The Hague Convention of October 5, 1961 greatly simplified the international document flow. After the ratification of the agreements reached at it, the countries that joined the convention pledged to recognize the documents created on the territory of other states that also signed it, without additional and lengthy procedures. This resulted in significant time and financial savings. Let's take a closer look at what this agreement consisted of and find out who the countries participating in the 1961 Hague Convention were.
Reason for calling the convention
But first, let's define what exactly made the international community think about the need to simplify the document flow between states.
Before 1961, document flow between different countries was inconvenient. In order for it to be recognized in another state, it was necessary to go through an additional multi-stage procedure of consular legalization. Depending on the specific country, it could even take several months. It also happened that during this time the document has already lost its relevance.
It had to be notarized, translated into the desired language. AndThe translator's signature also required notarization. After that, a certificate was required from the Ministry of Justice and the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the country that sends the document. In the end, it was necessary to legalize correspondence at the embassy of the country where it was sent.
In addition, the need to constantly legalize a large number of papers slowed down the work of departments and consulates in other areas of activity, required the allocation of additional staff, which led to material costs.
Content of agreements
What is the essence of the agreement signed by the member countries of the 1961 Hague Convention? Let's deal with this issue.
The agreements stated that all countries that joined them recognized official documents issued on the territory of other states participating in the agreement as valid without special consular legalization.
The only restriction was that this documentation, in order to confirm the authenticity of the signature and the authority of the signatory, had to be certified by an apostille.
What is an apostille?
What did the Hague Convention mean by this action? Apostille is a special square stamp containing certain details of the established pattern.
This stamp is mandatory, regardless of the country of filling and the country where the document will be provided, at the top it must have the name onFrench "Apostille (The Hague Convention of October 5, 1961)". Among the mandatory details that should have been present on the apostille, the following can be mentioned:
- name of the country that issued the apostille;
- name of the person who signed the document;
- his position;
- name of the institution from which the documentation originates;
- settlement where the certificate was held;
- ID date;
- name of the government agency that certifies the documentation;
- Apostille serial number;
- seal of the institution that certifies the documentation;
- signature of the official who performed the certification.
In addition, the Hague Convention has established that the standard size of an Apostille must be at least 9 x 9 cm. In practice, an Apostille does not always have a square shape, as previously stated in the agreements. For example, in Russia it often has the shape of a rectangular stamp. In most cases, the receiving party does not find fault with the standard form of apostille, but there have been precedents when it refused to accept such documentation.
The nuances of using an apostille
The language of the apostille can be either one of the official languages of the convention (French or English), or the language of the country that issued it. In the vast majority of cases, bilingualism is used, that is, both the language of the country that affixed the apostille and one of the official languages of the convention.
Apostille can be affixed both directly on the certified document, and on a separate piece of paper attached to it.
Currently, a number of states are also developing the issue of using electronic Apostilles. This issue has become very relevant in connection with the increasing spread of electronic document management. In particular, these countries include the USA, Australia, Andorra, Ukraine, New Zealand and other states.
Where is the apostille placed?
Let's find out on which specific documents the countries-participants of the Hague Convention of 1961 affix an apostille.
This list of documents includes correspondence from government agencies or other organizations that are subject to the jurisdiction of a particular country, notarial deeds, administrative documents, as well as various official notes and visas confirming the date. Also, any signature of a document that has not been certified by a notary is certified with an apostille.
Exceptions to the Hague Convention
At the same time, there are a number of conditions under which the document flow between different countries does not even need an apostille, as required by the Hague Convention.
First of all, the document flow in a more simplified form is carried out if there is a bilateral agreement between countries on the acceptance of documents without additional formalities. In this case, even if both countries are parties to the Hague Convention, an apostille is not required to confirm the authenticity of documents. It is enough to applynotarized translation of the document. For example, Austria and Germany, as well as many other countries, have a similar agreement between themselves. But these are precisely bilateral agreements between countries, and not a separate convention for several states.
You also do not need to put an apostille if the foreign organization where you send the document does not require special certifications.
Do not require apostille certification of documents that come directly from diplomatic and consular offices.
The last exception are papers related to customs operations or those that are of a commercial nature. But when separating commercial from non-commercial activities, problems can arise, since there is no clear distinction. For example, many banking documents that can be classified as commercial transactions are nevertheless certified by an apostille.
Signing the convention
The terms of the convention were negotiated at the Conference on Private International Law in The Hague in 1961.
This conference has been held in the Dutch city since 1893. The goal of the states participating in it was to unify private international law (PIL), to rid it of unnecessary formalisms and red tape. By 1955, the Conference had become a full-fledged organization with member states.
In different years, during the PIL Conference, conventions were signed on civil procedure, on access to justice, on the law in the operation of the sale of goods andmany others. At one of these meetings in 1961, the Convention on the Legalization of Foreign Documents was signed.
Countries Parties to the Convention
Participation in the development of the Convention was taken by all states that in 1961 were members of the PIL Conference. Let's find out who are the countries participating in the 1961 Hague Convention. This will allow us to identify the backbone of the states that were primarily involved in the removal of restrictions on the legalization of documents.
These countries are: Sweden, Spain, UK, Greece, Norway, Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, Austria, Ireland, Turkey, Finland, Germany. Luxembourg, Switzerland, Italy, Japan, Egypt and Portugal. Argentina, Brazil, India, the USSR, the USA, China and many other large states of the world were not members of the PIL Conference, and therefore did not participate in the development of agreements.
First countries to join the Convention
At the same time, it should be noted that the development of agreements on the use of an apostille has not yet meant the automatic entry into force of this provision on the territory of the participating countries. No, they all had to additionally decide on accession and ratify it, in accordance with domestic law. At the same time, countries that did not participate in its development could also join the Convention.
The first states on whose territory the Convention came into force are Great Britain, France, the Netherlands and Hong Kong. This happened only four years after the signingagreements, in 1965. Germany, Botswana, Barbados and Lesotho joined the following year. A year later - Malawi, and in 1968 - Austria, M alta, Mauritius and Swaziland.
Further additions
In the next two decades, the following countries joined the treaty: Tonga, Japan, Fiji, Liechtenstein, Hungary, Belgium, Switzerland, Portugal, Argentina, Macau, Cyprus, Bahamas, Suriname, Italy, Israel, Spain, Dominican Republic, Seychelles, Luxembourg, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Vanuatu, USA. The entry of the last of these countries is especially important. At the end of the above period, Antigua and Barbuda, Norway, Greece, Turkey, Finland, Brunei joined the Convention.
In 1991, the number of participating countries was replenished with Slovenia, Panama, Macedonia, the USSR and Croatia. In 1992, Russia joined the treaty as the legal successor of the collapsed USSR. France especially welcomed this event. From now on, you can apply the apostille in our country.
In addition, in the same year, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Belarus, and the Marshall Islands became parties to the agreement. In 1993, only one country, Belize, joined the treaty. But the following year, the Convention was ratified by two countries at once - Saint Kitts and Nevis, and then Armenia. These countries immediately received the right to freely use the Apostille in almost all treaty states, including Russia and the United States. Australia and Mexico became members of the Convention the following year. Undoubtedly, the entry of these large countries has strengthened the position of this community. In 1995, alsoSouth Africa and San Marino joined the treaty.
Over the past 15 years, the Convention has also been ratified by Latvia, Liberia, El Salvador, Andorra, Lithuania, Niue, Ireland, Czech Republic, Venezuela, Sweden, Samoa, Trinidad and Tobago, Colombia, Kazakhstan, Namibia, Romania, Bulgaria. Estonia, New Zealand, Slovakia, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Monaco, Ukraine, Albania, Iceland, Honduras, Azerbaijan, Ecuador, Cook Islands, India, Poland, Montenegro, Denmark, Moldova, Georgia, Sao Tome and Principe, Dominican Republic, Mongolia, Cape Verde, Peru, Kyrgyzstan, Costa Rica, Oman, Uzbekistan, Uruguay, Nicaragua, Bahrain, Paraguay, Burundi. Kosovo, Brazil, Morocco and Chile were the most recent to join in 2016.
Recognition issue
But still, not all countries participating in the 1961 Hague Convention recognize the apostilles of other members. The reasons for this can be both technical or formal, and political. For example, many countries in the world do not recognize Kosovo as a state. For this reason, the apostille of this country is not recognized by Ukraine, Serbia, Belarus, Russia. France, on the other hand, recognizes Apostilles from all Member States.
For technical reasons, the apostille of Ukraine was not recognized by Greece until 2012.
Meaning of the Hague Convention
It is difficult to overestimate the importance of the Hague Convention. After its adoption, document flow between different countries became much easier. Every year more and more states join the Convention: Republic of South Africa, Venezuela, Kosovo, Chile…
After the adoption of the Convention, countries that have ratified it do not need to go through a long and inconvenient procedure for legalizing documents. Therefore, even small island states such as the Marshall Islands, Antigua and Barbuda and Cape Verde signed the agreement.
