Legalisation and Asseveration

Our agency offers asseveration, sworn translations and legalisation of documents..

In order to clearly understand what legalisation procedure is required, we must know the origin of the document and the country in which the document is to be provided. The traditional legalisation of documents consists in authenticating a document with the competent authority of the country where the document is issued, then the document is legalised with the embassy or consulate of the country where it must be presented.

There is also a simplified legalisation or APOSTILLE (Convention of Aia of 5 October 1961). The apostille is used in countries that have adhered to the convention and consists of a standard stamp, as per the annexe in the Convention of Aia. This type of legalisation certifies the qualification of the official who signed the document and the authentication of the stamp affixed thereof.

In many countries the apostille can be affixed by various authorities.  In Italy, the apostille can be affixed by the Public Procecutor's Office at Local Courts and in the Prefecture. The Public Procecutor's Office affixes apostilles to notary or judicial documents while the Prefecture affixes apostilles to all other documents.

If the country where the document originates has adhered to a convention that excludes the need for a legalisation, then the document does not need to be legalised. For example, the Convention of Brussels of 25 May 1987, ratified in Italy in 1990 abolished any form of legalisation among the following countries:  Italy, Ireland, France, Denmark and Belgium.

We advise you to consult the data bank ITRA on the website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Italian Republic where you can find information regarding the bilateral agreements that include the abolition of legalisation for certain types of documents.

We are pleased to assist you with our professional services and help you prepare all your documentation.

INTEREXPERT is your reliable partner for all your translation needs, including interpretation,  asseveration and legalisation of documents.