What documents can the FCDO legalise — and what will they reject?.

A complete guide to which UK documents qualify for an apostille, which don’t, and what to do if yours falls into a grey area.

The FCDO (Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office) legalises UK documents by attaching an apostille — a standardised certificate recognised in over 125 countries under the Hague Convention. The apostille confirms the authenticity of the signature, seal, or stamp on your document. It does not verify the content of the document itself.

Most UK documents can be apostilled, but not all.

Some are rejected outright, and others need specific preparation before the FCDO will accept them. This page covers both what qualifies and what doesn’t, and where people most commonly get caught out.

If you’d rather not read the full guide, send us a photo or scan of your document, and we’ll tell you exactly what’s needed.

If you hold a degree, diploma, or certificate from a UK-based course provider, the FCDO will only apostille it if the issuing body is registered on an approved UK education register — such as the Office for Students (OfS), the Ofqual Register of Regulated Qualifications, the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA), or the British Accreditation Council (BAC).

This is where many people get caught. A provider that is affiliated with, franchised by, or validated by a recognised university is not automatically eligible.

The FCDO checks whether the body that issued your certificate is on the register — not whether it has a partnership with one that is. This applies across all qualification types — degrees, diplomas, vocational certificates, and professional development awards alike.

We cover this in full detail in the Educational Documents section below, including how to check whether your provider qualifies.

The FCDO will not apostille a photocopy of a GRO document — even if a solicitor or notary has certified it, and even if it’s attached to a notarial cover sheet. This applies to birth certificates, marriage certificates, death certificates, certificates of no impediment, civil partnership certificates, and adoption certificates.

The reason is straightforward: the General Register Office and local registry offices are the only authorities that can issue certified copies of these documents. If you need a second copy, you’ll need to order one from the GRO or your local registry office.

The FCDO verifies every certifying signature against its own database. If the solicitor or notary who signed your document is not registered with the FCDO, your apostille application will be refused — regardless of whether the solicitor holds a valid practising certificate.

There is currently no public lookup tool to check this in advance. This is one of the reasons we recommend using our service — every solicitor and notary we work with is FCDO-registered and verified before we submit.

Original passports — whether British or foreign — cannot be apostilled.

However, certified photocopies of the bio-data page can be apostilled, including foreign passports and foreign national ID documents, provided the copy has been certified by an FCDO-registered solicitor or notary public.

The apostille attaches to the solicitor’s or notary’s certification, not to the foreign document itself.
Whether the overseas authority accepts an apostilled copy of a foreign passport or ID is a separate question — that depends on the requirements of the receiving country.

If you’ve been asked for an apostilled copy of a foreign passport or ID, check with us first, and we can confirm whether a UK apostille is the right route for your situation.

The FCDO cannot legalise documents that originate in the British Crown Dependencies. These must be legalised within the relevant dependency. Once legalised locally, they do not require further FCDO authentication to be accepted in Hague Convention countries. For non-Hague countries, further consular or embassy legalisation may still be required.

Med 3 forms (used for statutory sick pay) and other medical documents issued for social security purposes cannot be apostilled by the FCDO.

Beyond that, all medical letters and certificates must bear the wet-ink signature of the signing doctor or practitioner — the FCDO will not issue an apostille on a medical document without one, even if a solicitor or notary has certified it.

Visa medicals for countries such as Spain and Saudi Arabia must be signed by an FCDO-registered doctor specifically, not an FCDO-registered solicitor or notary. If the doctor’s signature is not in the FCDO’s database, the apostille will be refused.

The FCDO will apostille a certified translation of a UK document, provided the certifying signature belongs to a practising UK solicitor, notary public, or consular official.

If the translation is certified only by the translator and the translator does not hold one of those roles, it will be refused.

The FCDO will not apostille a certified copy of a foreign-language document. However, if a foreign-language document is notarised by a UK notary public, the FCDO can apostille the notarial act — because the apostille attaches to the notary’s certification, not to the foreign-language document itself.

Document rejected? Or not sure if yours will be accepted? Send us a scan or photo of your document and tell us the destination country. We’ll check the issuing body, the document format, and the most likely apostille route — before you pay the FCDO fee and risk a rejection.

All UK educational documents must be certified by an FCDO-registered solicitor or notarised by an FCDO-registered notary public before the FCDO will legalise them.

The solicitor or notary should confirm whether the document is an original or a true photocopy.

Both paper apostilles and e-Apostilles are available for most educational documents.

There are two categories, and the rules are different for each.

Award documents — degrees, diplomas, certificates, qualifications, and other formal awards — can only be apostilled if the body that issued the document is registered on one of the following approved UK education registers:

Qualifications issued by the following awarding bodies are also eligible: OCR, Edexcel (Pearson), City & Guilds, HND/HNC, National Open College Network (NOCN), and GNVQ.

Qualifications from the American Study Abroad Programme in the UK can also be apostilled.

Non-award documents — such as school reports, letters of enrolment, attendance confirmations, fee statements, and grade letters — can be apostilled as long as they were issued by an educational establishment in the UK.

These do not need to pass the provider registration check. They still require solicitor or notary certification.

The FCDO will refuse to apostille a degree, diploma, or certificate if the issuing body is not on one of the approved registers listed above. This is the single most common reason we see educational documents rejected.

It catches people out because many UK-based course providers appear to be UK government-registered learning providers — they may operate from UK premises, have a professional website, and even have a formal affiliation, franchise arrangement, or validation agreement with a recognised university.

None of that is sufficient. The FCDO checks whether the body that printed and issued your certificate is itself registered on one of the approved education registers. A partnership with a registered institution does not transfer eligibility.

It is also worth knowing that registration on the UK Register of Learning Providers (UKRLP) does not make a provider’s qualifications eligible for an apostille.

The UKRLP is a legal entity register maintained by the Education and Skills Funding Agency. It verifies that a provider exists as a legal entity — it does not conduct quality checks, and its own guidance states that it is not an endorsement or accreditation of any kind.

You can search the relevant register yourself:

If you are unsure, or if your provider does not appear on either register, send us a copy of your certificate before you order.

We check the issuing body, the document format, and the likely apostille route every day — and we can quickly tell you whether your document will be accepted or if there is an alternative route.

Not sure if your certificate is from a recognised provider? Send us a copy before you order. We’ll check the issuing body, the document format, and the likely apostille route — before you risk an FCDO rejection.

All original certificates and official certified copies issued by the General Register Office (GRO) or local registry offices can be apostilled by the FCDO with a paper apostille. GRO documents do not qualify for an e-Apostille.

The FCDO will not apostille photocopies of GRO documents — even if a solicitor or notary has certified the copy, and even if it is attached to a notarial cover sheet.

This is because the GRO and local registry offices are the only designated authorities in the UK that can issue certified copies of these documents. If you need a second copy, you should order an official certified copy directly from the GRO or your local registry office.

Translations of GRO documents can be apostilled, provided the translation has been certified by a UK solicitor or notary public. The translation itself must not bear any official logos, emblems, or signatures from the original document.

The majority of personal and business documents must be certified by an FCDO-registered solicitor or notarised by an FCDO-registered notary public before the FCDO will legalise them.

Both originals and certified copies can usually be apostilled, and both paper apostilles and e-Apostilles are generally available for these document types.

There are hundreds of document types that fall into this category — the table below covers the most common examples. If your document is not listed, it does not mean it cannot be apostilled. Contact our office, and we can confirm the route for your specific document.

Need a document apostilled? Tell us what you need legalised and where it’s going. We’ll confirm the route, cost, and turnaround time — usually within the hour.

Background checks, disclosure documents, and criminal record certificates must be submitted as originals — the FCDO will not apostille photocopies of these documents. Paper apostilles only; e-Apostilles are not available.

For passports and ID documents, the opposite applies — original passports of any nationality cannot be apostilled. Only certified photocopies of the bio-data page can be legalised, and the copy must be certified by an FCDO-registered solicitor or notary public.

This applies to both British and foreign passports. Whether the overseas authority accepts an apostilled copy of a foreign passport is a separate question that depends on the receiving country’s requirements.

Companies House documents that bear an original wet-ink signature from a Companies House official can be apostilled directly by the FCDO without prior certification.

If the document does not carry a Companies House signature, it must be certified by an FCDO-registered solicitor or notary public as an original document before the FCDO will accept it.

Photocopies can also be apostilled, provided they have been certified as true copies by a solicitor or notary.

HMRC documents can be apostilled if they bear an original signature from an HMRC official.

The same certification rules apply — if there is no official signature, solicitor or notary certification is required.

Both paper apostilles and e-Apostilles are available for most Companies House and HMRC documents.

The FCDO can legalise documents issued by any UK government department, provided the document bears an original wet-ink signature from a departmental official.

If there is no official signature, the document must be certified by an FCDO-registered solicitor or notary public before submission. Photocopies can also be apostilled if certified as true copies.

The table below covers common examples, but any document issued and signed by an official of a UK government body can generally be apostilled.

Original documents issued by UK courts that are wet-ink signed and stamped can be apostilled directly by the FCDO.

Photocopies can also be apostilled, provided they have been certified as true copies by an FCDO-registered solicitor or notary public.

Sworn documents — such as affidavits, statutory declarations, and guardianship orders — must be submitted as originals and can only receive a paper apostille.

Court judgments, tribunal decisions, and divorce decrees are available as both originals and copies, and both paper apostilles and e-Apostilles apply.

The FCDO can legalise certain religious documents, provided they originated in the UK and have been certified by an FCDO-registered solicitor or notary public.

The solicitor or notary should certify original documents as being genuine, and photocopies as being true copies of the original.

Documents that can be apostilled include Islamic marriage and divorce certificates issued by UK mosques, baptismal certificates of any denomination, and Jewish divorce certificates issued by a Jewish court.

Hajj and Umrah documents have a specific requirement — before the FCDO will legalise them, they must first be certified by an official of the Arab British Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) or by an Arabic-speaking UK solicitor or notary public.

The FCDO can legalise certain religious documents, provided they originated in the UK and have been certified by an FCDO-registered solicitor or notary public.

The solicitor or notary should certify original documents as being genuine, and photocopies as being true copies of the original.

Documents that can be apostilled include Islamic marriage and divorce certificates issued by UK mosques, baptismal certificates of any denomination, and Jewish divorce certificates issued by a Jewish court.

Hajj and Umrah documents have a specific requirement — before the FCDO will legalise them, they must first be certified by an official of the Arab British Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) or by an Arabic-speaking UK solicitor or notary public.

Sending documents to a specific country? Different countries have different requirements — some need only an apostille, some need embassy attestation, and some need both. Use our free route finder or ask our team.

The rules for documents from the Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories differ from those for standard UK documents. The FCDO can legalise some but not others, depending on where the document originates and whether it has already been legalised locally.

The FCDO cannot legalise documents that originate in the British Crown Dependencies. These must be legalised within the relevant dependency. Once legalised locally, they do not require further FCDO authentication to be accepted in Hague Convention countries. For non-Hague countries, further consular or embassy legalisation may still be required.

If you are unsure whether your destination country is a Hague Convention member, use our Legalisation Route Finder or contact our office.

The FCDO can legalise documents from British Overseas Territories, but only if the document has already been legalised by an official of the territory’s government first. Without that prior legalisation, the FCDO will not accept the document.

The British Overseas Territories are: Anguilla, Bermuda, British Antarctic Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat, St Helena, South Georgia, South Sandwich Islands, and Turks and Caicos Islands.

The FCDO only legalises documents that originate in the UK. If you have a foreign document — such as a birth certificate, degree, or court order issued by another country — the FCDO cannot apostille the original, regardless of how it is certified.

However, there is a route. A UK notary public can notarise a copy of the foreign document, and that notarial act can then be apostilled by the FCDO. The apostille attaches to the notary’s certification, not to the foreign document itself.

We arrange this regularly for customers who have been asked to provide an apostilled version of a foreign document for use in a third country.

If your foreign document needs an apostille from its country of origin rather than from the UK, you should contact the relevant embassy, consulate, or High Commission for guidance on their legalisation process.

If you have been advised that your foreign document needs to be attached to a notarial cover sheet with certification from a UK solicitor or notary public, make sure the cover sheet refers specifically to the document and that both are properly bound together — otherwise the FCDO may reject the submission.

Have a foreign document that needs legalising? We can arrange notarisation of your foreign document by a UK notary, followed by an FCDO apostille on the notarial act. Contact us with the document and destination country, and we’ll confirm the route.

Most apostille services take between one and four business days. However, some documents cannot wait — and in certain cases, the FCDO will process an apostille on the same day.

The FCDO evaluates same-day requests on a case-by-case basis and reserves them for genuinely urgent situations. Common examples that typically qualify include:

To qualify for same-day processing, we must submit the application to the FCDO by 4 pm the day before the intended legalisation date.

This is a strict FCDO requirement, and supporting evidence of urgency is required and reviewed by the FCDO before approval is granted. Same-day processing is not guaranteed and is always at the FCDO’s discretion.