Methods

How we authenticate documents

The three most common type of authentication are:

Authentication

Authenticating a document means verifying that the signature, stamp or seal is genuine.

Apostillisation

Issuing an apostille is another method of authenticating a document, which may be required by countries that have acceded to the Hague Convention. It involves adding a certificate, either stamped on the document itself or attached to it.

Legalisation

Legalising a document means authenticating the signature or seal of a foreign authority or functionary so that it's acceptable to an Irish court.

Remember...

Find out what kind of authentication you need from the authorities you're dealing with.

Documents

Documents we authenticate

• Original certificates (eg birth, marriage, death)
• Company documents issued by the Companies Registration Office
• Documents signed by the Chambers of Commerce in Ireland
• Court documents, powers of attorney, and other notarial acts
• Educational certificates and qualifications recognised by the Department of Education
• Medical reports signed by a doctor who is registered with the Medical Council of Ireland
• Garda Clearance letters (they must be issued from the Superintendent's Office of the Garda station where you last lived in Ireland and bear an original stamp and signature of the Garda Siochána).

Photocopies

We can Authenticate\Apostille photocopies of certain types of documents provided they have been certified by a practising Irish Solicitor or Notary Public in Ireland. However, you should in the first instance confirm with the authority to whom you are presenting the document that a certified copy will be acceptable to them. 

How to apply

Applying in Ireland

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic the Authentications/Apostilles Public Offices in Dublin and Cork are closed until further notice.

We are accepting documents by post. 

Postal Address

Authentications Section
Consular Division
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
80 St. Stephen's Green
Dublin 2
D02 VY53

Or (in the Munster region)

Authentication Section
1a South Mall
Cork
T12 TA46

You should submit documents by registered post and include a brief covering letter giving:

• your name
• return address
• telephone number
• the name of the country the document(s) are for use in
• the appropriate fee

Fees

Each Apostille/Authentication stamp is €40, with the exception of documents directly relating to the export of goods, which are €10 each.

Adoption Dossiers are €100 for the original pack, regardless of the number of labels required.  Additional documents relating to this original pack are free of charge.

Post Placement Reports are €40 for each report (usually up to four post placement reports)

Methods of payment

You can pay by:

Bank draft (drawn on a bank in Ireland and payable to the 'Department of Foreign Affairs')

Irish Postal order (payable to the 'Department of Foreign Affairs')

Credit/debit card (you will receive a phone call when the document is being processed and can pay over the phone)

Applying Outside Ireland

If you are living abroad and want to apostille or authenticate a document created in Ireland, the process is the same as for people living in Ireland: you have to apply to the Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade directly – see instructions above re sending applications by post. This cannot be done via the Embassy or the Honorary Consulates.

If you are living abroad and need to have a statutory declaration or affidavit witnessed, a Notary Public in your area should be able to assist you.