If you’ve accepted a job or will be studying outside of Canada, you’ll likely need to present your educational documents. There is also a good chance that you will be required to first have these documents “apostilled” before they will be accepted. In Canada, the apostille process is actually called the document authentication and legalization process. So if you’ve been told you need to get an apostille on your educational documents, what you will actually be doing is having these documents authenticated and legalized. Acquiring this certification can mean the difference between achieving your educational dreams and being denied enrollment entirely.
In this article, International Documents Canada covers all you need to know about how to get your Canadian educational documents authenticated and legalized to be used abroad.
Do You Have the Correct Report Card or Diploma for Authentication?
The first thing you’ll need to do is to check that the educational documents you need authenticated and legalized are versions that will be accepted by Global Affairs Canada, the agency that will authenticate them (the first step of the process). If you need more information about the types of documents accepted by Global Affairs Canada, send us an email or give us a call so that we can make sure you either have or know how to get versions of your documents that are suitable for processing.
Other Documents You May Need to Have Authenticated & Legalized
Depending on what you’ll be using your educational documents for, you might also be required to have additional documents authenticated and legalized, such as your birth certificate, marriage certificate, driver’s license, or any number of other documents. To authenticate and legalize these, you’ll be following the same general process described here. Having accompanying documents processed at the same time as your educational documents will save you time and money, so make sure you know exactly which documents you are required to submit before starting.
The Authentication and Legalization Process
There are three steps to the Authentication and Legalization process:
1. Document preparation – Both Global Affairs Canada (Step 2 below) and the relevant embassy or consulate (Step 3 below) have strict requirements that must be met before they will process your documents. Document preparation might involve notarization by a Canadian notary public, other notarial services such as Certified True Copies, translation, and you may be required to provide accompanying documents.
2. Document authentication – Documents must be submitted to Global Affairs Canada’s Authentication Services section in Ottawa. Their staff will check that all is in order with your documents, and if satisfied, will place a large red stamp directly on your documents, confirming that they have been authenticated. You can find out more about document authentication here.
3. Document legalization – This final step is done by the embassy or consulate of the country in which you will be presenting your educational documents. Their consular staff will review your documents, and if all is in order, will place a stamp, sticker or certificate (depends on the embassy) directly on your documents, confirming they have been legalized. Note that each embassy and consulate sets its own unique requirements for document submission. Similarly, the processing time can vary widely between different embassies and consulates. You can learn more about embassy legalization here.
Working with a reliable authentication and legalization service like International Documents Canada is one of the best ways to streamline the process and ensure nothing is overlooked, avoiding long delays and extra costs.
Contact us for the authentication and legalization of educational documents and more!
If you need to authenticate and legalize educational documents to be used abroad, contact us online today or call us toll-free at 1 (888) 433-1011.
