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Authentication of foreign documents to be used in Czechia

For the recognition of a foreign public document in the territory of the Czech Republic, the document must be duly certified. In the case of documents issued by a state that is a signatory to the Hague Apostille Convention, a simplified form of certification—an apostille—is sufficient. In other cases, so-called super-legalization is required.

Apostille (Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia)
 

Under the Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents (the Hague Convention) of 5 October 1961, the so‑called apostille is sufficient for the recognition of a public document in the territory of the Czech Republic. The apostille is usually affixed to the document by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the respective country. It bears the heading “APOSTILLE” and a reference to the Convention (Convention de La Haye du 5 Octobre 1961).

For more detailed information on authentication of foreign public documents (apostille / superlegalization), please visit the Public Administration Portal (in Czech) or the official website of the Hague Apostille Convention.

Note regarding Omani documents: In the case of Omani public documents, the Apostille Convention does not apply to documents intended for use in commercial transactions or to customs documents. In such cases, the procedure of super-legalization must be followed - see below.

Super-legalization (Yemen)
 

Super-legalization of a foreign public document consists in affixing a sequence of successive authentication labels/stamps. The document must first be authenticated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the state that issued the public document. Depending on the type of document, that ministry may require prior certification by another specialized authority (e.g. the Ministry of Justice for legal documents, the Ministry of Trade for commercial documents, etc.). After the document has been certified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the given state, it is necessary to obtain a superlegalization label from the diplomatic mission of the Czech Republic competent for that country, which completes the entire super-legalization process. The personal presence of the applicant is not required for this type of certification.

Superlegalization is subject to a consular adminstrative fee.

Note regarding Yemeni documents:

  • The Czech Republic recognizes only the internationally recognized government of the Republic of Yemen, and for this reason it can superlegalize only documents issued/authenticated by its authorities.
  • Documents issued by the Embassy of the Republic of Yemen in Riyadh cannot be used before Czech authorities, as this embassy is not accredited to the Czech Republic.

 

Please note that for the use of a foreign public document in the Czech Republic, in addition to higher authentication (apostille or super-legatization), an official or officially certified translation into the Czech language is often required. Exact requirements should be verified with the relevant state authority or institution in the Czech Republic to which the document will be submitted.