Notary, apostille or consular legalisation: what each one confirms and in what order

Three procedures in one table

All three procedures are often referred to with one word, "certification", although they confirm different things and are carried out by different bodies. The table compares them on six criteria.

For a quick answer by country, use the Apostille or legalisation? tool. This guide explains why the route is what it is and how the stages fit together.

What does a notary confirm, and what not?

The instruction approved by Order No. 71 of the Minister of Justice of 2010 defines the notary's role narrowly. When certifying the authenticity of a signature, the notary confirms that the signature belongs to a particular person, not that the facts written in the document are correct. When certifying a copy, the notary confirms that the copy matches the original, but is not responsible for the lawfulness or authenticity of the original. As for translations, the translator confirms to the notary that they know the relevant language and guarantees the accuracy of the translation.

Two practical conclusions follow from this. First, the translator is responsible for the quality of a notarised translation, so a notary's seal cannot turn a poor translation into a good one. Second, the notary is the first link in the chain, giving a private paper a public signature. It is exactly this signature that an apostille or legalisation then verifies.

One more rule in the instruction concerns foreign documents: a notary accepts a document issued abroad if it has been legalised in the manner prescribed by law or certified with an apostille, unless an international treaty of Georgia waives this requirement. How the translator's signature and a copy are certified in a single visit is described on the notarised translation page.

What does an apostille confirm, and who issues it?

Georgia acceded to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention in 2006, and it has been in force for Georgia since 14 May 2007. The domestic rules are set by Government Resolution No. 405 of 18 August 2016. Under it, an apostille confirms the authenticity of the signature, the authority of the person who signed and, if the document bears a seal or stamp, its authenticity. Apostilles are issued by the Public Service Development Agency, which you apply to through the Public Service Hall, while the Service Agency of the Ministry of Internal Affairs certifies its own documents itself.

The resolution clarifies three details that matter to families:

• Who can apply: anyone can submit the application, because an apostille certifies the document, not its holder.
• Time limit: no later than 10 working days from receipt of the application. This is an upper limit; in practice a faster option also exists.
• What is not apostilled directly: a document of a private organisation, except a medical or educational institution, and also an identity document and its copy. That is why a private clinic's discharge summary is apostilled directly, but a bank statement is not.

An apostille is placed in the country where the document was issued. So Form 100 issued in Georgia is apostilled here, while a discharge summary issued in Turkey is apostilled in Turkey if it is going to an official body in Georgia. How Form 100 is prepared for a foreign recipient is covered in the Form 100 guide. The procedure itself can be handled for you by the apostille service.

How does consular legalisation work?

Legalisation answers the same question as an apostille, but instead of one stamp it combines the signatures of several bodies. It is governed by Government Resolution No. 404 of 18 August 2016, which divides the procedure in Georgia into two stages:

1. First stage: the Public Service Development Agency or the Service Agency of the Ministry of Internal Affairs verifies the signature and seal on the document. The set time limit is no later than 10 working days.
2. Second stage: the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirms the first-stage stamp and the official's signature. At this stage too, you submit the application to the first body, and the department completes it electronically on the day of application.

After that, the document goes to the embassy of the destination country, which confirms the Georgian foreign ministry's certification with its own seal. Some countries also have the document certified by their own foreign ministry after arrival. The embassy's time limit, fee and translation requirement are not set by the Georgian resolution and must be confirmed separately each time.

When planning the route, bear in mind that the embassy is often located in another country and the document has to be sent by courier. So legalisation always takes longer than an apostille, and you should count back from the treatment or visa date to decide when to start it.

Legalisation is needed more often than people think, but less often than some intermediaries tell you: new countries keep joining the Hague Convention; for example, it has been in force for China since 7 November 2023 and for Canada since 11 January 2024. Practical country-specific details are on the consular legalisation page.

When you need which: three questions

The route is set by the answers to three questions, in exactly this order. If you do not know the answer to one of them, do not move on to the next: this is exactly where money gets wasted.

1. What does the recipient require?

   A foreign clinic often accepts an ordinary translation without certification for a preliminary assessment. An embassy, court, registry or insurance company, on the other hand, asks for a specific form. The recipient's written requirement is the best basis for the route.

2. Who issued the document?

   A document from a state authority, a court, or a medical or educational institution goes for an apostille or legalisation without a notary. A document from a bank, employer or company is certified by a notary first.

3. Which country is it going to?

   If the country is a party to the Hague Convention, an apostille is enough. If it is not, legalisation is required. With some countries, a legal assistance treaty waives certification altogether, but you should check this with the recipient in advance.

One additional question concerns the translation: where it should be done. Some recipients accept a notarised translation made in Georgia, while others expect a translation by a sworn or accredited translator in their own country. In the second case, certifying the translation in Georgia is an unnecessary expense, although an apostille on the original is still required. How this requirement differs between Turkey and Germany is covered in our comparison of the two countries.

Four typical routes for medical and private documents

The routes below sum up the most common cases. They show the general rule; a specific recipient sometimes asks for an extra stage or, conversely, considers one of them unnecessary.

A full package of medical documents for a foreign clinic and embassy is prepared as a single order in the medical package service, and which documents you need for treatment abroad is set out in the documents guide.

How does the recipient verify the certification?

Every form of certification is designed so that the recipient can verify it themselves, without your involvement. A notary registers the notarial act in a register and states its number in the certification wording. An apostille has its own number and date, by which its issue can be checked in the register. In the legalisation chain, each subsequent link confirms the seal and signature of the previous one, so trust in the last link extends to the whole chain.

The Hague Conference stresses that an electronic apostille has the same force as a paper one and that a recipient cannot reject it solely because it is electronic. In practice this means that in many cases the document no longer needs to be sent physically, although some embassies and courts still ask for the paper original. So before choosing a format, ask the recipient which one they will accept. If they need the paper original, it can be delivered abroad safely, with tracking, through the DHL shipping service.

Where the stages get mixed up and how to avoid it

• A "notarised translation" instead of an apostille. A notary's seal does not automatically acquire official force abroad. If the recipient asks for an apostille, it must also be placed on the notarial act.
• An unnecessary notary for a public document. A court decision or a clinic's report is apostilled directly. A notarised copy is needed here only when the original has to stay with you.
• The apostille on the wrong sheet. Some recipients want the apostille on the original, some on the translation, some on both. Doing one instead of the other means queuing again.
• A package taken apart. An original, copy and translation bound together by a notary count as a single whole. Removing a sheet or photocopying it breaks that whole.
• Different transliterations of the surname. If the name is spelt differently in the passport, the discharge summary and the bank certificate, a foreign authority may not accept that the documents relate to one person. Use the passport spelling in the translation.
• Hoping the stamp checks the content. Neither the notary, nor the apostille, nor the embassy confirms that the diagnosis or amount is correct. The issuer of the document is responsible for its content.

If you have not obtained the document yet, certificates and extracts can be obtained on your behalf, and the calculator shows an indicative price for the translation.

Frequently asked questions about notaries, apostilles and legalisation