An Apostille is a certificate issued by a designated authority in a country where the Hague Convention of 1961 (Apostille Convention) is in force. Apostilles authenticate the seals and signatures of officials on public documents such as birth certificates, notarials, court orders, or any other document issued by a public authority, so that they can be recognized in foreign countries that are also parties to the Convention. In the Israel there are several designated Competent Authorities to issue Apostille depending on the type of a document. For instance, notarizations are authenticated by the Ministry of Justice, where as state documents, such as vital records - by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Countries where Apostille Convention is in force:

Albania, Andorra, Argentina, Armenia, Austria

Bahamas, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso

Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic

Denmark, Dominican Republic

Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia

Fiji, Finland, France

Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea

Honduras, Hong Kong (China), Hungary

Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy

Republic of Korea

Latvia, Lesotho, Lithuania, Luxembourg

Macau (China), Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco

Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway

Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal

Russian Federation, Romania

Saint Kitts and Nevis, San Marino, Serbia, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland

Thailand, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Turkmenistan

Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States of America, Uruguay, Uzbekistan

Venezuela

Zimbabwe