Consular legalisation: documents for countries outside the Hague Convention
Where an apostille is not valid, a single stamp is replaced by a chain: notary, Public Service Hall, the destination country's embassy and sometimes that country's foreign ministry after arrival. Each link has its own requirements, fee and timeframe, and embassies have their own rules that are not written down anywhere. We turn this chain into one cycle and check the embassy's requirements before submission.
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Membership checked against the official listso you do not go through legalisation where an apostille is enough
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Embassy rules before submissionlanguage, translator, appointment, fee, timeframe
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Consulates in other countries tooexpress shipping both ways, with tracking
The legalisation chain: who confirms what at each link
An apostille is a single stamp from a single authority that every member state trusts. Legalisation is a chain of trust: each authority confirms the signature of the one before it, until the document reaches the destination country's own signature.
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Notary
Documents issued by private organisations (a contract, a bank or employer letter) and the translation are certified by a notary, so that the chain starts with a public signature. Documents issued by state authorities do not need this stage.
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Public Service Hall
The legalisation stamp confirms the signature and seal of the notary or authority, just as an apostille does, but its form is different and only the next link in the chain reads it. In Georgia legalisation has two stages: after the agency's check, the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirms the document, usually the same day and electronically.
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The destination country's embassy
The embassy confirms the Public Service Hall stamp with its own seal. This is where the embassy's rules come in: working days, appointments, a fee in foreign currency, the language of the translation and sometimes an accredited translator.
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Foreign ministry on arrival
Some countries, such as the United Arab Emirates, also require the document to be certified by their own foreign ministry after arrival. We tell you this in advance, so it does not come as a surprise there.
Which countries most often require legalisation
Below are the countries we work with most often. The list is for guidance only: membership changes, and we check the official list of the Convention for every order.
| Country | Why patients and families go there | What to watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| United Arab Emirates | Treatment and work, family reunification | Additional certification at the UAE foreign ministry after the embassy; an Arabic translation is often mandatory |
| Qatar | Work, family visa, medical services | Embassy in Tbilisi; the fee varies by document type, with a separate rate for commercial documents |
| Kuwait | Work, recognition of education documents | For diplomas, confirmation from the education authority is often needed first, then the embassy |
| Egypt | Study, marriage registration, treatment | For marriage documents the embassy asks for additional forms; timeframes vary with the embassy's workload |
| Vietnam, Iraq, Jordan | Work, business, family matters | The embassy or consulate may be in a neighbouring country; courier time and cost are added |
What we check before submitting to the embassy
Embassies rarely publish their rules in full on their websites, and they change them often. So before every order we confirm directly with the embassy:
- Submission days and appointments: some embassies accept documents only one or two days a week, by prior appointment.
- Fee and currency: often only in foreign currency, in cash or to a specific account, and sometimes different depending on the document type.
- Language of the translation and who does it: in the embassy's language, sometimes only by a translator the embassy recognises.
- The document's "age": some embassies do not accept criminal record and marital status certificates older than 3 months.
- Additional forms: an application, a power of attorney for the person submitting, a passport copy, sometimes a copy of the visa or employment contract.
- What happens after arrival: whether the document needs one more certification in the destination country and who will do it.
Every item on this list saves one wasted trip. For the difference between an apostille and legalisation in general, and which applies in which country, see the main legalisation page.
Frequently asked questions about consular legalisation
The embassy wants an Arabic translation. Will our translation do?
Some embassies, particularly those of Arab countries, will only legalise a document if it comes with a translation into a language the embassy officially accepts, and sometimes they require the translation to be done by a specific accredited translator or bureau. This is each embassy's internal rule and it changes. Before submission we check the embassy's current requirement: if our notarised translation is accepted, we prepare it; if the embassy needs its own accredited translator, we arrange that and build it into the price in advance, so you do not pay twice.
How long does consular legalisation take from start to finish?
It is the sum of three stages: the notary and the Public Service Hall take 1-5 working days depending on the mode, the embassy 3-15 working days depending on its rules and workload, and if the embassy is not in Tbilisi and the document is sent to an accredited consulate in another country, courier time in both directions is added. A realistic total is 2-4 weeks, longer for some embassies. We will give you the exact timeframe for the specific embassy before you order and, if a clinic or employer has set a deadline, we plan around it.
The destination country has no embassy in Tbilisi. What happens then?
Every country has a diplomatic mission accredited to Georgia; some of them are simply based in a neighbouring country and serve Georgia from there. In that case the document, once legalised at the Public Service Hall, is sent by express courier with a tracking number to that consulate, legalised there and returned. This adds one to two weeks and the cost of shipping. We confirm the route and the likely timing with the specific embassy in advance.
The country has recently joined the Hague Convention. Do I still need legalisation?
No, if the Convention is already in force between Georgia and that country; in that case an apostille is enough and going through legalisation is a waste of money and time. In recent years this has affected several large countries: the Convention has applied to China since November 2023 and to Canada since January 2024, and authorities in both countries now accept an apostille. During a transition period authorities sometimes carry on under the old rules, so we check the requirement of the specific recipient. We confirm membership status against the official list of the Convention for every order, not from memory.
Related to legalisation
- Apostille at the Public Service Hall One stamp for Convention member states: the procedure and preparing the documents.
- Translation of legal documents Powers of attorney and contracts that embassies require in translation before legalisation.
- Express shipping to a consulate When the consulate is in another country and the document has to be sent with tracking.
We handle every link in the chain; all you provide is the original
Tell us the country and the document. We will check the embassy's requirements, confirm the route and timeframe in writing and take the procedure from start to finish.