There are many opportunities for Canadians to gain international experience by working abroad. You can sign up for a work abroad program, join a working holiday swap, or you can apply directly for an available position with an employer abroad. Access to the international job market has never been easier for Canadians with post-secondary degrees.
Before you embark on your journey abroad, you will need to consider the process of having your Canadian University degree recognized outside of Canada.
Canadian University Degree Apostille, or Authentication and Legalization
The terms used to describe the process of having your Canadian University degree recognized outside of Canada are apostille, attestation, authentication, and legalization.
Why are there so many terms for this process? The terms used for the process may depend on the destination country and the system they have in place to certify their documents. However, they do all refer to the same process of certifying documents for use abroad.
For example, prior to 2024 Canada was not a signatory to the Hague Apostille Convention. Therefore, Canada used authentication and legalization to refer to the steps required of the process. However, as of 2024 Canada is a signatory to the Hague Apostille Convention and now uses the apostille process to certify Canadian documents. The term attestation is often used by countries located in the Middle East.
There are two types of verification that certify the authenticity of a Canadian degree for use in a foreign country:
- The apostille process is available for Canadian documents destined for other apostille signatory countries.
- Documents destined for non-apostille countries will need to go through the document authentication and legalization process.
This article focuses on the authentication and legalization process. If your University degree is destined for another apostille signatory country, we recommend you take a look at the following helpful article: Navigating the Apostille Process for Canadian Educational Documents
What is the degree authentication process?
If the country where you are headed is not a signatory to the Hague Apostille Convention, your degree will instead need to go through the authentication and legalization process.
Your degree will need to be authenticated by the appropriate government office in Canada. These offices function on a jurisdictional basis dependant upon the origins of the degree, or location of the Notary Public for notarized documents. However, care should be taken to research all the requirements in advance. For example, out of province notarization or authentication can cause rejection by some authorities.
The authentication office will apply a certificate of authentication to your degree, verifying the official signatures on your documents. There are provinces that will only apply apostille certificates and no longer offer certificates of authentication. Rest assured the apostille certification can function as an authentication for the purpose of the last step of document legalization.
What is the degree legalization process?
The final step of the authentication and legalization process is called document legalization, and is completed by the embassy/consulate of the destination country. Be sure to check the embassy requirements in advance, as they can have strict requirements. The embassy may also have supporting document requirements that can be time consuming to fulfill.
Once the embassy has applied their legalization (some embassies apply a sticker or stamp and others attach an additional page for their legalization) to your degree, it is ready to use in the destination country.
We can help you to prepare your Canadian University degree so you can take flight!
If you would like assistance with the apostille, or authentication and legalization process, we can help. Supporting our clients in navigating the ins and outs of the process has been our business for over a decade. We would welcome the opportunity to speak with you about your documents and answer your questions. Call us toll free at 1-888-433-1011 or send us your questions through our quick contact us form. Our friendly staff will get back to you right away!
