The Hague Convention of 5 October 1961, Abolishing Legalization for Foreign Public Documents, or the Apostille Convention was entered into force in the Philippines only last on 14 May 2019. It simplifies the authentication process of public documentsto be used abroad. You will only need acertificationby “an authority designated by the country where the public document was issued.” This is called the Apostille, which came from the French word “apostiller” which means annotation.

Authentication of a public document through Apostille

As per the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA),

“Apostillization or Authentication is the Department of Foreign Affairs’ process of verifying the origin of a public document. It certifies the authenticity of the signature and legal authority of the public official who signed it, but it does not certify the contents of the document.”

This is needed because even if a public document is issued by the Philippine government:

“The recipient abroad may not be familiar with the identity or official capacity of the person signing the document, or identity of the authority whose seal/stamp it bears.”

Thus, an official familiar with the document has to certify its origin to one who is foreign to it. This was the reason for legalization, prior to apostillization. According to the Apostille Handbook:

“Legalisation describes the procedures whereby the signature / seal / stamp on a public document is certified as authentic by a series of public officials along a “chain” to a point where the ultimate authentication is readily recognised by an official of the State of destination and can be given legal effect there. As a practical matter, Embassies and Consulates of the State of destination located in (or accredited to) the State of origin are ideally situated to facilitate this process. However, Embassies and Consulates do not maintain samples of the signatures / seals / stamps of every authority or public official in the State of origin, so an intermediate authentication between the authority or public official that executed the public document in that State and the Embassy or Consulate is often required.”

This chain of legalization was considered “cumbersome, time-consuming, and costly. The Apostille Convention does away with the legalization. When attached to the document, an apostille certificate is a proof of authentication to the public document issued in the Philippines. This is valid, as long as it will be used by a State party to the Apostille Convention, except Austria, Finland, Germany and Greece as they have objected to the Philippines’ accession. If not, legalization by the concerned Foreign Embassy / Consulate is still required. If you are to use your documents in the Philippines, apostillization is not needed.

How can you get your passport apostilled?

If you will use or need to produce any public document abroad, such as those issued by the Philippine government, an apostille authenticates the origin of such document. It will help you with the processing of your transactions such as: international marriages, international relocations, applications for studies, residency or citizenship in a foreign State, intercountry adoption procedures, international business transactions and foreign investment procedures, enforcement of intellectual property rights abroad, foreign legal proceedings, and etc. – from one country to another under the Hague Convention In one of these situations, you may need to use yourpassport. Passportmeans a document issued by the Philippine government to its citizens and requesting other governments to allow its citizens to pass safely and freely, and in case of need to give him/her all lawful aid and protection (Philippine Passport Act of 1996). The biopage is located in the second page of your passport. It contains your personal data (which must be true and correct), with the machine-readable zone (MRZ) and passport number. According to the DFA, among other legal documents, your passport copy may also be apostilled. Just as similar as the requirements with other legal documents apostilled, applicants need to secure the following: (1) Government issued ID, one original and one photocopy, and (2) an authentication application form. Representatives may also apply, in addition to the said requirements, an authorized letter from the owner (Original copy of SPA from parents for minors) is needed, and a Government issued ID of the applicant (1 photocopy). For other requirements depending on the document for Authentication, and the Procedure, please clickhere. For the apostillization procedure, you may refer to the DFA’s guidehere. Need further information and assistance in Apostille?  Talk to our team at  FILEDOCSPHIL  to know more about the requirements and process. Call us today at  (+63) 917 149 2337 or send an email to  info@filedocsphil.com or simply message us through the live chat for more information.