An “apostille” is a form of document authentication issued by a competent authority in a participating country to verify the authenticity of a public document for use in another participating country. It is governed by the Hague Apostille Convention of 1961. The primary goal of an apostille is to eliminate the need for additional layers of authentication, such as diplomatic legalization, streamlining the process for international documents.
Canada is now a member of the Hague Apostille Convention, which took effect January 2024.
Now that the Hague Apostille Convention has taken effect, the process for using Canadian documents in other Apostille signatory countries has been streamlined. For these countries, the legalization at the Embassy/Consulate will not be required, thereby avoiding the need for additional processing times and supporting document requirements.
For those Canadian documents destined for non-apostille signatory countries, the process remains as document authentication and legalization.
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