Legalization validates a foreign public document by verifying the authenticity of the signature and the legitimacy of the signing authority. Legalization does not certify the content of the document.
The Hague Apostille is a simplified procedure that has the same purpose as legalization and is applied between the States party to the Convention of 5 October 1961
, which abolished the requirement to legalize foreign public documents.
In general, unless a specific rule provides exemption from this obligation, all foreign public documents must be legalized or apostilled to be valid in Spain, and all Spanish public documents must be legalized or apostilled to be valid abroad.
Only original legalized or apostilled documents (or true copies issued by the same body that issued the original) are admissable. Legalized or apostilled photocopies cannot replace the original document.
The legalization or apostille has no expiry date, but if the document has a time-limited validity, that of the legalization or apostille shall be equally limited.
A. Legalization of Vietnamese documents at the the Embassy of Spain in Hanoi
Vietnam is not a party to the Hague Convention of October 5th 1961 abolishing the requirement of legalization for foreign public documents. Therefore, all Vietnamese documents must be authenticated through diplomatic channels in order to be valid in Spain.
Requirement for legalization: consular legalization can only be made on the originals of public documents or copies issued by the authority issuing the originals which have been previously legalized by the competent Vietnamese authorities. Legalization cannot be carried out over certified true copies.
Application form for legalization can be downloaded here.
The fee for this consular service can be found in number 29 of the TABLE FOR CONSULARE FEES
At this moment, there is no need for prior appointments for this procedure. Applicants or any third party can come to the Embassy from 09:00 to 12:00, Monday through Friday. The normal time for legalization processing is 7 days. After this period, applicants can call the Embassy (024-37715207/8/9) to ask for the result.
For the procedure of requesting legalization by courier, please include in an envelope addressed to the Embassy of Spain in Hanoi (4 Le Hong Phong, Ba Dinh, Hanoi) the following documents (the envelope must bear the phrase: "APPLICATON FOR LEGALIZATION"
- Application form for legalization
- Original documents and a whole set of photocopies of these and their corresponding translations (please make sure that the documents fully meet with our requirements for legalization before sending them by courier)
Once the documents are received at the Embassy, we will contact you via telephone/email to inform you if the documents included are qualified for this procedure. If yes, you will be kindly requested to make the payment of the corresponding fee, you will be kindly requested to make the transfer of the corresponding legalization fee, which is calculated for every seal (this fee is subject to quarterly updates and it is necessary to visit our website for the latest information in this regard – You can find the corresponding fee to legalization in the concept number 29 in the Fee Table). Please bear in mind that all expenses and commissions arisen from such payment should be on your own account. It is imperative that such expenses or commissions, if any, are separately broken down from the certified true copy fee. After having carried out the bank transfer, please email us at emb.hanoi.vis@maec.es so that we can check our bank account and proceed with the requested procedure.
Bank details for the transfer:
Name: EMBASSY OF SPAIN IN VIETNAM
Address: 4 Le Hong Phong St., Ba Dinh, Hanoi, Vietnam
Bank account: 700-009-656766 (VND)
Bank: Shinhan Bank Vietnam - Hoan Kiem Branch
Swift code: SHBKVNVXXXX
CITAD: 01616002
Please state clearly in the transfer order the name of the document bearer and the requested procedure (certified true copy fee).
You are kindly requested to AVOID making bank transfer on the last day of the month, or the last week of the trimester (the months of March, June, September and December). Please DON´T carry out the payment until we receive the document and confirm that those documents are admissible for legalization.
Applicants need to collect the result of the legalization applications by themselves or authorize a third party to do on their behalf (with due authorization). The Embassy of Spain WILL NOT MAIL back the results. Applicants can also contact a courier service to collect the documents on their behalf. In this case, applicants need to email previously to emb.hanoi.vis@maec.es informing the Embassy of the name of the courier service chosen. Kindly note that the Embassy is NOT responsible for filling out the applicable forms of the courier service nor pay for the courier service fee.
B. Legalization or apostille of Spanish documents
Information on how to legalize or apostille documents issued by the Spanish authorities is available (in Spanish) on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation.
The Consular Office does not legalize or apostille documents issued in Spain.
C. Legalization of documents issued by the Embassy of Spain in Hanoi
The documents issued by this Embassy of Spain in Hanoi must be legalized by the local authorities to be accepted as valid for their purposes.
Documents issued by Embassies and Consulates cannot be apostilled.
D. Obtaining an apostille for foreign documents
The Hague apostille is the exclusive competence of the authorities of the country issuing the document. Documents apostilled by the authorities of the issuing country do not require any additional procedure from the Consular Office, and may be presented directly in Spain.
The text of the Convention of 5 October 1961, which abolished the requirement to legalize foreign public documents, together with the list of States party to the Convention and the authorities in each State competent to apostille a document is available at the following link: https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/full-text/?cid=41
In the European Union, Regulation 2016/1191 exempts the interested party from the apostille requirement in certain cases. For more information, consult the European Union information page or the Regulation
CLICK HERE TO RETURN TO THE HOMEPAGE OF THE CONSULAR SERVICES