The Hague Apostille

It is important to remember that the Court of The Hague , an institution that was established in the Netherlands in 1945, is considered the main body when it comes to matters of justice of the United Nations , so much so that its judgments are binding, final and have no appeal. Its main function is to resolve problems or disputes that different countries have, issue orders, and present advisory opinions on the different legal issues issued by the UN or by the United Nations Assembly. There are many documents that The Hague holds in its hands created theThe Hague apostille, which is a method by which documents can be legalized in order to verify their authenticity in the field of private international law .

What is the Hague Apostille?

The Apostille Convention or the Apostille Treaty is an international treaty drawn up by the Hague Conference related to Private International Law . It specifies the modalities by means of which a document issued in one of the signatory countries can be certified for legal purposes in all the other signatory states . Such certification is known by the name of an apostille , which in the French language means certification . We can say then that an international certification can be compared to a notarial certification in thenational law .

What is it for

The main objective or function of the Apostille of The Hague is to facilitate the speeding up of the procedures that are required in regard to documents that are of a public nature , and that due to their characteristics require that they be validated , either through diplomatic or consular channels . The Hague Apostille is a type of strategy which is very simple to implement for the countries that are members of the court, as it is a way of accepting at the international level the authentication and legalization of a large number of documents. Necessary such as academic degrees, study programs, certified notes, among other academic documents.

Through the Hague Apostille, the signatory countries of the Convention recognize the legal effectiveness of a public document that has been issued in another country that belongs to the same Convention, avoiding the diplomatic and consular legalization process .

Origin of the Hague Apostille

The origin of the Hague Apostille dates back to the 12th century, during the Hague Convention on Private International Law, an agreement that was carried out on October 5, 1961. In addition, in April 2006, the launch of the Pilot Program of Apostilles Electronic (e-APP). In collaboration with the States, they are developing, facilitating and promoting the implementation of software models for the use of electronic Apostilles.

How long does it last

It is important to know the expiration date of a document that has been apostilled and also, this time will depend on the type of document, because the apostille will be valid as long as the document is also valid. There are two different types of categories of endnotes as time is concerned:

• Apostilles that do not expire : where all the documents are found, such as university degrees, as they do not expire .
• Expiring Apostilles:  These documents include birth, marriage or death certificates that are generally valid for three months .

How to verify a Hague Apostille

Currently there is a system on the internet in which it can be verified if the documents have been apostilled in the correct way. It is very important that you have at hand, before verifying, the validation number and that it is your name and your ID that appear on the screen and not those of another person.

Member countries of the Hague Apostille Convention

The list of countries is as follows

Europe

Albania, Germany, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain , Estonia, Russian Federation, Finland, France , Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Norway, Portugal, United Kingdom, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey.

America

Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Brazil, Chile , Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Ecuador, El Salvador, United States, Grenada, Honduras, Mexico , Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Dominican Republic, San Cristóbal and Nieves, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela.

Asia / Oceania / Middle East / Africa

Australia , Botswana, Burundi, Cape Verde, India, Mauritius, Cook Islands, Marshall Islands, Israel, Lesotho, Liberia, Japan , Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Malawi, Morocco, Mongolia, Namibia, Niue, New Zealand.

Advantage

The most important advantage of the Hague Apostille is that it makes the legalization of public documents of a certain country easier so that they can be used abroad without any inconvenience.

The Hague Apostille by country

• Argentina : there is the legalization of public documents , issued by the country and by the Argentine consular network, in addition to foreign representations accredited in Argentina. It needs to be greater of age and documents must be original , without plasticizing and be in good condition .
• Chile : documents issued in Chile certified by an Apostille are recognized in any other country of the Agreement without requiring another certification . Documents that enter Apostille to Chile are recognized without the need for an additional certification.
• Spain : in Spain, the Hague apostille is established by Royal Decree 1497/2011 , of October 24. It can be apostilled, for example: administrative, notarial, judicial documents, etc.
• Ecuador : the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility is the one who apostille the documents. The process lasts approximately 1 hour, during which an official verifies that the document is authentic .
• Mexico : when the document is federal, it is apostilled by the Ministry of the Interior , and if it is state or municipal, it is done by the authority designated by the State Government for such purposes.