Procedure to get your UK official documents legalised
- Submit your official UK documents to the legislation office (Contact details given below)
- Legislation office will then match your documents with their records. If it is matched, they will do it by attaching an ‘apostille’ (stamped official certificate).
Which documents can be legalised?
If the document has issued by
- a court and sealed with a wet ink court seal
- public registry, such as a birth, marriage or death certificate, or a company certificate issued by Companies House
- government department and signed by an official, such as a letter of confirmation of tax registration
- registered doctor, such as a medical certificate signed by a doctor
- If UK public official such as UK Notary / Solicitor issued documents such as a power of attorney, a contract or a qualification certificate and copies of documents such as a passport or a driving licence
Procedure to get your UK official documents legalised:
- Visit https://www.get-document-legalised.service.gov.uk/select-service
- Enter the personal details
- Enter the postal address to send your legalised documents
- Enter the number of documents you would like to legalise
- Confirm all the details and make the payment to proceed.
Types of Apostille
1.Paper based:
Send your documents through post / in person
2. e-Apostille / online:
Can upload your documents online as pdf file which must be signed electronically by UK notary or solicitor
You cannot get an e-apostille for
- Birth, death, marriage, civil partnership and adoption certificates, or any other document from the General Register Office
- ACRO police certificates for England and Wales
- Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) certificates for England and Wales
- disclosure certificates for Scotland and Northern Ireland
- fingerprint certificates
- membership certificates for the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
| Service option | Fee per apostille |
|---|---|
| Standard (paper-based) | £30, plus courier or postage costs |
| e-Apostille | £30 |
| Premium for registered businesses only (paper-based) | £75
Drop off hours: 9am to 12:30pm, collection 1:30pm to 4:30pm |
Courier costs for paper-based apostilles
| Country | Price |
|---|---|
| UK (including British Forces Post Office) | £5 per 1.5kg |
| European countries (not including Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Liechtenstein, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey) | £17.50 per 1.5kg |
| Rest of the world | £22.50 per 1.5kg |
UK Apostille Customer Care Contact number, Email
Legalisation Office
Email: legalisation@fcdo.gov.uk
Telephone: 03700 00 22 44
Hours: Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm
How to verify an Apostille in UK?
- Visit https://www.verifyapostille.service.gov.uk/VerifyApostille
- Enter the Apostille number
- Enter the date the Apostille was issued (You can find on the apostille certificate)
For more details, visit https://www.gov.uk/verify-apostille
For any assistance,
Email: verifyapostille@fco.gov.uk with the Apostille number and date
For more details, visit https://www.gov.uk/get-document-legalised/apply-for-legalisation