Get your document legalised

You can get certain official UK documents ‘legalised’ by asking the Legalisation Office to confirm that the signature, stamp or seal is from a UK public official.

You might need to do this if an official in another country has asked you to provide a UK document and they’ve said it must be legalised.

The Legalisation Office will check the document, including whether the signature, stamp or seal is genuine. They’ll legalise the document by attaching a stamped official certificate (an ‘apostille’) to it.

You cannot get documents issued outside the UK legalised using this service - get them legalised in the country they were issued.

What you’ll need

To use the service you’ll need:

  • the documents you want to legalise
  • a credit or debit card for payment
  • the address you want your documents returned to
  • access to a printer

If you do not enter any information for more than 30 minutes, your application will time out and you’ll have to start again.

Start now

What you need to know

What it costs

The standard service costs £30 per document, plus courier fees or postage.

Courier costs

Country Price
UK (including British Forces Post Office) £5.50 per 1.5kg
European countries (not including Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Liechtenstein, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Russia, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine) £14.50 per 1.5kg
Rest of the world £25 per 1.5kg

If you do not want to pay courier fees

Your documents will be returned by courier but if you’re in the UK you can have them returned by post. You must include an A4-sized envelope with the return address written on it. Attach enough UK postage stamps to cover the return postage.

How long it takes

It normally takes 2 working days to process your documents using the standard service, plus courier or postage time.

From March to September, applications take up to 5 working days to process because more people apply during this time.

The Legalisation Office will be closed on Monday 26 August.

Premium same-day business service

The premium same-day business service is for registered businesses only and costs £75 per document.

Documents must be taken to and collected from the premium office in central London.

You need an account to use the premium service. Sign in if you’re an existing user or create an account.

Contact the Legalisation Office

Contact the Legalisation Office if you need help with your application.

Legalisation Office
legalisationenquiries@fco.gov.uk
Telephone: 03700 00 22 44
Monday to Friday, 10am to 4pm
Find out about call charges