Civil-status documents

Apostille for a marriage certificate

Registering a marriage in another country, applying for a spouse visa or changing a name abroad all start with the same document: an apostilled marriage certificate from the country where you married. We obtain it without you queuing anywhere.

130+ issuing countries Apostille on the public documentEU ↔ EU: no apostille needed

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2
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A marriage certificate is issued by the civil registry that recorded the marriage. Foreign immigration offices, courts, banks and pension funds accept it only with an apostille from the issuing country confirming the registrar’s signature and seal – whether the wedding took place in Las Vegas, Copenhagen, Istanbul or Berlin.

The document must be a recent original or certified extract. A copy of the family book, the wedding booklet or a photograph of the certificate is not sufficient. Many countries additionally want the certificate to be no older than six months, so we usually order a fresh one from the registry first – online where the country allows it, otherwise through our partners on site.

If the spouses have different nationalities the certificate is typically needed for the spouse visa, the registration of the marriage in the home country and later for a family passport. We combine apostille, sworn translation and, where required, consular legalisation in one request.

Between EU member states: Not needed between EU member states – use the multilingual standard form under Regulation (EU) 2016/1191.

Also known as: Eheurkunde / Heiratsurkunde (DE) · acte de mariage (FR) · certificado de matrimonio (ES) · certificato di matrimonio (IT) · certidão de casamento (PT) · evlilik cüzdanı / evlenme kayıt örneği (TR) · akt małżeństwa (PL) · huwelijksakte (NL)

Who issues it, who apostilles it – by country

An apostille is always issued in the country that issued the document. The most frequent issuing countries for a marriage certificate:

Issued in	Issued by	Apostille by
Germany	Standesamt (registry office) of the place of the event	State administrative apostille office (Berlin: LABO; elsewhere Regierungspräsidium, Bezirksregierung or ministry)Multilingual CIEC extracts (Formule A/B/C) are accepted without apostille in CIEC states; inside the EU no apostille at all (Reg. 2016/1191).
United States	State or county vital records office; Consular Reports of Birth Abroad by the Department of State	Secretary of State of the issuing state; US Department of State for federal documentsThe certificate must be a certified copy issued by the vital records office – hospital certificates cannot be apostilled.
United Kingdom	General Register Office (England & Wales), NRS (Scotland), GRONI (Northern Ireland)	Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) Legalisation OfficeRecently issued GRO certificates are apostilled directly; older ones may need a solicitor’s certification first. e-Apostille available.
France	Mairie (état civil) of the place of the event; Service central d’état civil in Nantes for events abroad	Since 2025 the chambers of notaries (conseils régionaux des notaires) are the competent authoritiesAsk for an extrait plurilingue for CIEC states; inside the EU no apostille (Reg. 2016/1191).
Spain	Registro Civil of the place of the event	Ministerio de Justicia / Gerencias Territoriales, or the Tribunal Superior de Justicia for judicial documentsSpain issues electronic apostilles; the certificado plurilingüe replaces translation in CIEC states.
Italy	Comune (ufficio di stato civile)	Prefettura – Ufficio Territoriale del Governo of the provinceEstratti plurilingue are accepted without apostille in CIEC states; EU regulation applies inside the EU.
Netherlands	Gemeente (burgerlijke stand)	Rechtbank (district court) – any of the 11 courtsDutch international extracts are multilingual; inside the EU no apostille.
Türkiye	Nüfus Müdürlüğü (civil registry) – nüfus kayıt örneği, doğum/evlilik belgesi	Kaymakamlık or Valilik (district/provincial governor) for administrative documents; e-Apostil online for many documentsFormül A/B/C multilingual extracts are accepted in CIEC states without apostille or translation.
India	Municipal corporation / registrar of births and deaths; marriage registrar	Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) after attestation by the state Home Department or authorised agenciesGermany does not accept Indian apostilles (objection) – verification via the German mission instead.
Philippines	Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) – security paper copies	Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Office of Consular AffairsGermany does not accept Philippine apostilles (objection).
Pakistan	Union Council / NADRA (birth, marriage – NADRA MRC certificate)	Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), Islamabad and camp officesEight EU states incl. Germany object – legalisation for those.
Ukraine	DRACS (civil registry office)	Ministry of Justice of Ukraine (apostille on civil-status documents)Apostille can be requested online via the Diia portal for many documents.
Poland	Urząd Stanu Cywilnego (USC)	Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MSZ), WarsawMultilingual USC extracts are accepted in CIEC states; inside the EU no apostille.
Canada	Provincial vital statistics agency	Global Affairs Canada or the provincial authority (ON, QC, BC, AB, SK) since January 2024
Australia	State Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages	Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) passport offices
Brazil	Cartório de Registro Civil	Any authorised cartório (CNJ e-apostille system)Brazil issues electronic apostilles through notaries nationwide.
Mexico	Registro Civil of the state	Secretaría de Gobernación (federal) or the state government (Secretaría General de Gobierno) for state documents
Colombia	Registraduría Nacional del Estado Civil / notaría	Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores – fully online e-apostille
China	Notarial certificate (公证书) based on the household register or hospital certificate	Ministry of Foreign Affairs or authorised provincial Foreign Affairs Offices (since 7 Nov 2023)Chinese civil documents are usually first notarised, then the notarial certificate is apostilled.
Russia	ZAGS (civil registry office)	Regional ZAGS administration / Ministry of Justice territorial bodies

Show all 20 countries

Other countries: see the issuing-country guides for all 130+ Contracting States.

Who needs it

Spouse & family visas

US, UK, Canadian, Australian, EU and Gulf immigration authorities require apostilled proof of marriage.

Registering the marriage at home

Türkiye, India, the Philippines, Brazil and many other countries register a marriage concluded abroad only against an apostilled certificate.

Name change & documents

Changing a surname on a passport or ID card after marrying abroad.

Property, banking, pensions

Joint property purchases, survivor pensions and bank mandates in another country.

What we need from you

Recent original marriage certificate or certified extract (we can order it)
Country of issue, destination country and purpose
Optional: sworn translation language

Who issues, who apostilles

Issued by: Civil registry where the marriage was registered (registry office, county clerk, mairie, comune, evlendirme dairesi …).
Apostille by: The Article 6 authority of the issuing country – see the table below for the twenty most frequent issuing countries.
Translation: Outside the EU a sworn translation into the official language of the destination is usually required; CIEC states accept the multilingual Formule B without translation.

Where this document usually goes

The route depends on the country pair. Popular destinations for a marriage certificate – change the issuing country in the checker below:

Check your country pair for a marriage certificate

Apostille, EU exemption or embassy legalisation – the answer per destination.

Issued inUsed inDocument

Choose the destination to see the exact route for a marriage certificate issued in Germany.

Frequently asked: marriage certificate apostille

The country where the marriage was registered. A Danish certificate is apostilled by the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a Nevada certificate by the Nevada Secretary of State. Notaryzer organises the apostille there and the sworn translation for the country where you now live.

No. The apostille authority needs a document with an original signature of the registrar: a newly issued certificate or a certified extract from the marriage register. We order it from the registry for you.

No one has to appear anywhere. The apostille is applied to the document, not to a person. You upload a scan for our check; we order the certificate and handle the authority.

The apostille has no expiry date. Some authorities want the underlying certificate to be recent (often under six months). Check the recipient’s rule; we advise on it during the pre-check.

The apostille is a fixed form with a French title and numbered fields, recognised in every Convention country without translation. The certificate itself stays in the language of the issuing country, which is why a sworn translation is often added.

Your quote at a glance

Notaryzer service fee

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Review, submission, tracking and return shipping. You see the exact amount in a written quote – nothing is charged before you accept.

Express available. 2× faster. Priority handling at every step and same-day dispatch as soon as the result is ready. The surcharge is shown in your quote.

Notary and authority fees

Statutory fee of the issuing country’s competent authority

Fixed by that authority’s tariff; passed through 1:1 and shown as a separate line in your quote.

Turnaround: Depends on the issuing country: same day to a few days where e-apostilles exist (Colombia, Spain, Brazil, Türkiye, UK), one to several weeks by post elsewhere. Your status page shows the expected completion date after the pre-check.
Competent authority: Designated authority of the issuing country (Art. 6) – see the country table
Route: Apostille on the public document

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