Hey, are you someone migrating to a Hague Convention country?
Here’s a gentlereminder for you: don’t forget to get the Apostille for all your necessary documents.
The authorities of a foreign country want to be aware of the basic details of a person. Right from their place of birth to their status of marriage. This information helps them to keep all kinds of fraudulent activities at bay. If you are a married individual and are traveling to a Hague Convention country, then you must carry your marriage certificate with you.
A marriage certificate is an official record of a person being married. A married individual who carries their certificate abroad must first get it verified. A marriage certificate is considered to be verified when it has an Apostille on it issued by a credible authority.
Do you know who certifies your marriage certificate in India?
It is the Ministry of External Affairs that carries on this task. All this is done to facilitate the use of a marriage certificate in a Hague Convention country.
In the following section, we have covered all the main things regarding marriage certificate Apostille that must not be missed.Here is your practical guide to marriage certificate Apostille:
The first thing that must be known is what it means to have an Apostille on your marriage certificate.
Having an Apostille for your marriage certificate means getting it certified by a reliable authority. An Apostille is a form of attestation that allows a certificate to be legalized in the appropriate manner.
An Apostille is needed every time a person travels to a Hague Convention nation. It is a mandatory legal formality that makes a certificate eligible to be used in all member countries.
Why does an Indian citizen need to get an Apostille?
In 1961, a convention called the Hague Convention was called for the purpose of simplifying the legalization process at the global level. Abolishing the traditional methods, the convention adopted a document called the Apostille. According to the convention, residents of every country that is a signatory to the convention must obtain an Apostille before traveling. An Apostille, once issued, is accepted by all countries that are signatories to the convention signatories.
India, since 2005, has been a signatory to the Hague convention and therefore abides by its rules. As a result, every Indian citizen has to obtain an Apostille every time they travel to a member country of the convention.
The benefits of receiving an Apostille
Obtaining an Apostille helps:
- To certify a document in the appropriate manner needed.
- To establish the legal status of a document.
- To facilitate the use of documents in Hague Convention countries.
The reasons for getting the Apostille of a marriage certificate
- When they want to obtain dual citizenship.
- For addition of their spouse’s name on the passport
- When they travel on a dependent visa
- When they plan to work in another country.
The process following which one can get the marriage certificate Apostille
Like with every other document, obtaining an Apostille on a marriage certificate has its own procedure. In order to obtain the Apostille, the entire process must be followed with extreme care. The process of getting a marriage certificate is carried out at the following three levels:
- Regional verification
The process of document Apostille begins at the level of verification by the local authorities. Here, the marriage certificate is verified and attested by the notary. - State verification
The marriage certificate then is sent to the state for verification. At this level, the SDM, or Home Department, is responsible for verifying a marriage certificate. - Final issuing of Apostille
At this final step the marriage certificate receives a final Apostille stamp. This task is carried out by the officials at the Ministry of External Affairs.
Will there be any need for further verification after obtaining an Apostille?
After receiving an Apostille, there will be no need for any further verification. After receiving the Apostille, your marriage certificate can be used in all Hague Convention countries without any legal barrier. However, the case is different for countries that are not a part of the Hague convention. Traveling to a non-member country requires further verification by the embassy of the respective country. Do you know that an individual cannot submit their commercial documents directly to the Ministry of External Affairs? Since 2012, the Ministry of External Affairs no longer accepts any documents directly from an individual.
Our consultancy, MEA Apostille Services, works on behalf of our clients to get the Apostille from the concerned officials. We work round-the-clock to ensure that the documents are verified quickly and with extreme care.