Who can issue an apostille?

Notary Geek explanation

The issuing office needs a designation

Each Contracting State designates one or more competent authorities under Article 6. The apostille is issued by the competent authority of the State from which the public document emanates. There may be different authorities for different document classes or areas.

Do not choose an office solely because it is nearby or because a service provider offers a fast turnaround. Start with the public document being authenticated. A public record and a notarial certificate attached to a separate statement may point to different authorities.

• Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents — Article 3(1)–(2); PDF pages 1–2
• Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents — Article 6; PDF page 2
• Explanatory Report by Yvon Loussouarn — Section B.V (Article 6); Handbook Annex II §§42–45, printed p126
• The ABCs of Apostilles — Question 5, printed pp12–13 (PDF page 8)

Notary Geek explanation

Find the official office without a sales intermediary

Open the HCCH competent-authority directory linked in this page's sources. Select the place of origin, then read the designation and follow the listed official office's instructions. Check that its remit covers the issuer or category on your record.

Before sending anything, identify the required original or certified copy, any domestic preparatory certification, the application method, fee and return arrangements in that office's current instructions. Those operational details are local implementation, not universal Convention rules.

• HCCH Competent Authorities — Apostille Convention — Country entries and competent-authority designations
• The ABCs of Apostilles — Question 6, printed pp14–15 (PDF page 9)
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Two, §§39–40, printed p37
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part One, §§9–17, printed pp27–30; footnotes 9, 11–17 and diagrams pp28–29

Notary Geek explanation

An application assistant and an issuing authority do different jobs

Article 5 allows the signer or a bearer of the document to request the apostille. It does not require everyone to hire a commercial intermediary. Paid help can be useful for document collection or delivery, but payment does not make the helper the competent authority.

If you use a representative, check the office's requirements for that representative. A helper's marketing or past success cannot replace the designation or establish that this document fits the office's remit.

• Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents — Article 5(1)–(3); PDF page 2
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Four, §§189–192, printed p69
• The ABCs of Apostilles — Question 5, printed pp12–13 (PDF page 8)

HCCH guidance

HCCH provides the framework and directory

HCCH's Permanent Bureau does not issue or verify individual apostilles. Contact the designated issuing authority for the certificate itself or its register.

• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part One, §§29–33, printed pp32–33
• HCCH Competent Authorities — Apostille Convention — Country entries and competent-authority designations

Choose the next step from the facts

1. If: You know the public issuer and document class.

   Then: Read the corresponding HCCH designation and current issuing-office instructions.

   Outcome: check route

   • Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents — Article 6; PDF page 2
   • HCCH Competent Authorities — Apostille Convention — Country entries and competent-authority designations

2. If: A provider cannot identify the public certificate and issuing authority.

   Then: Ask for those two details before paying for the proposed route.

   Outcome: need facts

   • Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents — Article 3(1)–(2); PDF pages 1–2
   • Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents — Article 6; PDF page 2

Notary Geek explanation

Compare direct submission with a runner on the actual missing step

After the document is ready, compare the authority’s current mail, courier, online and counter instructions. A complete packet sent directly can solve the problem without a notary in the issuing jurisdiction or a paid runner. A local runner has a meaningful advantage only when an available counter process, collection task, correction opportunity or delivery requirement improves this particular route.

Separate the costs: official record acquisition, necessary preparation, apostille fee, inbound delivery, return delivery and any helper’s fee. Separate elapsed time too: obtaining the right record, domestic certification, authority processing and both delivery legs. A quoted processing period is not the date the foreign recipient will receive the packet. Counter eligibility, appointments and cutoff times can eliminate an apparent speed advantage.

A managed service can add value by collecting records, checking the exact certificate and instructions, coordinating several authorities, arranging return and international delivery, or recovering a returned packet. Ask which of those tasks is included and who holds the original at each handoff. Extra handoffs can add cost and delay when direct submission already works. This comparison is Notary Geek’s practical analysis of the route, not an HCCH endorsement of a provider.

• Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents — Article 5(1)–(3); PDF page 2
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Four, §§189–192, printed p69
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Two §§45–49, printed pp38–39 and footnote 31; Part Four §§189–192, printed p69
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Four §§252–255, printed p81 and footnote 142
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part One §§14–15, printed pp28–29 and both process diagrams; Part Four §§193–196, printed pp69–70; footnotes 106–108

Notary Geek explanation

Choose electronic handling for the actual route, not a promised universal speed

When the correct authority accepts a direct online application and issues an appropriate e-Apostille for your record, direct handling may remove paper shipping and a local runner handoff. Verify required source documents, applicant access, official fees, output format and the recipient submission method before comparing services. An emailed scan service and an official e-Apostille can have very different practical value.

HCCH lists one-working-day electronic issuance as a good practice, not a treaty deadline or proof of a particular office’s queue. Compare the authority’s current processing information with the actual handoffs your route needs: obtaining the record, any preliminary certification, issuance, file/access delivery, translation and recipient submission. A local runner adds value only for a real physical step or supported counter advantage. A managed service may coordinate difficult preparation, file handling or recovery, but cannot guarantee foreign acceptance or eliminate a mandatory source-record step.

• The e-APP: Key Principles and Good Practices — Principles 1(a)–(d), 2(a)–(f), 3(a)–(d), 4(a)–(c), pp1–2
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Six, §§330–338, printed pp100–102; footnotes 183–198
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Six, §§313–320, printed pp97–98; glossary, printed p17
• 14th International Forum on the e-APP: Conclusions & Recommendations — C&R9–14, PDF p2; C&R15–19, PDF p3

Notary Geek explanation

Check authority at issuance, not only today's directory

A competent-authority designation concerns an official function, not a particular employee's personal name. Article 6 also requires notification of designation changes. An office may be added, removed or given a different category of documents. A current contact listing therefore helps with today's application but cannot, by itself, answer every historical question about an older apostille.

For a new application, check the current designation, document category and territorial scope before shipping. For verification of an existing certificate, identify the authority and date shown on it and establish the designation that applied then. A department merger or a newly designated office calls for the official change notification; a minor address or staff change does not necessarily represent a new designation.

Keep a different problem separate: the underlying record may be signed by an official whose specimen is not in the apostille authority's database. HCCH describes contacting the original issuer or successor and updating records where appropriate. A newly appointed official, a retired officer or an old seal is a reason to investigate origin, not a conclusion that the document is false or that a private cover statement authenticates it.

• Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents — Article 6; PDF page 2
• Explanatory Report by Yvon Loussouarn — Section B.V (Article 6); Handbook Annex II §§42–45, printed p126
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Two, §§51–53, printed p40, footnote 33; Part Four, §§213–214, printed pp72–73
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Four, §§193–209, printed pp69–72; footnotes 106–110
• HCCH Competent Authorities — Apostille Convention — Country entries and competent-authority designations

Choose the next step from the facts

1. If: An older certificate's office differs from the current directory.

   Then: Establish the designation at its issuance date and the successor verification contact before deciding whether reissue is necessary.

   Outcome: verify issuance

   • Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Two, §§51–53, printed p40, footnote 33; Part Four, §§213–214, printed pp72–73
   • Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Four, §§267–281, printed pp84–86; footnotes 145–149
   • HCCH Competent Authorities — Apostille Convention — Country entries and competent-authority designations

Notary Geek explanation

Can someone else request the apostille for me?

The Convention permits the person who signed the document or a bearer to request an apostille. The applicant need not be the person who will present it abroad, and a company can be an applicant too. This is why using an authorised agent and applying directly are both possible routes; a paid intermediary is not a treaty requirement.

Separate that application question from obtaining the underlying record. Permission to request an apostille does not itself give a helper access to a restricted birth record, court file or other source document. The record issuer’s access rules and the apostille office’s application requirements address different stages.

Identify who can lawfully obtain the required record, who will submit the ready document, and who will receive it back. HCCH explains that an apostille office may require an agent or proxy to show authority to make the request as part of its internal procedure. Check that particular requirement before handing over the document; do not assume that every agent needs a power of attorney or that no proof can ever be requested.

• Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents — Article 5(1)–(3); PDF page 2
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Four, §§189–192, printed p69
• Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Two §§45–49, printed pp38–39 and footnote 31; Part Four §§189–192, printed p69

Choose the next step from the facts

1. If: You have a ready public document and want a helper to submit it.

   Then: Check this office’s representative requirements and return arrangements; distinguish them from permission to obtain the source record.

   Outcome: prepare document

   • Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents — Article 5(1)–(3); PDF page 2
   • Practical Handbook on the Operation of the Apostille Convention — Part Four, §§189–192, printed p69

What this page cannot settle for your document

• The directory is a starting point, not a national application checklist. Fees, appointment rules, mailing addresses and processing times must be checked at the official office.
• Which direct/counter/online routes have a demonstrated speed or logistics advantage for each document class, including foreign applicants?
• Historical designation disputes and a successor office's custody of an older apostille register require the actual notification and official verification response; today's directory alone is insufficient.
• Which current record-access and representative-authorisation procedures apply to the particular underlying record and issuing office?

Continue reading

• Which documents can use the Convention?
• How issuance works—and how to read the result
• How to check an apostille
• Existing apostille routing guide
• Notary Geek's notarial routing model

These explanations are available without giving contact details, paying, or requesting a service. If you want help with a document, paid apostille help is optional.