{"id":5186,"date":"2025-08-26T15:25:28","date_gmt":"2025-08-26T13:25:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nove.ilts.cz\/en\/?p=5186"},"modified":"2026-05-06T13:16:33","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T11:16:33","slug":"what-is-an-apostille-what-is-it-used-for-and-when-will-you-need-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nove.ilts.cz\/en\/what-is-an-apostille-what-is-it-used-for-and-when-will-you-need-one\/","title":{"rendered":"What is an apostille, what is it used for, and when will you need one?"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

What is an apostille, what is it used for, and when will you need one?<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

When communicating with foreign authorities and entities, you will need documents and certificates with verified authenticity. While in some countries a court certification is sufficient, others will require an apostille. This certification typically applies to birth and marriage certificates, educational credentials, and other important documents. How do you obtain an apostille?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Learn about the apostille<\/span><\/h4>\n

An Apostille is a certification clause<\/b> that is part of official documents and records which you, as a citizen of the Czech Republic, need to submit officially in a foreign country<\/b>. It is typically used, for example, when you are applying for a job abroad or need to handle personal matters there that require the submission of various documents.<\/span><\/p>\n

An apostille is a certification of documents <\/a>that serves as a guarantee of their legitimacy and authenticity for foreign entities. This principle of document certification also works in reverse, for example, in the case of foreign birth certificates<\/a> issued to Czechs born abroad.<\/span><\/p>\n

An Apostille <\/a>is issued in the language of the country where the document was issued. However, its name must be bilingual. The French term \u201capostille\u201d is most commonly used as the second name. Since the apostille will be issued to you in Czech, you will need to have it translated by a court-certified translator<\/b> into the language of the specific country.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

The apostille simplifies the official certification of documents in a foreign country<\/h4>\n

There are 3 options for officially certifying official documents in a foreign country:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Certified translation<\/strong> \u2013 a certified translation of selected official documents is sufficient if you intend to submit them to countries with which the Czech Republic has concluded a bilateral international agreement on the exemption from document authentication.<\/li>\n
  2. Apostille <\/strong>\u2013 This is typically required for documents you intend to submit to a country that does not have a bilateral international agreement with the Czech Republic regarding exemption from document authentication.<\/li>\n
  3. Superlegalization<\/strong> \u2013 is required in countries with which the Czech Republic has not concluded a bilateral international agreement on exemption from document authentication, and which are also not signatories to the Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

    The Apostille has significantly simplified the administratively much more demanding process of superlegalization <\/a>in countries with which the Czech Republic has not negotiated exemption from authentication through a bilateral international treaty. It is enshrined in the Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents<\/b> of October 5, 1961, which was adopted in The Hague (the Apostille Convention). In countries that have not signed the Apostille Convention, superlegalization procedures must still be followed.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

    The simplification lies in the fact that the document you wish to submit abroad is certified by the apostille authority in the country where the document was issued<\/b>. It is therefore not necessary to have it certified at a Czech diplomatic mission abroad and again in your home country.<\/span><\/p>\n

    In which countries is an apostille required?<\/span><\/h4>\n

    You can find out whether you need an apostille either by phone or in person at a Czech diplomatic mission. What are the rules regarding apostilles in European Union countries and in countries outside the European Union?<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

    \n\t\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

    European Union Countries<\/h4>\n

    For countries within the EU, it depends on whether they have concluded an agreement on certified translations. If such an agreement exists, a certified translation alone is sufficient.<\/strong> If no such agreement exists between the countries, an apostille is required.<\/p>\n

    Countries that do not have an international agreement with the Czech Republic on exemption from document authentication include: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Lithuania, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n

    For these countries, it also depends on what documents you need to submit. As of February 16, 2019, the following documents do not need to be certified with an apostille:<\/strong><\/p>\n