In summary, apostille is the legalisation/certification of a document by the Ministry of Justice and Public Order of Cyprus. A document issued in any country has full legal force and recognition in the territory of the country that issued it, but if you are going to present this document in another country, then there may be reasonable doubts as to whether the signature or seal on the document is real, and sometimes the very fact of the existence of the person who signed the document or the organisation that issued it may be questioned. For this purpose, there is the legalisation of documents, i.e. a number of certain formal procedures that give such documents legal force in the territory of another state.
Cyprus has been following the principles of the Hague Convention (the “Convention”) since 1973 and has been using apostille for simplified legalisation of documents for more than 45 years.
The Convention was ratified by Law No. 50/72. The Ministry of Justice and Public Order was appointed as the State body responsible for implementing its provisions.
The essence of the convention is that if there is an apostille on a document originating from a country that is party to the convention, additional legalisation of documents for their use in another country that is party to it is not required.
After the process of apostille and translation, the documents gain the same legal weight in Cyprus as any other document initially issued within the island.
What does an Apostille look like?
The apostille can be in the form of a stamp or a certificate and is a rectangle with sides exceeding 90 mm, which contains regulated content. The details of the apostille are filled in in English. Required fields:
the title "Apostille";
reference to the formal document "The Hague Convention (1961)”.
The apostille is affixed on the back of the form or on a separate sheet with subsequent filing to the original. The latter happens only if there is not enough space for printing on the original letterhead.
What documents are required to have an Apostille?
Notarised documents, as well as certified copies or originals;
judicial - verdicts and decisions;
proof of education;
official public documents;
translated documents;
inheritance and donation documents;
documents provided to the companies registrar, e.g. incorporation certificates.
Apostille does not require passports, forms of diplomatic content and issued at customs or consulates.
What is the process of getting documents legalised?
The legalisation of documents is strictly regulated by law. The following need to be considered:
apostille services – the right of legal legalisation is given only to the Ministry of Justice and Public Order;
the language of the document is the state language (the text must be written in Turkish, Greek or English);
translation into the official language of the country - for texts written in other languages;
existence of notary certificates – for translated papers.
How long does legalisation last?
The apostille does not have an expiration date, but the document may specify the validity period. It is important to remember that the authorities where you plan to use the legalised document can also make their own requirements for the validity period.
Please note that Efkolaw is not a law firm and it does not offer any legal advice. Any content hosted on our site is meant to be informative and does not constitute or substitute advice from a qualified legal professional.
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