To depart from the country: to obtain education, to work, to live, to engage in business – standard of present-day life. Various confirming documents may be required in the territory of another state.  Besides all this documentation should be translated, duly formalized and legalized.

Legalization process consists in obtainment of a certain legal status by the document, virtually approved by all states. Legalization is carried out so that the Russian documents should obtain legal effect not only in this country but also abroad.

Consular legalization is one of the ways of legalization of documents in the course of foreign economic activity. It’s analogue to apostille .Dissimilar to apostille,  legalization is applied in the course of document flow with organizations originating from the countries – non-members of the Hague convention on abolition of legalization requirements of foreign official documents (signed on 5 October 1961). Dissimilar to apostile, legalization is a more complicated bilateral procedure

Consular legalization is required in case

1. bilateral agreement on legal assistance hasn’t been signed between Russia and the country of destination *, significantly simplifying the flow of documents
2. the country of designation of the outgoing document is not in the list of countries which adopted the Hague convention of 1961 on abolition of the document legalization,
3. the outgoing document is not a passport, another certificate of identity, service record, military ID, or a document immediately pertaining to commercial and customs operations.

Stages of consular legalization :

Legalization consists in stage-by-stage notarization of signature of official and a seal of organization, this official belongs to, in accordance with structure of administrative machinery. So, each document subject to legalization should be:

1. certified by the notary (along with translation and certification of translator’s signature)
2. confirmed by signature of notary of the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation,
3. confirmed with a signature of the Ministry of Justice and signature of authorized official in the KM of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of RF
4. authenticated by signature in the consulate of the state, receiving outgoing document

Apostille is a simplified version of legalization and formalization of documents

APOSTILLE is a special stamp put on official documents of the states – members of the Convention in accordance with the Hague convention of 1961 exempting these documents from necessity of diplomatic or consular legalization.. Apostille certifies “authenticity of signature, quality of a person, who signed the document and in due case authenticity of seal or stamp the document is sealed with (art. 5 of the Convention).

In 1992 Russia joined the Hague convention. Apostille is recognized by all the countries- participants of the Hague convention and doesn’t require further legalization. In accordance with the Hague convention, cancellation of requirement of legalization of foreign documents covers official documents, delivered in the territory of one of the states participating in the Convention to be submitted in the territory of another state-participant.

The effect of the Hague Convention (APOSTILLE) covers the following documents:

• on education,
• on civil state
• certificate
• powers of attorney
• certificate on living
• judicial decisions and materials on civil, family and criminal cases
• documents of the company

The documents delivered by diplomatic and consular agents as well as administrative documents related to commercial and customs operations are not subject to the Convention.

Please take note that preliminary translation of the document is not necessary for apostilization. Translation may be effected after apostilation.  Specialists of ALIGAT translation bureau recommend specifying in the organization the designation of your document package as well as the form of its presentation. The document is usually translated into the language of the receiving state. The stamp Apostille is put on notarized copy or on the original of the document.

Stages of APOSTILATION

1. Duplication of notarized copy of the document (in case the seal is put on the copy of the document and not on the original)

2. Apostilization of the document in the Ministry of Justice

3. Translation of the document with all seals and signatures obtained while APOSTILATION

4. Notarization of the translation

States- participants of the Hague convention

List of states, ratifying the Hague convention and correspondingly which have approved foreign apostilled documents (as of March 2007)