When a Croatian document is used abroad or a foreign document in Croatia, three different procedures often occur: Apostille, full legalization and certified translation. These procedures are not the same and one does not replace the other.

What is an Apostille?

Apostille is a certificate introduced by the Hague Convention from 1961. It confirms the authenticity of the signature on a public document, the capacity in which the signatory acted and, if necessary, the identity of the seal or stamp on the document.

Apostille does not confirm the authenticity of the content of the document and does not represent a translation. A document with an Apostille certificate may still need translation into the language of the country in which it will be used.

When is full legalization used?

Full legalization is applied when the document goes to a country that is not covered by the Hague Convention, when there is no applicable bilateral agreement and when it is not possible to use simplification according to the rules of the European Union. The procedure may involve several authorities: the competent court, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the diplomatic-consular representation of the country where the document will be used.

Since the requirements of the countries differ, the instructions of the recipient of the document or the competent embassy should be checked before starting the procedure.

When is legalization not required?

Trust can be excluded in several situations:

•     if EU Regulation 2016/1191 applies for certain public documents between member states;
•     if Croatia and another country have a bilateral agreement by which trust has been terminated;
•     if the institution receiving the document expressly accepts the document without additional trust.

It is important to check whether the simplification includes exactly the type of document and the exact purpose for which it is submitted.

What does a court interpreter do?

A permanent court interpreter translates the document and certifies that the translation fully corresponds to the original. The certified translation contains the interpreter’s certificate, date, number from the records, signature and seal. If the document has an Apostille, as a rule, the content of the Apostille certificate is also translated.

Court interpreter does not issue Apostilles and does not decide whether a legalisation is needed. It can, however, help to identify the order of the procedure and prepare the translation in a form suitable for submission to the institution.

What is the correct order?

The most common sequence for a foreign public document is:

1. obtain an original or an official copy;
2. obtain an Apostille or other legalisation in the issuing country, if necessary;
3. translate the document together with all seals, notes and legalisations;
4. submit the original and the certified translation to the competent institution.

However, there are procedures in which the signature of the court interpreter is requested after the translation. That is why the order should always be checked according to the specific case.

The most common mistakes

•     the document is translated before the necessary Apostille certificate is added;
•     only the first page of the document is submitted, without the back and stamp;
•     the Apostille is assumed to replace the translation;
•     bilateral agreement or special EU regime is not checked;
•     an ordinary translation is used where a certified translation is required.

How to avoid double costs?

Before ordering a translation send a scan of the entire document and specify the country and institution where it will be used. On the basis of this information, it can be assessed whether a certificate should be obtained first and whether the original, a certified copy, or both documents should be translated.

CALL TO ACTION

Not sure if you need an Apostille or a certified translation? Send us the document and information about the country of use. We will guide you in the correct order before creating the translation.

INFORMATION NOTE

The content is informative in nature and does not constitute legal advice. The requirements may differ depending on the country, the competent authority, the type of procedure and the specific document. Before submitting, you should always check the current instructions of the competent institution.