What is Apostille Attestation - Fees, Procedure & Documents Required

Accepted in 105 member countries, an Apostille Attestation is a process in which any document Apostilled in one member country is acceptable in all the other 104 member countries belonging to the Hague Convention. This is beneficial for a candidate looking to study abroad by making it needless to get the documents attested for each of the countries separately. Check out Apostille meaning and other details in the article. 

Apostille attestation is a process that verifies the originality and authencity of a public document, so that it can be used those documents internationally. But what exactly does "apostille" mean? Essentially, it is a certification that authenticates the origin of public documents, such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, and educational degrees, ensuring they are recognized abroad. In India, the process of apostille is managed by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), which is responsible for verifying documents before they can be apostilled.

Countries that accept apostille include over 100 members of the Hague Convention, allowing for a simplified method of document validation across borders. This means that once a document is apostilled in India, it can be used in any of these countries without further authentication. 

One can apply for Apostille attestation online appointement through the official website, appointment.apostille.gov.ph. One should must note that you may only avail the online appointment facility if you are, Document owners or document of immediate family members, or, Authorized Representatives that are not family related to the document owner (i.e. liaison officers).

The cost of obtaining an apostille in India generally involves a nominal fee per document, INR 50. Understanding the details of apostille attestation can help one in their international travel, work, or study. The article will help you understand apostille meaning and the procedure of application if submissions are to be made.

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Apostille Meaning in Simple Terms

To put this simply, an Apostille meaning points towards a type of attestation in which documents are legalized in a particular format. Apostille is done for personal documents like birth/death/marriage certificates, Power of Attorney, Affidavits, etc. and educational documents like diplomas, degrees, matriculation, and secondary level certificates, etc. Accepted and recognized by 105 nations that belong to the Hague Convention of October 5, 1961, the countries abolished the requirement of the legalization of foreign public documents and introduced the Apostille attestation.

Accepted in 105 member countries, an apostille is a process in which any document Apostilled in one member country is acceptable in all the other 104 member countries belonging to the Hague Convention. This is beneficial for a candidate by making it needless to get the documents attested in each or for each of the countries separately. 

What is the Apostille Attestation procedure?

Procedure for Apostille Attestation: Students who are planning to study abroad are required to get their documents apostilled. Read on to learn about the process of getting your documents Apostilled:

• Applicants are required to visit e-Sanad – which is the electronic service for verification and attestation of documents of Indian citizens introduced by the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India.
• Candidates are then required to upload their documents and pay the standard fee set by the e-service provider.
• Documents are then digitally verified by the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) and General Administration Department (GAD), Government of India (GOI).
• Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India then verify the digitally signed /pre-approved documents.
• And finally attested documents with Apostille stickers are dispatched to the applicant

Kindly note: As the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is not accepting documents directly from the applicant/individual, all documents for Attestation/ Apostille by MEA are to be submitted and collected from designated outsourced agencies. More details on the same can be found on the official website of the MEA, GOI.

Attestation of Documents that are not covered under e-Sanad

Step 1: Authentication of Documents: Applicants are required to get the documents authenticated from the Regional Authentication Centres.

• The personal documents can be authenticated by the Home / General Administration Department of State / Union Territory.
• The educational documents can be authenticated by the education department of the concerned state/union territory.
• The authentication of the commercial documents can be done by the Chamber of Commerce, registered with the Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) to issue a Certificate of Origin

Step 2: Deposition of Documents with Authorized Service Provider

• Applicants are required to visit the outsource agency centre that is near to his / her place of residence in order to deposit the verified documents
• After this, documents are submitted by the outsource agency to the Branch Secretariat / RPOs having jurisdiction over it

Step 3: Receipt of Apostilled / Attested documents from Outsource agencies

• Outsource agency receives documents from Branch Secretariat / RPO duly legalized
• After this, the legalized documents are received by the applicants

What is the Apostille Attestation Fee?

The Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India charges a fee of Rs. 50 for the Apostille of each document. However, as the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is not accepting documents directly from the applicant/individual, all documents for Apostille by MEA are to be submitted and collected from the designated outsourced agencies. The fee chargeable by the outsourced agencies per document for its collection and delivery for Apostille Attestation by MEA will be Rs. 90/- as a service fee and Rs. 3 per page as a scanning fee.

What are the documents Apostilled by e-Sanad?

Documents ranging from personal, educational or commercial groups can be authenticated/apostilled using e-Sanad services. The document should be available in the digital repository for getting attestation/apostille via the online e-Sanad services. In case your document is not recognized by e-Sanad, the applicant is required to approach the Regional Authentication Centres (RACs) to upload their documents and then submit them to the nearest outsourced centre for getting the documents verified and Apostilled.

Sample Apostille Attestation 

This is what your document would look like after being Apostilled. The Apostille stamp is a square-shaped computer-generated sticker stamp that is pasted on the back of the document by the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. It is a unique computer-generated stamp having a unique identification number. Any member of The Hague Convention can check the authenticity of the Apostille stamp online through this unique identification number.

Apostille Documents

Given below is the list of the documents that can be attested. The list is not extensive and can include more documents.

Educational Documents

• School leaving certificates
• College leaving certificates
• Mark sheets
• Degree certificates
• PG degree certificates
• Diploma certificate
• Transcript certificate
• Transfer certificate
• Engineering certificate
• Nursing certificate

Personal Documents

• Birth certificate
• Marriage certificate
• Registration certificate
• Power of Attorney certificate
• Marriage Affidavit certificate
• Medical certificate
• Bonafide certificate
• Adoption Deed

Commercial Documents

• Certificate of origin
• Invoices
• Certificate of incorporation
• Memorandum of Association
• Power of Attorney

Also Read: What is a Gap Certificate?

Which are the countries included in the Hague Convention?

Countries under Hague Convention: The 105 nations that belong to the Hague Convention of October 5, 1961, that introduced the Apostille attestation are:

Can an Apostilled document be rejected?       

A lot of times candidates are left wondering whether their Apostilled document can be rejected or not? Well, in most cases the process is authentic and cannot be rejected. However, Apostilles may only be rejected if and when

• The origin of the Apostille cannot be verified
• The formal elements differ radically from the Model Certificate annexed to the Convention

Apostille Attestation Validity?

Does your Apostille Attestation come with validity? In most circumstances, an apostille should be accepted at any time after issue. However, there are some circumstances when a recent apostille may be requested on a document. One example is a criminal record check. A lot of times candidates are required to provide a recent apostille on birth certificates and academic documents. It may be argued that this is not necessary and an older apostille should be accepted as your birth and academic qualifications have not changed.

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