Albania: notarial and documentary services guide
Documents, certificates, letters and notes available at the British Embassy Albania.
Overview
The British consulate can provide a range of notarial and documentary services for British nationals in Albania. Where local notaries can provide services, the British consulate will not provide them. In many cases local notaries or lawyers can provide services more cheaply, quickly and conveniently.
Some services may be available by post. You must make an appointment for each service that requires your personal attendance. Use the links after each service to make an appointment.
Before booking, make sure you have selected the correct service and that the document will be accepted by the relevant authority. This could be the local town hall, registry office, tax authorities, immigration office or another authority either in Albania, the UK or a third country.
Services we provide in Albania
Consular staff Albania can:
- make a certified copy of a document
- unite documents
- prepare a document in English or the local language
- convert a civil partnership to marriage
For information about documents relating to marriage, such as a certificate of no impediment (CNI) and affirmations or affidavits of marital status, see getting married abroad. If you can’t find the service you are looking for on this page, see other services provided by the British embassy in Albania.
What to bring to your appointment
See the individual services below for details of supporting documents to bring. Make sure you have acceptable proof of address and identity, and payment for any fees. See the full list of consular fees.
Payment
We accept payment by Visa, MasterCard, or cash in the local currency on the day of the appointment.
Proof of address and identity
For all appointments for notarial services you will need to bring acceptable proof of your identity and address. We accept passports or national identity cards as proof of identity. We accept Albanian ID cards or residence permits, utility bills and bank statements (received by post, not printed off websites) as proof of your address.
Make a certified copy of a document
This service is for customers who need certified photocopies of British passports, Home Office registration/naturalisation certificates, UK educational documents (only those that have been issued in the UK by a recognised institution and are listed on the Legalisation Office website), British driving licences (both the plastic card and paper document are required) and British divorce decrees.
What you will need to bring with you:
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the document that you need a certified copy of
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the correct fee – see the list of fees and payment options
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proof of identity and address – see what we will accept as proof
Book an appointment to make a certified copy in British Embassy Albania.
Unite documents
This service joins documents together using ribbon and a seal and is usually only needed for legal reasons. What you will need to bring with you:
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the documents to be united
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the correct fee – see the list of fees and payment options
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proof of identity and address – see what we will accept as proof
This service is offered only in combination with making a certified copy of a document if your document is more than 1 page long. Therefore there are no separate appointment slots available for it.
Prepare a document in English or the local language
This service is for customers who require a signed and stamped version of one of our information notes.
In a limited number of cases consular staff can write a statement of fact (‘preparing a certificate’) to help British nationals with various local authorities. The wording must be cleared with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office in London, which means these documents will take longer to prepare.
We can only provide this service if we have proof that the wording/content you require is correct and unambiguous. This service is provided at the discretion of consular staff and we can refuse to provide it. Please contact the consulate before making an appointment.
We can prepare these documents in English or in the local language.
All the information notes available for download can be issued with a signature and stamp if this is what the local authorities require.
What you will need to bring with you:
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original written evidence to support your request for a letter from the Consulate
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the correct fee – see the list of fees and payment options
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proof of identity and address – see what we will accept as proof
To book an appointment for this service, please send a request using our contact form.
Convert a civil partnership to marriage
This service is for couples who wish to convert an existing civil partnership into marriage. For information on getting married or entering into a civil partnership, see getting married abroad.
You do not need to have formed your civil partnership in Albania, but you must have been living here for 28 days.
We can convert civil partnerships formed between a British national and a partner of any nationality. Read what you need to know about converting a civil partnership and then book your appointment using the link below.
What you will need to bring with you:
- your passport
- your partner’s passport
- your original civil partnership certificate
- proof of residence, such as an employer’s letter, bank statement, utility bills, immigration stamps, hotel bills
- the correct fee – see the list of fees and payment options
Book an appointment to convert a civil partnership to marriage at British Embassy Tirana
Download information notes
We have produced the following information notes (also known as standard letters) that you can download free of charge to present to local authorities
Informative note - Change of name in the UK (PDF, 97.5KB)
Informative note - Validity of a foreign marriage in the UK (PDF, 89.4KB)
Letter - Driving Licence (PDF, 89.1KB)
Letter - Family Circumstances (PDF, 89.8KB)
If you need an officially stamped/sealed version this attracts an additional fee.
Services provided elsewhere
We no longer witness life certificates for British nationals claiming a British pension abroad. View the list of people working in a recognised profession (PDF, 18 KB) who can do this for you
Data protection
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office holds and uses data for purposes notified to the Information Commissioner under the Data Protection Act 1998. Such personal data may be disclosed to other UK government departments and public authorities.
Disclaimer
This information is provided as a general guide and is based upon information provided to the embassy / consulate by the relevant authorities and may be subject to change at any time with little or no notice. Accordingly the FCDO and the British embassy will not be liable for any inaccuracies in this information. For all notarial and legalisation services it is the responsibility of the customer to ascertain the precise requirements of the person requesting the notarial or legalisation service and to satisfy themselves that the service provided by the embassy/consulate will be accepted.
Last updated 27 March 2018 + show all updates
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Updated March 2018
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Booking service updated
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Added local and UK credit/debit card option
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We have updated most of the information.
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Removed a service (safekeeping certificates)
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Changes to the booking system
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Added PDF guides on: Changes to Notarial and Documentary Services and Changes to Notarial Services for Commonwealth Nationals
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First published.