Get a UK Apostille for a Deed Poll - Apostilles from £79

Apostille service overview:

We can apostille an original or a copy of the original.

3-4 day apostille service from £120
1 day (next business day) from £135
5 – 48 hours e-Apostille from £97

The price includes admin fees, solicitor certification, apostille certificate, FCDO fees, and VAT.

If your Deed Poll has been stamped, signed and embossed by the court, you don’t need solicitor certification. The 3-4 day service would then cost £87.

Most Deep Polls are not signed by the court. This means an FCDO-registered solicitor must confirm if the Deep Poll is an original or a copy of the original before an apostille can be attached.

How the process works:

Step one:

If your Deed Poll was prepared and witnessed by an FCDO-registered solicitor or notary then we can get an apostille without any further certification.

Step two:

Contact our office.

In which country will your certificate be used?
Does the Deed Poll need translation?
How soon do you need the apostille?

When we have all the information, the team will assess your enquiry and give you a personalised and detailed quotation.

If you accept the quotation, we will send an invoice to be paid, and the process of getting an apostille for the death certificate starts.

Step three:

As soon as the Deed Poll has been apostilled, we will send you a scanned copy via email to inform you that the process has been completed successfully and your certificate is on its way or ready to be collected.

If you are not collecting your apostilled certificate from our London office – we will provide you with the tracking number the courier gave.

How much does it cost?

3-4 day apostille service from £120
1 day (next business day) from £135
5 – 48 hours e-Apostille from £97

The price includes admin fees, solicitor certification, apostille certificate, FCDO fees, and VAT.

Call +020 8038 7015

Send your enquiry via email

Our fast-track apostille options

There are three options for getting an apostille in the UK.

Option one: 1 day (next business day)

Documents must arrive before 9:00 am for the next-day service.
Documents can be collected around 3:30 pm the next day.

Option two: 3 to 4 days:

If documents arrive after 9:30 am, it will take 3-4 days

Option three: e-Apostille 5 to 48 hours

If the document qualifies for an e-apostille, it is usually completed within 24 hours but can take two working days, depending on the FCDO’s workload.

What is legalising a deed poll?

Legalising a deed poll is the process of the UK government authenticating the signatures on the deed as genuine. Using the document in a country other than the UK, the document must be legalised as per the Hague Convention. [2]

Additional legalisation steps are required if the country is not part of the Hauge Convention.

In what circumstances do you need a deed poll legalised?

You must legalise the deed poll if you need to use it outside the UK or if an overseas authority has requested legalisation.

Legalising the deed poll means the UK FCDO verifies the signature, seal, or stamp on the solicitor-certified deed poll document. However, the FCDO attached apostille only confirms the signature, not that the deed pool document is genuine.

Download a free deed poll template

How should the deed poll be certified so it won’t be rejected for the apostille?

The deed poll must be certified by a practising UK solicitor or notary public. The person changing their name must have their signature witnessed when signing the document.

Anyone can be a witness, but if you intend to get the document legalised, we recommend signing the document in the presence of a UK solicitor or notary public. [3]

Suppose the document was already witnessed by an individual who is not a legal official, which means it was signed by ‘private signatories’. In that case, the document should be countersigned by a solicitor or a notary for the apostille to be issued.

Whoever signs your deed pool, that signature must be registered with the UK FCDO office. Often UK solicitors or notary public are registered with the FCDO; hence we recommend you use their service.

Types of deed polls that can be legalised:

Standard deed poll
Replacement deed poll
Retrospective deed poll
Complex deed poll
Physically impaired deed poll
Enrolled deed poll
Unenrolled deed poll
Copy deed poll
DIY deed poll
Adult deed poll
Family deed poll
Child deed poll

How can I get my deed poll certified if I am already abroad?

If you are already in a foreign country and would like to have our deed poll legalised, there are two options:

Take it to your local British Embassy or consulate or high commission and ask them to certify it (or to certify a photocopy as true). There will normally be a fee for this service, and not all diplomatic missions will offer the service.
Send it to a solicitor or notary public based in the UK to have it certified.

Note that if your deed poll were originally executed outside the UK, you wouldn’t be able to have it legalised in the UK.

Preventing fraud trying to get a legalised deed poll

Changing your name is, in most cases, used for legitimate reasons, but there are instances where changing names can aid fraudulent activities.

Changing your name in the UK is FREE, so be wary of those that charge a fee. [4]

For people with convictions, it is generally because they want a fresh start. But criminals can change names by deed poll without declaring convictions.
It has been known that people are trying to use deed polls not to have to declare bankruptcy records or avoid repaying debt.
Some people have tried to use deed polls to register fake titles or honours.
Deed polls have also been used in the past to commit electoral fraud.

Our solicitor and notary public will perform their due diligence for ID verification as UK law requires to prevent fraud. [5]

Can I legalise a statutory declaration or affidavit as well?

Yes, deed polls, statutory declarations, and affidavits are often used together, and customers wishing to have them legalised together should contact us for discounts offered.

Call +020 8038 7015

Enquire or order a UK apostille

References

This article has been written by experts and fact-checked by experts. We only link to high-quality sources like government information & data, original reporting and interviews with industry experts. Reputable publishers are also sourced and cited where appropriate to support the facts within our articles.