What is notarisation, certification, apostille, and legalisation?

Notarisation and certification refer to the same process of certifying a copy of an original document as a true copy of the original.

This process is usually carried out by a notary public or a lawyer who is authorised to perform notary work.

Legalisation and apostille are both processes of attesting to the authenticity of a government-issued document.

Whether a document is to be legalised or apostilled depends on whether the issuing country is part of the Hague Apostille Convention 1961.

– If a document is issued by a country which is a signatory to the Hague Apostille Convention 1961, the apostille procedure should be used. An apostille is to be affixed to the copy of the document by the relevant government authority of the issuing country.

– If a document is issued by a country which is not a signatory to the Hague Apostille Convention 1961, the legalisation procedure should be used. The venue and procedures for legalisation vary across different countries.