RESOURCE · UPDATED MONTHLY
A complete, searchable directory of every country in the world and whether it accepts an Apostille under the 1961 Hague Convention — or requires full embassy legalization instead. Compiled monthly from official HCCH primary sources.
Last verified: · Source: HCCH Status Table (Convention 12)
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Showing 201 countries
The basics
An Apostille (pronounced uh-poh-STEEL) is a certificate that authenticates the origin of a public document — such as a notarized document, birth certificate, marriage certificate, court order, or diploma — so that it can be legally recognized in a foreign country. The Apostille was created by the 1961 Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents (Convention 12).
Every entry is drawn from the official HCCH Status Table for Convention 12. Our system checks the HCCH source monthly and updates this page when any country's status changes — a new accession, a change in in-force date, a formal objection, or a withdrawal. Countries with an active accession status but no in-force date yet (such as Algeria and Viet Nam in 2026) are flagged as "Pending" until the Convention enters into force for them.
For any country that is a member of the Hague Convention (129 countries as of 2026), the Apostille is the only authentication required. The destination country agrees in advance to accept it — no consulate involvement, no additional stamps.
For countries that are not members of the Hague Convention (70 countries), a document must go through the full embassy legalization chain: California Secretary of State authentication, then US Department of State authentication, then the destination country's consulate or embassy in the United States. This process takes 3–8 weeks in most cases; some consulates (China, Vietnam, UAE via non-Apostille path) require in-person appointments.
Sending documents to Thailand? Review our Thailand document legalization and Apostille guide for the current destination-specific process.
Common questions
Only for the 129 countries listed as "Apostille in force" above. For the 70 non-Hague countries, you need the full embassy legalization chain — a California Apostille alone will not be recognized.
Acceding to the Convention and having the Convention enter into force are two separate events, typically 6 months apart. During that window, embassy legalization is still required. Watch the "expected in force" date on the row.
Canada acceded to the Hague Apostille Convention effective January 11, 2024. Canadian-issued documents can now receive an Apostille from the appropriate Canadian competent authority. US-issued documents going to Canada also use the Apostille process now — no more embassy legalization for US-to-Canada work.
Mainland China (People's Republic of China) acceded to the Convention on March 8, 2023, entering into force November 7, 2023. Hong Kong and Macau have been Convention members separately since the 1960s–70s via UK/Portuguese succession. All three regions now use the Apostille process for US-issued documents.
For documents notarized in California or issued by California county recorders (birth, marriage, death certificates), the California Secretary of State issues the Apostille. Mobile American Notary handles the entire process — notarization, Apostille filing, and (when needed) certified translation and shipping. Personal documents from $175, business documents from $250, both all-inclusive of California's $20 government fee. See our Apostille service page for details or call (213) 933‑2507.
We handle the full California Apostille process — and embassy legalization for non-Hague countries.