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Everything you need to know about Apostille Stamps

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An Apostille is a form of confirmation issued to documents verifying the genuineness of the signature and/or seal of a public officer. This certificate is usually requested by foreign governments and organisations to use overseas. Once an Apostille has been affixed to your document, it will be valid in member countries of The Hague Convention. We can assist you with UK and Ireland Apostille stamps. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office was previously called Foreign & Commonwealth Office. The merger was announced by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in 2020, announcing the FCO and Department for International Development (DFID) to be one; now known as FCDO.

Sample FCDO apostille certificate
It is often a requirement by foreign authorities that documents are legalised before they can be used for official purposes in their country. Legalisation does not certify the authenticity of a document or give foreign and commonwealth office approval of its content. The legalisation office is the only competent authority in the UK to provide an apostille service according to the requirements of the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961, and to deliver a legalisation service to those countries not party to the Hague Convention

Get your document legalised with Aspire Attestation

The Apostille stamp can be issued in two methods: one is a paper-based certificate and the other is an electronic version called an e-Apostille, which was introduced in late 2022. As the e-Apostille is relatively new, officials in foreign countries may not accept the electronic version and may require the traditional paper-based Apostille.

APOSTILLE SERVICE

Aspire Attestation provides an apostille service through the UK FCDO legalisation office. Duration to obtain an apostille vary from same day through the premium service to 3-4 working days. The legalisation service can be undertaken for various documents including and not limited to; company documents, Police ACRO and power of attorneys. Certain documents must be certified with a signature and seal or stamp by a Solicitor or Notary Public. Public documents issued from the General Register Office or GRO will be signed by a UK public official and will not require further certification in order to obtain the official UK apostille. If you are unsure, Aspire can provide you with advice and guidance on obtaining the apostille stamp.

Documents issued from UK Crown Dependencies and UK Overseas territories:

UK Crown Dependencies (Documents issued from UK Crown Dependencies and UK Overseas territories: UK Crown Dependencies (CD) includes Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey UK Overseas territories (OT) includes Anguilla, Bermuda​, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands (BVI), Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat, St Helena and Dependencies, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands and Turks and Caicos Islands.

If your document is from one of the UK Crown Dependencies or British Overseas territories mentioned above, we will notarise your document by a UK Notary Public, which will incur an additional fee. The Hague Convention extends to Crown Dependencies (CD) and Overseas Territories (OT). Each CD or OT can issue their own apostilles. Documents with apostilles affixed from UK Crown Dependencies or Overseas Territories will still require a UK FCDO Apostille stamp to be accepted for embassy legalisation.

Frequently Asked Question ABOUT the Apostille Stamp

An Apostille is a form of confirmation issued to documents verifying the genuineness of the signature and/or seal of a public officer.

This certificate is usually requested by foreign governments and organisations to use overseas. Once an Apostille has been affixed to your document, it will be valid in member countries of The Hague Convention. We can assist you with UK and Ireland Apostille stamps.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office was previously called Foreign & Commonwealth Office. The merger was announced by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in 2020, announcing the FCO and Department for International Development (DFID) to be one; now known as FCDO.

It is often a requirement by foreign authorities that documents are legalised before they can be used for official purposes in their country.

Legalisation does not certify the authenticity of a document or give foreign and commonwealth office approval of its content.

The legalisation office is the only competent authority in the UK to provide an apostille service according to the requirements of the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961, and to deliver a legalisation service to those countries not party to the Hague Convention.

Legalisation is the process of attaching an apostille certificate to a UK document, to confirm that the original ink signature of the UK public official, and/or the original embossed seal/ink stamp of a UK public office, on the document are genuine. In the UK, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is the sole government entity responsible for issuing apostilles. For other countries it will vary, depending on their rules and regulations.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office was previously called Foreign & Commonwealth Office. The merger was announced by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in 2020, announcing the FCO and Department for International Development (DFID) to be one.

It is often a requirement by foreign authorities that documents are legalised before they can be used for official purposes in their country.

Legalisation does not certify the authenticity of a document or give foreign and commonwealth office approval of its content.

The legalisation office is the only competent authority in the UK to provide an apostille service according to the requirements of the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961, and to deliver a legalisation service to those countries not party to the Hague Convention.

Obtaining the apostille stamp is a form of document legalisation. Countries not within the Hague Convention will require further embassy legalisation in order for your document to be used in that country.

Yes, document legalisation can be done when you are overseas. You have two options; The first option is by couriering your original documents to our office based in London. Alternatively, a cheaper and easier option would be to send a scanned copy of your original documents via email which can be processed as true copies of the original document. Although, public documents can only be legalised on the original so if you require a birth certificate to be attested, for example, you will need to send us the original document.

An Apostille is a form of confirmation issued to documents verifying the genuineness of the signature and/or seal of a public officer.

This certificate is usually requested by foreign governments and organisations to use overseas. Once an Apostille has been affixed to your document, it will be valid in member countries of The Hague Convention. We can assist you with UK and Ireland Apostille stamps.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office was previously called Foreign & Commonwealth Office. The merger was announced by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in 2020, announcing the FCO and Department for International Development (DFID) to be one; now known as FCDO.

It is often a requirement by foreign authorities that documents are legalised before they can be used for official purposes in their country.

Legalisation does not certify the authenticity of a document or give foreign and commonwealth office approval of its content.

The legalisation office is the only competent authority in the UK to provide an apostille service according to the requirements of the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961, and to deliver a legalisation service to those countries not party to the Hague Convention.

Legalisation is the process of attaching an apostille certificate to a UK document, to confirm that the original ink signature of the UK public official, and/or the original embossed seal/ink stamp of a UK public office, on the document are genuine. In the UK, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is the sole government entity responsible for issuing apostilles. For other countries it will vary, depending on their rules and regulations.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office was previously called Foreign & Commonwealth Office. The merger was announced by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in 2020, announcing the FCO and Department for International Development (DFID) to be one.

It is often a requirement by foreign authorities that documents are legalised before they can be used for official purposes in their country.

Legalisation does not certify the authenticity of a document or give foreign and commonwealth office approval of its content.

The legalisation office is the only competent authority in the UK to provide an apostille service according to the requirements of the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961, and to deliver a legalisation service to those countries not party to the Hague Convention.

Obtaining the apostille stamp is a form of document legalisation. Countries not within the Hague Convention will require further embassy legalisation in order for your document to be used in that country.

Yes, document legalisation can be done when you are overseas. You have two options; The first option is by couriering your original documents to our office based in London. Alternatively, a cheaper and easier option would be to send a scanned copy of your original documents via email which can be processed as true copies of the original document. Although, public documents can only be legalised on the original so if you require a birth certificate to be attested, for example, you will need to send us the original document.

WE OFFER A F.A.S.T SERVICE

Free UK Delivery

Special delivery for all embassy legalised documents back to your UK address. For international deliveries, we use DHL.

Attest True Copies

We can attest your documents as true copies without compromising your original documents.

Secure Documents

Strict protocols are followed to ensure your original documents are handled safely and securely.

Track Documents

We can update you throughout the process, either via email, WhatsApp or both.

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