Apostille UK
An Apostille UK certificate is the stamp that makes a British document legally recognisable abroad, and without it most foreign authorities will simply refuse what you send them. 2E Apostille handles the whole process on your behalf: we check the document is in an acceptable form, get any certification it needs first, and submit it to the FCDO Legalisation Office. Our standard service is £48 per document plus the government fee with a three to four working day turnaround, and our premium service is £90 per document plus the government fee for the next working day. We work with documents from across the UK and return them anywhere in the world, so you do not need to be in London to use us. Around 487 customers have rated the service five stars on Google, which is the number we would rather be judged on than any claim we make ourselves. You can order online in a few minutes or read on for how the process works.
Apostille Documents: What Can and Cannot Be Legalised
The FCDO can only apostille documents bearing a signature, seal or stamp it already holds on file, which is why the form of your document matters as much as its content. Original UK-issued public documents such as birth, marriage and death certificates, ACRO police certificates and Companies House documents are usually straightforward. Private documents such as company letters, contracts, medical reports and statutory declarations must first be certified by a UK solicitor or notary before an apostille can be issued. Photocopies, laminated documents and anything issued outside the UK generally cannot be apostilled in their existing form, though there are usually routes around this. The official government position is set out at GOV.UK’s guide to getting a document legalised. If you are unsure, send us a photograph and we will tell you before you pay anything.
UK Apostille: How the Process Actually Works
Every UK apostille is issued by the Legalisation Office of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and no agent can change what that office will or will not accept. What an agent does is get the preparation right, submit correctly, and deal with the office directly rather than leaving you to work out the requirements from scratch. We check the document first, arrange solicitor or notary certification where it is needed, submit, and return the apostilled document to you by tracked courier. If something is going to be rejected, we would far rather tell you at the checking stage than take your money and hand you a rejection three days later. You can read our step-by-step guide to getting an apostille for the detail. Most rejections we see elsewhere come from problems that were visible before submission.
Apostille Services UK: Nationwide, Not Just London
We are based in London near the embassies, which matters for attestation work, but the apostille service itself is used by clients across the whole of the UK. You post your documents to us by tracked mail, we handle the submission, and they come back by tracked courier to any UK or international address. For eligible digital documents an e-Apostille can be issued electronically, removing the postage step altogether. Read our comparison of e-Apostille and paper apostille to see which applies to your document. Clients ordering from outside the UK are welcome and we do this regularly.
Apostille Document Requirements
Send the original document wherever possible, unfolded, unlaminated and undamaged, since the FCDO attaches the apostille physically to the page. Names must match your passport; a mismatch is one of the most common causes of a document being rejected by the receiving authority abroad. Check with the organisation requesting the document whether they also require a certified translation, as this frequently comes up only after the apostille has been issued.
Why Choose 2E Apostille
2E Apostille checks every document before submission rather than passing problems on to the FCDO and charging you for the rejection. Pricing is published in full, with the agent fee and the government fee shown separately so you can see exactly what you are paying for. We handle solicitor certification, notarisation, certified translation and embassy attestation in-house, so a document needing several steps stays with one provider. Our office is in London near the embassies, we answer the phone on 020 8396 1433, and 487 customers have rated us five stars on Google. Read our frequently asked questions or order online to get started.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does a UK apostille take?
Our standard service takes three to four working days and the premium service returns your document the next working day. Timings run from when we receive the document, not from when you post it.
How much does an apostille cost?
From £48 per document plus the government fee on our standard service, or from £90 per document plus the government fee for next working day. Embassy attestation starts from £110 plus embassy fees.
Do I need to send original documents?
Usually yes, because the apostille is physically attached to the document. Some digital documents qualify for an e-Apostille instead. Send us a photograph first and we will confirm.
Can you apostille a document if I am not in the UK?
Yes. We work with clients worldwide. Post the document to us by tracked mail and we return it by tracked courier to any international address.