What is legalization?
Documents issued in one country (‘Source Country’) which need to be used in another country (‘Destination Country’) must be ‘authenticated’ or ‘legalized’ before they can be recognized as valid in the foreign country. This is a process in which various seals are placed on the document. • What kinds of documents are usually legalized? Such documents range from powers of attorney, affidavits, birth, death and marriages records, incorporation papers like company by laws and articles of incorporation , deeds of assignments , distributorship agreements, patent applications and trademarks, papers for adoption purposes, home studies, diplomas, transcripts, letters relating to degrees, non-marital status, references and job certifications and other legal papers . • Is legalization the same for all countries? The number and type of authentication certificates depend on the nature of the document and whether or not the foreign country is a party to the multilateral treaty on ‘legalization’ of do
