Apostille for a deed poll.

To get an apostille for a Deed Poll, it first needs to be signed by an FCDO-registered solicitor or notary public. Most Deed Polls are not court or solicitor-signed when created.

If your Deed Poll was not solicitor-signed originally, a copy can be certified by a solicitor as a true copy and then issued with an apostille.

To get an apostille for the original Deed Poll, you need to have a solicitor sign it as a witness or certify it as original.

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?

For personal documents, prices are as follows:

• 3-4 day apostille service starts from £87.
• 1 day (next business day) service costs £97

The price includes our fees, FCDO fees, and VAT.

There could be additional costs, depending on another service you choose and how many documents you wish to apostille. Additional cost examples are:

• Translations start from £35
• Notarisation by notary public (+ £96)
• Return delivery costs (+ £12)
• Embassy legalisation (from + £60)

There are 4 options for getting an apostille.

Option one: 10-12 days:

Your documents are “posted” to the FCDO in Milton Keynes and then posted back to our office – or your address. This process usually takes about 10 business days. (currently unavailable)

Option two: 3 to 4 days:

• If documents arrive by 10:30 am, it will take 3 days
• If documents arrive after 10:30 am, then it will take 4 days
• Documents are submitted and collected in person

Option three: 1 day (next business day)

• Documents must arrive before 10:00 am for the next-day service.
• Documents can be collected around 3:30 pm the next day.
• Documents are submitted and collected in person

Option four: e-Apostille 1 to 2 days 

Electronic apostilles are usually completed within 24 hours but can take two working days, depending on the FCDO’s workload.

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.

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.

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.

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

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

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]

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

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.