Legalisation / Apostilles

Frequently, once a document has been notarised, some further formalities must be undertaken before it can be used overseas; these formalities may include certification by apostille in accordance with the 1961 Hague convention abolishing legalisation or, in addition, consular legalisation (often referred to simply as “consularisation”) . An apostille is a certificate issued by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office confirming the signature and seal of the notary and this procedure is accepted in an increasing number of countries. However, some countries still require notarial documents to be legalised and the document must in these circumstances be presented to the consulate or other diplomatic representation of the country where the document is to be used once the apostille process has been completed. We are able to advise clients on any supporting documents or additional formalities required for Consular legalisation purposes. Cheeswrights has a large and experienced messengerial team and we pride ourselves on our ability to obtain apostilles and legalisations within the tightest deadlines. If individual clients prefer to arrange legalisation themselves we will be happy to provide details of where to apply.