How can I check whether my country is a Hague Apostille country?

Enter the country that issued the document and the destination country in the checker. Both must have the Apostille Convention in force for an apostille route to be generally available.

Do I need apostille or embassy attestation?

Use an apostille when the Apostille Convention is in force for both countries and applies between them. If either country is not covered, authentication followed by embassy or consular attestation or legalisation may be required.

How do I check whether an apostille is valid between two countries?

Check that the Apostille Convention is in force for both the country that issued the public document and the destination country. Then confirm any objections, territorial rules, document eligibility, and recipient-specific requirements.

Is every HCCH member country an apostille country?

No. HCCH membership and participation in the 1961 Apostille Convention are different legal statuses. Some Apostille Convention parties are not HCCH members, and some HCCH members are not parties to the Apostille Convention.

What if the destination country is not on the Apostille Convention list?

An apostille will generally not replace legalisation for that destination. The document may need authentication followed by embassy or consular legalisation. Confirm the exact chain with the receiving authority.

Does an apostille guarantee that my document will be accepted?

No. An apostille authenticates the origin of a public document; it does not certify the document's content or force a receiving organisation to accept it.

Is Thailand an apostille country?

Thailand is listed as a contracting party with the Convention scheduled to enter into force on 28 February 2027. Until then, an apostille route should not be assumed.

Is Viet Nam an apostille country?

Viet Nam is listed as a contracting party with the Convention scheduled to enter into force on 11 September 2026. The effective date must be reached before relying on the Convention.

Hague Country Checker: Apostille or Attestation? (2026)

Check if your country is a Hague Apostille country, whether apostille is accepted between two countries, or if embassy attestation is required.

Hague country and apostille checker

Is your country a Hague Apostille country?

Check whether an apostille is accepted for your document route—or whether you may need attestation or embassy legalisation.

India is selected as the default document-origin country. Search using an official or familiar destination name, such as Republic of Korea, South Korea, Korea, or UAE. The country data loads when you use the checker.

Data reviewed: 29 August 2026

HCCH status table update: 30 June 2026

Sources: MEA Attestation/Apostille guidance,HCCH Apostille Convention status table, and HCCH Members.

Want to check if your country is a Hague country, find out whether an apostille is acceptable, or decide between attestation and apostille? Use the country checker below. It checks both where the document was issued and where it will be submitted.

The legally precise question is whether both countries participate in the Hague Apostille Convention and whether the Convention is in force between them. Being an HCCH member alone does not make a country an Apostille Convention country.

Is apostille accepted in my country?

An apostille is generally acceptable—and can replace embassy or consular attestation/legalisation—when:

the document is a public document covered by the Convention;
the Convention is in force for both the issuing country and destination country;
the Convention applies between those two parties, including any objections or territorial rules; and
the receiving authority accepts the document, format, language, and translation presented.

An apostille authenticates origin—not content

An apostille verifies the signature, the capacity of the signer, and the seal or stamp on a public document. It does not prove that every statement inside the document is true, and it does not guarantee acceptance by a university, employer, court, immigration office, or other recipient.

HCCH member vs Apostille Convention party

These terms are often used as if they mean the same thing, but they do not:

An HCCH member belongs to the Hague Conference on Private International Law as an organisation.
An Apostille Convention contracting party is bound, or scheduled to be bound, by the 1961 Convention.
A country can be an Apostille Convention party without being an HCCH member.
An HCCH member is not automatically covered by the Apostille Convention.

The official HCCH pages currently report 93 member states plus the European Union, while the Apostille Convention status table reports 130 contracting parties. The checker above uses the Convention status table for the apostille decision and the member list only as additional context.

How to use the Hague country checker

Enter the document-issued country first. You may use the official country name or a common alternative, such as Republic of Korea, South Korea, or Korea. This is normally the country whose authority issued the birth certificate, degree, police clearance certificate, company record, power of attorney, or other public document. Then enter the destination country where the document will be submitted.

If both countries have the Convention in force, the checker reports that an apostille route is likely available. If either country is absent or has a future effective date, confirm the legalisation route before submitting the document.

Important exceptions to check

Even when both countries appear in the list, do not treat the result as a guarantee. Check:

objections between contracting parties, especially after an accession;
territorial extensions for overseas territories or constituent areas;
whether the document is a covered public document;
exclusions for diplomatic, consular, or certain commercial and customs documents;
whether a certified translation, recent issue date, original, or electronic apostille is required; and
the receiving authority’s own procedural rules.

For the definitive legal position, open the official HCCH Apostille Convention status table and its country-specific declarations and notifications.

Apostille or attestation: which one do I need?

If both countries are covered by the Apostille Convention, you will generally need an apostille. If either country is not covered, the usual alternative is authentication followed by embassy or consular attestation/legalisation. The exact chain depends on the issuing country, document type, and destination mission.

For documents issued in India, see our India apostille process guide, or contact VerifiedApostille for a document-specific route review.

Data source and update policy

This page was reviewed on 29 August 2026 using the MEA Attestation/Apostille guidance, its Appendix B country PDF, the official HCCH member page, and the Convention No. 12 status table. The HCCH status table displayed a last-update date of 30 June 2026. The MEA source governs the Indian attestation process; the HCCH status table is the authoritative live reference for Convention participation, entry into force, objections, and territorial extensions.