Understanding the Hague Convention and which countries accept apostille certification
The Hague Convention of 1961 simplified document authentication between member countries. Learn what it means for your documents.
The Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents is an international treaty that standardized document authentication among member countries.
Instead of going through multiple levels of certification, you only need an apostille—a single certificate that confirms your document is legitimate.
Your document must first be notarized by a licensed notary public
Depending on document type, get it certified by the state (e.g., Texas Secretary of State)
The issuing authority attaches the apostille certificate
Your document is now valid in all Hague member countries
Over 120 countries are members of the Hague Convention. Here are some common destinations:
Countries NOT part of the Hague Convention (like China, Russia, UAE, Saudi Arabia) require embassy legalization instead of an apostille. This is a more complex process involving:
We handle apostilles for all Hague member countries and can guide you through embassy legalization for non-member countries.
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