Apostille

In order to be valid in a foreign country, documents issued by Italian bodies need to be legalised.

Legalisation consists in the process of certifying the legal quality of the Public Official who signed the document and the authenticity of the signature itself, to give the document the value required to produce legal effects in another country. 

Documents intended for use in countries that signed The Hague Convention of 5 October 1961 have to undergo the “Apostille” procedure instead of legalisation.

What is an Apostille?

An Apostille is an international certification that validates the authenticity and validity of the signature of a public official ratifying a deed or certificate.

Apostilles were introduced by the Hague Convention abolishing the requirement of legalisation of foreign public documents that was signed during the  Hague Convention on International Law of 5 October 1961. The treaty defines the procedures by which public documents are certified so that they can be considered valid in the various countries that signed it.

The Convention specifically provides for certain types of document to which Apostilles can be applied: documents issued by state authorities or by an official working for a State administration, administrative documents, notary deeds, official declarations indicating a registration, authentications of signatures on private deeds.

It is important to point out, as specified by the Hague Convention itself, that an Apostille certifies the signature, the legal quality of the signatory and of the seal or stamp applied to the document; Apostilles do not certify the content of the document they are applied to.

APIT SRL is able to manage with experience and efficiency the entire Apostille certification and application process.

Click the link to consult the Convention website dedicated to the Treaty and find detailed information together with an updated list of the countries that signed the Convention.