The Philippines became a party to the 1961 Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents, or the Apostille Convention, last May 14, 2019, dispensing with the need to authenticate public documents issued abroad by the Philippine Embassy or Consulate to be valid in the country.

Previously, public documents executed or issued abroad such as birth, marriage, and death certificates, or even notarized Special Powers of Attorney – usually required in real estate transactions involving Overseas Filipino Workers, migrants and even foreigners – had to go through a “chain authentication” that required certification from the relevant government agency or office, the Department of Foreign Affairs, and the Philippine Embassy. Conversely, documents executed in the Philippines that were to be used abroad had to go through the same process.

By becoming a party to the Apostille Convention, the Philippines has agreed to rely on the mere issuance of an “apostille”, issued by authorities designated by each State Party (the DFA in the case of the Philippines) instead of the formalities of a full authentication or legalisation process that involves a lot of time and money. 

Now, there is no longer a need for that “red ribbon,” but just an apostille  certificate. Public documents executed in countries that are parties to Apostille Convention (except for Austria, Finland, Germany and Greece) can now be used in the Philippines no longer have to be authenticated by the Philippine Embassy or Consulate General once Apostillized.

There are still some countries that are not yet parties to the Apostille Convention. Documents issued or executed in those countries still have to be authenticated by the Philippine Embassy or Consulate General before they can be used in the Philippines.  Conversely,  documents issued or executed in the Philippines still a need to be authenticated  by the concerned Foreign Embassies or Consulates General of those countries.

Authentication fees at the Department of Foreign Affairs is at PhP100 (regular processing) and PhP200 (expedited processing) per document.

There are currently 117 members of the Apostille Convention. Click here for the updated list.