What is Apostille, and how do you do it in Canada for legal documents or certificates to be valid in Costa Rica?
The Hague Convention with the Apostille certification, is an international treaty facilitating the circulation of public documents executed in different countries and helps to abolish the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents or to validate documents that will be used in other countries. The apostille eliminates steps required to get documents accepted in countries where the convention is in effect, including the legalization by a consular office of the country of destination.
Only the Competent Authority designated by the origin Country may issue an Apostille certification. The Competent Authority places the Apostille Stamp either on the public document or on an “allonge”. The Apostille does not certify the quality of the content in the apostilled public document. Instead, it certifies only the authenticity of the signature, the capacity in which the person signing the document has acted, and where appropriate, the identity of the seal or stamp which the document bears.
After being authenticated, if your documents are for use in a country that is not a party to the Apostille Convention, you may need to get it legalized by the authorities of the country of destination (for example, by their embassy, high commission or consulate in or accredited to). If you obtain an apostille and your document is destined to a country that is a member of the Apostille Convention, it should be accepted at the country of destination without additional steps.
Canada now is a party to the Apostille Convention, documents authenticated by a Canadian competent authority will issue an apostille certificate in the form of an “allonge,” which is a separate document that will be securely affixed to the underlying authenticated document. This will simplify the acceptance of Canadian public documents in the more than 120 countries that have signed the convention.
Since January 11, 2024, the competent authorities of certain provinces have been exclusively responsible for the authentication and issuance of apostilles for documents issued or notarized in their respective province. Global Affairs Canada will continue to authenticate, and issue apostilles for documents issued by the Government of Canada and for documents issued or notarized in specific provinces and territories.
Suppose your document was notarized (for example, a notary public made a “true copy” of your document) in the provinces and territories listed above. In that case, you will send it to Global Affairs Canada no matter where it was originally issued, to get the Apostille Stamp.
For more information and the step-by-step process in Canada, please visit the following link:
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