E-Apostille - giving you the future of apostilles
Our main UK Apostille page explains the meaning of apostilles and broadly what you need to do to legalise a document.
It explains the process to get your documents legalised.
As a reminder of the Apostille meaning in UK, they are certificates issued by the UK Government. These confirm that the signatures, stamps and seals of public officials are genuine.
The Hague Apostille Convention sets out how the electronic version of the Apostille Certificate or 'E-App' functions.
The Legalisation Office of the FCDO have been providing E-Apostille UK since 1 September 2022.
What must you do to obtain an E-Apostille?
A Notary Public must sign an electronic document. The Notary's signature must be either an Advanced Electronic Signature (AES) or a Qualified Electronic Signature (QES).
The FCDO do not accept simple electronic signatures.
The UK government also currently excludes certain types (mainly personal documents):
- Birth Certificates
- Death Certificates
- Marriage Certificates
- ACRO/DBS Certificates
- Other UK documents not signed by a Notary Public or solicitor
What type of documents does the e-Apostille program include?
A Notary Public or Solicitor using a QES or AES signature signs any document will get an e-App.
Any document signed by a Notary, examples include:
- Powers of Attorney
- Certified copies of documents such as ID documents
- Certified copies of education certificates
Our Apostille Service In London
We can obtain your E-Apostille for you.
Simply email it in to us: notary@notarypublicinlondon.com
If you need help with understanding what is an apostille or you need your documents apostilled, get in touch.
Please contact us on +442074992605
We are happy to help.
Advanced and qualified electronic signatures
AES and QES signatures have an advanced level of security and authentication.
Verification of the Notary's identity in advance makes the AES or QES unique to the Notary.
We use Trustpro to provide our Qualified Electronic Signature.
They have registered under the eIDAS framework.
The FCDO's legalisation service has duly lodged our Notaries' QES.
When the FCDO inspects our QES, it applies an apostille on a document.
What are the benefits of using e-apostille?
- Integrity - the document is secure and tamper proof
- You can be assured that the Certificate is authentic and from the United Kingdom FCDO.
- Speed - the FCDO have an official 2 working days turnaround. From our experience it is often faster. An alternative to the same day apostille service that the FCO Apostille service used to offer.
- Cost saving - you can email your legal documents to the final recipient, saving in postage/courier fees
- Convenience - you don't have to send original documents
- You can download the document and send it instantly by email
Are E-Apps accepted everywhere?
No.
Not every country or territory accepts E-Apostilles.
You need to check if the foreign country you are dealing with accepts them.
The Hague Convention are trying to promote the usage of E-Apps but not all members of the convention have signed up.
In addition, some countries still insist on legalisation with their embassy or consulate.
Our country Guide
Check out our country guide for guidance as to what your recipient countries' requirements are.