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Guide

Consular legalisation of documents

For countries that have not joined the Hague Convention, an apostille has no effect. Instead the document goes through consular legalisation — a longer and more involved route.

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How legalisation differs from an apostille

An apostille is a single stamp issued by a single authority. Legalisation is a chain of several authorities, each one certifying the signature of the previous one.

Apostille

One stamp. Issued by the Ministry of Justice or the Ministry of Education, depending on the document. Valid in every country of the Hague Convention.

Consular legalisation

Three or four stages through different authorities and a consulate. Valid only for the country whose consulate completed the chain.

The main rule: legalisation is needed only when the destination country is not a member of the Hague Convention. If it is a member, an apostille is enough and legalisation is not required. Check your country here.

How it works

A Ukrainian document for a country outside the convention

1Notarial certification of the document or its copy in Ukraine
2Certification by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine
3Certification by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine
4Legalisation at the destination country consulate in Ukraine

A foreign document for use in Ukraine

1Certification by the authorities of the country that issued the document
2Certification by that country Ministry of Foreign Affairs
3Legalisation at the Ukrainian consulate in that country
4Translation into Ukrainian with notarial certification — this part is done in Ukraine
The order cannot be changed. The translation comes last, once every stamp is already on the original. The consulate stamps and endorsements have to be translated too.
Electronic documents will not work. Legalisation and notarial certification are done on a paper original with wet seals. A notary cannot certify a PDF or an extract from an electronic register.

Countries that require legalisation

These are states that have not joined the Hague Convention. An apostille has no effect there.

Middle East

United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Yemen

Asia

Thailand (until 28.02.2027), Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Afghanistan

Africa

Egypt, Nigeria, Kenya, Ethiopia, Ghana, Angola, Cameroon

Other

Cuba, Haiti and a number of states in Oceania

The list keeps changing. Countries join the convention every year: Saudi Arabia in December 2022, China in November 2023, Canada on 11 January 2024, Algeria from 9 July 2026, Vietnam from 11 September 2026. Thailand joined in June 2026, but the apostille will only apply to it from 28 February 2027 — until then legalisation is still required. Check the current status of your country before submitting rather than relying on an older list.

What we do

We translate documents and certify the translation with a notary. We do not carry out the consular legalisation itself — the procedure requires appearing in person at several authorities, the timelines there are unpredictable, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not publish official tariffs.

If your document has already been legalised, bring it to us and we will do the translation with notarial certification. If it has not, we will tell you the order of steps and exactly what your country requires, so you do not waste time on stages you do not need.

Office: Olzhycha St 9, office 14, Zhytomyr, Ukraine

Hours: Mon–Fri 09:00–16:00 (EET)

Phone: +380 98 748 2944 (office) · +380 96 221 3310

Telegram: @global_lingo_ukraine

WhatsApp: +380 96 221 3310

Email: igodovskyi@global-lingo-group.com

Not sure which route you need?

Tell us the document and the destination country — we will say whether it needs an apostille, legalisation, or just a notarised translation
Email us your question