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Apostilles on Canadian documents
Foreign public documents, such as civil status documents or documents drawn up by a foreign notary, are not always readily accepted by German authorities. For recognition in Germany, the receiving authority can require that the authenticity of a document be established either by an apostille or by legalization. This results from Section 438 of the Code of Civil Procedure (ZPO).
The legalization by the German diplomatic mission was replaced by an apostille following the entry into force of the Hague Apostille Convention in Canada on January 11, 2024. The apostille is issued by an authority from the same country in which the document was issued. This means that there is no need to contact a German diplomatic mission abroad.
You can find the information you need about the process of issuing the apostille on the following websites:
In the opposite case, Canadian authorities have so far generally refrained from legalizing German documents. Administrative practice will show whether this will continue to be the case after the application of the Convention. For the Apostille on German documents you wish to use in Canada please contact the Canadian Embassy in Berlin or the administration in Germany that issued the document.