The Hague Convention for the Abolition of Legalization of Foreign Public Documents, also known as the Apostille Convention, is an international treaty that was adopted on October 5, 1961. The Convention aims to simplify the process of using public documents in countries that are party to the Convention.
Thus when countries are part of the Hague Convention, the documents that are being authenticated do not need to be sent to DIRCO for a further authentication certificate- they only require the Apostille from the High Court.
The countries that are part of the Hague Convention are:
- Albania
- Andorra
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Argentina
- Armenia
- Australia
- Austria
- Azerbaijan
- Bahamas
- Bahrain
- Barbados
- Belarus
- Belgium
- Belize
- Bolivia
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Botswana
- Brazil
- Brunei Darussalam
- Bulgaria
- Burundi
- Cape Verde
- Chile
- China, People’s Republic of
(Hong Kong & Macao Only) - Colombia
- Cook Islands
- Costa Rica
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Dominica
- Dominican Republic
- Ecuador
- El Salvador
- Estonia
- Fiji
- Finland
- France
- Georgia
- Germany
- Greece
- Grenada
- Guatemala
- Guyana
- Honduras
- Hungary
- Iceland
- India
- Indonesia
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Japan
- Jamaica
- Kazakhstan
- Korea, Republic of
- Kosovo
- Kyrgyzstan
- Latvia
- Lesotho
- Liberia
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malawi
- Malta
- Marshall Islands
- Mauritius
- Mexico
- Moldova, Republic of
- Monaco
- Mongolia
- Montenegro
- Morocco
- Namibia
- Netherlands
- New Zealand
- Nicaragua
- Niue
- North Macedonia, Republic of
- Norway
- Oman
- Pakistan
- Palau
- Panama
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Philippines
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Russian Federation
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Lucia
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- Samoa
- San Marino
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Saudi Arabia
- Senegal
- Serbia
- Seychelles
- Singapore
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- South Africa
- Spain
- Suriname
- Swaziland
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Tajikistan
- Tonga
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Tunisia
- Turkey
- Ukraine
- United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Northern Ireland - Uruguay
- Uzbekistan
- Vanuatu
- Venezuela
If you are uncertain whether a country does form part of the Hague Convention, kindly contact us to assist you.