is acceptable in all nations that belong to the Hague Convention. Essentially, Apostille is an international attestation that is acceptable in about 92 countries*, and most of the western world recognises Apostille.

Apostille stamp is a square shaped computer generated sticker stamp, pasted on reverse of the document by the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. This is a unique computer generated stamp having a unique identification number, through which any member country of The Hague convention can check its authenticity online. Under normal circumstances, once the document is apostilled, it does not require to be attested further from the concerned embassy.

If a document is apostilled, it does not require to be attested.

For the list of countries that require documents to be apostilled, please refer to the following link:

http://www.hcch.net/index_en.php?act=states.listing

Apostille vs. Authentication?

There are two main ways to provide proof that a documents’ certification and any seals are legal and valid: Apostille and Authentication.

An Apostille is a certificate (a piece of paper), often attached to a document, that validates the document for use outside the United States. There is a distinct process for how to obtain an apostille. First, a competent authority in the country of origin affixes its seal to the document (or a certified copy of it). In the U.S., competent authorities include the Secretary of State or equivalent in U.S. states and the District of Columbia, the clerks and deputy clerks of U.S. federal courts, and the U.S. Department of State Office of Authentications. Once a document is fixed with an apostille, it is acceptable for use in the foreign jurisdiction. Note, though, that for an apostille to be accepted, the document must have been issued in one country party to the Hague Convention for use in another country party to the Hague Convention.