FCDO Legalisation Office: how to get an apostille on UK documents

Version of October 22, 2026

How the FCDO Legalisation Office issues an apostille for UK documents: e-Apostille, notarisation and embassy attestation.

Apostilla UK — a private company, not a government body.

We are not affiliated with FCDO Legalisation Office. The official document is issued directly by the government body (see gov.uk): www.gov.uk/get-document-legalised. Our service is a separate support service (preparation, apostille, translation, delivery).

What the FCDO Legalisation Office is and what legalisation means

The FCDO Legalisation Office is the unit of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office that legalises UK documents for use abroad. Under Article 6 of the Hague Convention of 1961, the FCDO is the designated competent authority for the United Kingdom, as listed in the official register of the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH), and the Legalisation Office is the body that actually does the work: it checks the signature, stamp or seal on a document and attaches an Apostille Certificate.

An apostille is a certificate confirming that a signature, stamp or seal on a UK public document is genuine. It does not confirm the content of the document, only its origin. Once a document carries an apostille, it is accepted in all countries party to the Hague Convention of 1961 without any further legalisation. If your document is destined for a country outside the Convention, the apostille is only the first step, and embassy attestation follows.

For Ukrainians living in the UK, this matters in practice: an ACRO police certificate, a DBS certificate or a UK-issued power of attorney often needs an apostille before it is accepted by authorities abroad, for visa, residency or marriage purposes. The rules apply to any applicant; there is no separate track depending on nationality.

Which documents can be legalised, and which cannot

The Legalisation Office legalises UK public documents that carry an official signature, stamp or seal. Typical examples:

certificates issued by the General Register Office (birth, marriage, death, adoption);
ACRO police certificates and Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) certificates;
official filings and certificates from Companies House, signed or sealed by the registrar;
court documents and documents signed by UK public officials.

Private documents follow a different route. A power of attorney, a contract, a qualification certificate or a copy of a passport or driving licence can be legalised only if it has first been certified by a UK public official, in practice a UK notary or a solicitor (this is stated directly on the gov.uk page “Get a document legalised”). The notary or solicitor verifies the document or the signature, and the Legalisation Office then legalises the notary’s or solicitor’s signature, not the underlying document itself. Company documents that do not carry the registrar’s seal, such as internally prepared board resolutions, go through the same notary route.

Some documents are also excluded from the e-Apostille route even when the paper route is open. Certain ACRO police certificates and some General Register Office certificate formats are not available as e-Apostilles. In that case the only option is the paper-based service, so check eligibility first.

Paper-based apostille vs e-Apostille

The paper-based apostille is a physical certificate attached to the original document. It is the traditional format, used when you do not know whether the receiving party accepts electronic certificates, or when the document is not eligible for the electronic route.

The e-Apostille is issued electronically. The UK Legalisation Office began issuing electronic e-apostille certificates in a pilot: the first e-apostille was issued on 15 December 2021, and the FCDO announced the rollout of electronic legalisation in a press release dated 2 September 2022. The limitation is eligibility: the underlying document must exist in an eligible digital form, and the receiving party must accept an electronic certificate. If either condition fails, you fall back to the standard paper-based service.

How to order an apostille step by step

The process is straightforward once you know which service you need:

Ask the requesting party what they accept: paper Apostille Certificate or e-Apostille, and whether notarisation is required first.
Prepare the document: original public document, or a private document certified by a UK notary or solicitor.
Apply online through the Legalisation Office on gov.uk.
Send or submit the document: by post to Milton Keynes for paper services, or electronically for an e-Apostille.
Receive the apostilled document by return post, or the e-Apostille electronically.

If an application is refused, for example because a document was not certified by a notary when it should have been, you need to correct the document and resubmit.

When you need a notary or solicitor before the FCDO

Any document that is not a UK public document needs notarisation or solicitor certification first. This covers powers of attorney, commercial contracts, certified copies of passports and driving licences, and qualification certificates. The sequence is the same: the UK notary or solicitor certifies the document or witnesses your signature, and only then does the Legalisation Office legalise the notary’s or solicitor’s signature. Skipping this step is the most common reason for rejection, and it applies to every applicant, including Ukrainian nationals preparing documents for use abroad.

Embassy attestation for countries outside the Hague Convention

If the destination country is not a party to the Hague Convention of 1961, an apostille is not the end of the process. The document typically needs embassy attestation: after the Legalisation Office attaches the Apostille Certificate, the document is submitted to the Embassy or Consulate of the destination country in the UK for further authentication. The embassy sets its own procedures, so check them directly with the embassy before starting. This extra stage can only start once the apostille is issued.

Contacts and the office in Milton Keynes

The Legalisation Office is based in Milton Keynes. Paper documents are submitted and returned by post, and the office does not accept walk-in personal applications from the general public: personal submission at the business counter is only possible through FCDO-registered providers. Current addresses, opening arrangements and application instructions are published on the official gov.uk page “Get a document legalised”, which is the authoritative source for any change in procedures.

A worked scenario: ACRO certificate for use abroad

Situation: you hold an ACRO police certificate and a foreign authority asks for it with an apostille.

Steps: first confirm whether the authority accepts an e-Apostille. If your ACRO certificate is not eligible for the electronic route, order the standard paper-based service, apply online, post the original to Milton Keynes, and wait for the apostilled original to be returned. If the destination country is outside the Hague Convention, embassy attestation follows afterwards.

Result: a document that is accepted abroad, without a rejected application in between.

This page is for general information only and is not legal advice. Apostilles for UK public documents are issued exclusively by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) Legalisation Office; this site is not affiliated with any government body. Please consult a qualified professional before making decisions.

FAQ

Legalisation is the official confirmation that a UK document’s signature, stamp or seal is genuine, so the document can be used abroad. The Legalisation Office does this by attaching an apostille certificate.

Yes. The Apostille Certificate is issued by the Legalisation Office, which is the designated competent authority of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office under the Hague Convention of 1961.

Apply online through the Legalisation Office on gov.uk, then post your document to Milton Keynes or submit it electronically for an e-Apostille.

Only if the document is eligible for the e-Apostille service. Some documents, such as certain ACRO police certificates and some General Register Office certificate formats, are not available as e-Apostilles, so they need the paper-based route.

UK public documents issued with an official signature, stamp or seal, such as certificates from the General Register Office, ACRO police certificates and Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) certificates. Private documents like a power of attorney must first be certified by a UK notary or solicitor.

For countries outside the Hague Convention of 1961, an apostille alone is not enough. After the apostille, the document typically needs further attestation by the Embassy or Consulate of the destination country.

Step by step

Original or certified document: a UK public document in its original form, or a private document certified by a UK notary or solicitor.
Correct service selected.
Return address: a UK return address for postal services.
Receiving country confirmed: if the country is outside the Hague Convention of 1961, plan embassy attestation after the apostille.

How the process works

Check what the receiving party needs: confirm whether they want a paper Apostille Certificate, an e-Apostille, and whether the document must be notarised or certified by a solicitor before submission.
Prepare the document: UK public documents (birth, marriage, death certificates, GRO certificates, ACRO police certificates, DBS certificates) can go directly. Private documents need a UK notary or solicitor certification first.
Choose a service and apply: apply online through the Legalisation Office on gov.uk.
Send or upload the document: paper documents are posted to the Legalisation Office in Milton Keynes; digital documents are submitted electronically for an e-Apostille.
Receive the apostille: the office checks the signature, stamp or seal and attaches the Apostille Certificate, then returns the document by post or issues the e-Apostille electronically.

Official sources

Rules are checked against official sources.

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