Apostille, consular legalisation and translation

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• A decision tree: apostille or consular legalisation
• Steps for sworn translation and notary approval
• A document list

The checklist and guide shown on this page, which you can print from your browser. No completed official form, personalised petition or assessment is produced.

Documentos necesarios

1. Official document issued abroad (the original)

   Dónde obtenerlo: The authority of the foreign country that issued the document. The document is obtained from the competent authority of the country that issues it, under that country's own rules. The apostille or legalisation steps below are applied to this document. Which authority handles the next step can differ from country to country.

   Formato: The original document (in the form the issuing country provides).

2. Apostille certificate (Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents)

   Dónde obtenerlo: The authority that the issuing country has designated to issue apostilles (varies by country). Türkiye is a party to the Apostille Convention. If the document was issued in another party country, the apostille is obtained from the competent authority that country has designated; the Convention requires each state to designate such authorities, and the responsible bodies differ by country. The list of party states is in the HCCH status table that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs links to, and contact details of the competent authorities are in the list on the HCCH Apostille page. Turkish missions abroad do not issue apostilles. An apostilled document is not certified again by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

   Formato: A standard certificate placed on the document itself or on a sheet attached to it; its title appears in French as “Apostille Convention de La Haye du 5 Octobre 1961”.

3. Certification by a Turkish mission abroad, with a certified Turkish translation (method 1)

   Dónde obtenerlo: The embassy or consulate (general) of the Republic of Türkiye in the country that issued the document. For a document outside the apostille system, the issuing country's internal approvals are completed first and the document is certified at that country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In the first method described by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the document is certified at the Turkish mission in that country and a Turkish translation made by a sworn translator is attached in the form certified by the mission; the document can then be used directly in Türkiye, with no further certification by the Ministry or any other authority. According to one mission's information note, the translator may need to be registered with that mission, the mission may need to hold specimen signatures and seals of the foreign authority, and the transaction may have to be done at the mission that covers your area; these conditions can differ from mission to mission.

   Formato: The mission's signature-and-seal certification on the document and on the attached Turkish translation.

4. Certification at the issuing country's mission in Türkiye, then Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Ankara) or governorship certification (method 2)

   Dónde obtenerlo: The issuing country's embassy/consulate in Türkiye; then the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Legalisation Unit (Ankara), or the governorship of the province where the mission is located. After the foreign country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs certification, the second method is to have the document certified at the mission of the issuing country in Türkiye. That mission's certification is then certified at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Legalisation Unit if the mission is in Ankara, or at the governorship of the province if it is in another city. The Legalisation Unit in Ankara works by appointment, booked at tasdik.mfa.gov.tr. In this method the Turkish translation and the notary approval of the translation are done in Türkiye (see the notary-approved translation entry).

   Formato: A chain of certification endorsements and seals on the document.

5. Turkish translation with a notary endorsement, made in Türkiye

   Dónde obtenerlo: A notary office in Türkiye (translation transaction under the Notary Law). The translation is done at a notary office. Under the Notary Law Regulation the notary has the translator take an oath, keeps the oath record at the office, and cannot have a translation made by anyone without an oath record there. Under the Notary Law the notary adds an endorsement (şerh) below the translated text; if the notary used a sworn translator, the endorsement contains the translator's identity and address. Notary fees are charged under the Notary Fee Tariff published each year by the Ministry of Justice in the Official Gazette (for the current amount see the tariff in the Official Gazette or the Notaries Union's Tebliğler page).

   Formato: The translated text with the notary's endorsement below it.

6. Multilingual civil-status extract (Forms A/B/C — CIEC Convention No. 16) and exemption from certification (CIEC Convention No. 17)

   Dónde obtenerlo: The civil-registry authority of a state that is party to the relevant convention. According to the convention texts published by NVİ (the Turkish civil-registry authority), birth/marriage/death extracts drawn up under Convention No. 16 are accepted in each state bound by it without any further approval or equivalent formality. Convention No. 17 provides that documents on personal status, capacity, family situation, nationality and residence are accepted without certification, provided they bear the issuing authority's signature, its seal or stamp where required, and a date. The states that are parties are shown in NVİ's convention tables; if the issuing country is not a party, this route does not apply.

   Formato: A multilingual extract on Form A, B or C attached to the convention.

7. Apostille for a document issued in Türkiye (if it will be used abroad)

   Dónde obtenerlo: Governorships or district governorships; Justice Commission Presidencies for judicial documents. For administrative documents issued by local authorities in Türkiye, governorships and district governorships are competent for the apostille; for judicial documents, the Justice Commission Presidencies. According to an announcement of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, for some documents (for example criminal-record certificates, court decisions, civil-registry extracts and multilingual extracts) an application can be made through the e-Apostil service on e-Devlet; log in to e-Devlet yourself and do not share your password or codes with anyone.

   Formato: An apostille certificate (paper, or electronic through e-Apostil).

Pasos

1. Note the country that issued the document, the document type and the Turkish institution where it will be used. Check on that institution's own official page or at its service desk exactly what it asks for (for example whether it asks for a Turkish translation and notary approval); this detail can differ from one institution to another.
2. Check whether the issuing country is a party to the Apostille Convention in the HCCH status table that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs links to. Also, under the Convention, documents drawn up by diplomatic or consular officers and administrative documents directly related to commercial or customs operations are outside its scope; if your document is of that kind, the apostille route does not apply and you need to ask the relevant authority which approval it wants. In addition, some pairs of states have objected to the Convention applying between them (art. 12); if the issuing country and Türkiye form such a pair, an apostille may not be enough, so ask the competent authority which certification it requires.
3. Check whether an exemption from certification exists: the Apostille Convention states that the formality cannot be demanded where an agreement between two or more states has abolished, simplified or fully waived it. CIEC Conventions No. 16 and 17, published by NVİ, also provide that multilingual civil-status extracts and certain personal-status documents are accepted between party states without further approval. If the issuing country appears in those convention tables, this route may be available.
4. If the country is a party to the Convention, obtain the apostille from the competent authority the issuing country has designated (it differs from country to country; the list on the HCCH page gives contact details). An apostilled document is not certified again at a Turkish mission or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Under the Convention an apostille only certifies the authenticity of the signature, the capacity of the signatory and, where appropriate, the seal or stamp; it does not verify the content of the document and does not remove other requirements of the institution, such as a Turkish translation (see Steps 1 and 8). If you want to confirm that an apostille is genuine, under the Convention the authority that issued it checks, on request, whether the details on the certificate match its own register.
5. If the country is not a party to the Convention (or the Convention does not apply to your document), first complete the internal approval steps in the issuing country and have the document certified at that country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Then follow one of the two methods below.
6. Method 1: Have the document certified at the Turkish mission in that country and attach a Turkish translation made by a sworn translator and certified by the mission. Check the mission's own page for its conditions (such as whether the translator must be registered with it, appointments and fees); the Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that no further certification is needed in this case.
7. Method 2: Have the document certified at the mission of the issuing country in Türkiye. Then have that mission's certification certified at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Legalisation Unit if the mission is in Ankara (appointment: tasdik.mfa.gov.tr), or at the governorship of the province if it is in another city. In this method the Turkish translation and notary approval are done in Türkiye (next step).
8. If a Turkish translation is needed (for example, in court a party relying on a foreign-language document must also submit its translation; institutions apply their own rules), have the translation done at a notary office in Türkiye: the notary has the translation made by a translator whose oath record the notary holds and adds an endorsement below the text. See the Turkish Notaries Union's Tebliğler page for the current fee tariff.
9. Submit the completed set (the certified/apostilled document and, where needed, its translation) to the Turkish institution yourself; whether the application is accepted is up to that institution's own assessment. Note: for a foreign court judgment to be enforced in Türkiye, Article 50 of the Law on International Private and Procedural Law makes it depend on an enforcement (tenfiz) decision by the competent Turkish court, and its effect as final judgment or conclusive evidence depends on its recognition (tanıma) under Article 58 of the same Law. An apostille or a translation does not replace recognition or enforcement; this guide does not cover that process.

Tasas y citas

Fees: transactions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Legalisation Unit (Ankara) are subject to a fee (harç); the current amount is shown on the Legalisation Appointment System page at tasdik.mfa.gov.tr. Signature-and-seal certification at a Turkish mission abroad is also subject to a fee, and notary charges vary with the type of transaction and the number of pages (mission information note). A translation transaction at a notary in Türkiye carries a fee; the current tariff is on the Turkish Notaries Union's Tebliğler page. Whether the competent apostille authority abroad charges a fee, and how much, is shown on that authority's own page (not confirmed in this guide). Appointments: the Legalisation Unit in Ankara does not accept transactions without an appointment (tasdik.mfa.gov.tr); appointment arrangements at Turkish missions and at foreign missions differ from one office to another. This guide gives no promise about amounts or timing.

Cuándo acudir a un abogado

If a foreign court judgment must be recognised or enforced in Türkiye (this needs a lawsuit), or if your document was not accepted, seek help from a lawyer. You may contact the bar association in your province or its legal aid office.

Sus datos y cuánto tiempo se conservan

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