1. Requirements for Legalization
Thailand is not a signatory to the Hague Convention of 5th October 1961 (the Apostille Convention or the Apostille Treaty) that abolished the requirement for the legalization of documents, and therefore, under Thai law, foreign documents submitted to prove the identity of an individual or corporation as well as any other official documents must be legalized. Legalization can be accomplished by a Thai embassy or consulate in the jurisdiction from which the documents to be legalized originated and vice-versa, in a foreign relevant embassy or consulate in Thailand in which the documents are to be submitted.
2. Steps for legalizing Documents
The process of legalization or its necessity is determined on a case-by-case basis depending on the type of document and the requirements of the person/authority requesting such document. You should contact the relevant embassy first to find out the particular requirement and process pertaining to the document you intend to submit. The process may vary from:
(a) Just being notarized (no legalization required);
(b) Just being legalized (no notarization required but most likely professional translation will be required); or
(c) Being both notarized and legalized.
The process of legalization generally involves several steps as follows:
(a) Firstly, you must have a copy of the original document notarized by a notary public in your jurisdiction.
(b) Secondly, the signature of the notary public must be validated by the government agency which has issued it with a notary`s license (such agency will keep records and list of all qualified notaries in that jurisdiction and will have and internal method of verification to validate the identity of that notary public).
(c) Thirdly, you must submit the original document together with the notarized copy to the Thai consulate in your jurisdiction for authentication. The fees may vary for each consulate. The process takes a few days if submitted in person and up to two weeks if submitted by mail.
(d) Once the document has been legalized in such a manner, it can be submitted to the relevant authority to which the document is to be submitted. The authority may also require that document be submitted in their local language and not in English, in which case, the document will have to be translated from English to the native language.
However, it is noted that each country has its own procedure and requirements and some countries will forgo with one or more of the above steps for some documents. You should therefore contact the person/authority requesting such document in your jurisdiction to determine the required procedures prior to commencing the process to ensure you are complaint with it, including the fees and timing.
3. Steps for Legalizing Foreign Official Documents to be submitted in Thailand
The process of legalization of foreign official documents which are to be submitted in Thailand generally involves several steps as follows:
(a) Firstly, you must have a copy of the original document translated from the local native language of your country into English and notarized by a qualified notary public in your country.
The notary public has a dual purpose, to professionally translate the document and also to verify its authenticity as an official document issued by a competent governmental authority in your country.
(b) Secondly, the signature of the notary public must be validated by the Ministry of Justice or the Ministry of Internal Affairs and /or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the relevant jurisdiction. Please check prior to beginning the process with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in your country as to which authority or authorities must authenticate the relevant document. For some documents it could be the case that only authentication of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be required, and this varies from country to country so it is important to check the process beforehand.
(c) Thirdly, you must submit the original document together with the notarized and validated copy to the Thai embassy in your country for authentication. The fees may vary for each embassy or consulate. The process takes a few days if submitted in person and up to two weeks if submitted by mail.
(d) Once the document has been legalized in such a manner, it can be presented to the relevant Thai authority to which the document is to be submitted. The authority may also require that document be submitted in Thai language and not in English, in which case, the document will have to be translated from English to Thai.
It is noted that each country has its own procedure and requirements and some countries will forgo with one or more of the above steps for some documents. You should therefore contact the person/authority requesting such document in Thailand to determine the required procedures prior to commencing the process to ensure you are in compliance with it, including the fees and timing.
4. Steps for Legalizing Thai Official Documents to be submitted in a Foreign Jurisdiction
The process of legalization of Thai official documents which are to be submitted in a foreign jurisdiction generally involves several steps as follows:
(a) Firstly, you must have a copy of the original document translated into the required language of the relevant jurisdiction (usually English will suffice but you must first check the requirements as some are required to be submitted in the local native language and mere English will not suffice) and notarized by a qualified notary public in Thailand.
(b) The notary public has a dual purpose, to professionally translate the document and also to verify its authenticity as an official document issued by a competent governmental authority of Thailand.
As mentioned, some documents will not be required to be notarized, and in such a case, you simply start the process from (b) following the professional translation of the documents.
(c) Secondly, the signature of the notary public, or if notarization is not required, the document itself, must be validated by the Legalization Division, Department of Consular Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs:
In English:
Legalization Division
Tel : 0-2575-1057
Email : [email protected]
กระทรวงการต่างประเทศ
Department of Consular Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
123 Chaengwattana Rd., Tungsonghong Laksi, Bangkok, 10212
Tel : 0-2203-5000 กด 1 (เมื่อเข้าสู่ระบบกรมการกงสุล กด 5 เพื่อติดต่อเจ้าหน้าที่)
http://www.mfa.go.th/main/en/home
In Thai:
กองสัญชาติและนิติกรณ์ (Legalization Division)
Tel : 0-2575-1057
Email : [email protected]
กรมการกงสุล (Department of Consular Affairs)
เลขที่ 123 ถนนแจ้งวัฒนะ เขตหลักสี่ กรุงเทพฯ 10210
Tel : 0-2203-5000 กด 1 (เมื่อเข้าสู่ระบบกรมการกงสุล กด 5 เพื่อติดต่อเจ้าหน้าที่)
Fees: 400 baht per set of documents (get updates as to fees changes)
(c) Thirdly, you must submit the original document together with the notarized and validated copy to the relevant foreign embassy in Thailand for authentication. The fees may vary for each embassy or consulate. The process takes a few days if submitted in person and up to two weeks if submitted by mail.
(d) Once the document has been legalized in such a manner, it can be presented to the relevant authority to which the document is to be submitted. The authority may also require that document be submitted in the language of your country and not in English, in which case, the document will have to be translated from English to that language.
It is noted that each country has its own procedure and requirements and some countries will forgo with one or more of the above steps for some documents. You should therefore contact the person/authority requesting such document in your foreign jurisdiction to determine the required procedures prior to commencing the process to ensure you are in compliance with it, including the fees and timing.
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