The apostille certificate attached to a document ensures that the document is accepted by other apostille member countries. The attached apostille also verifies that the signature or stamp on the document is genuine.
Under the Apostille Convention, an apostille streamlines the lengthy legalisation process that allows a public document from the UK to be used in an official capacity in another country.
Prior to the international treaty being ratified, each country had their own individual process for legalisation.
Depending on the country, this process could include working up the entire government chain of command until the consulate has signed off on the document.
Countries not a part of the Hague Convention dictate their own legalisation process for foreign documents.
It is always a good idea to check with the consulate of the receiving country if they are not a member of the Hague Convention [1].
