Are e‑Apostilles as widely accepted as paper apostilles?

No, e-Apostilles are not yet as widely accepted as paper apostilles globally, although acceptance is increasing.

While both are valid under the Hague Apostille Convention, the acceptance of e-Apostilles specifically depends on whether the receiving country has implemented the necessary infrastructure and legal framework, and even then, acceptance can vary between individual institutions and authorities within that country.

Furthermore, in the UK, e-Apostille issuance is limited to specific document types.

Both paper and e-Apostilles are valid only for use between countries that are members of the Hague Apostille Convention. If a country is not a member, neither type of apostille is sufficient; full legalisation is required. This is the foundation – the Convention applies to both formats.

The Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) actively promotes the e-APP (electronic Apostille Programme) to encourage the issuance and acceptance of e-Apostilles.

Countries that participate in the e-APP are more likely to have the legal and technical infrastructure in place to accept e-Apostilles.

However, participation in the e-APP is not mandatory for Hague Convention members. A country can be a member of the Convention but not yet accept e-Apostilles.

Even within e-APP participating countries, the level of acceptance can vary. Some countries have fully embraced e-Apostilles and accept them for all types of documents and purposes.

Others may have a more limited implementation, accepting them only for certain documents or from specific issuing countries.

It’s very important to understand it’s down to the overseas requesting authority.

This is a crucial point. Even if a country officially accepts e-Apostilles at the national level, the specific institution or authority you are dealing with (e.g., a university, a government agency, a bank, a visa processing centre) might not yet be equipped to handle them. They may still prefer, or even require, paper apostilles.

Example: As previously discussed, Spain is a Hague member and participates in the e-APP, but some Spanish visa application processes still require paper apostilles.

The UK’s e-Apostille system is limited to PDF documents electronically signed by a UK solicitor or notary public. Many common documents (vital records, ACRO/DBS certificates, etc.) are not eligible for e-Apostilles in the UK and always require paper apostilles.

This limits the acceptance of e-Apostilles for UK-issued documents.

Overall, the acceptance increases.