If you are travelling overseas, whether it’s to buy property, emigrate, visit a spouse, or start new employment, you may be required to provide your marriage certificate as documentation. For those that married in the UK, your marriage certificate will often need to be legalised before it is authenticated to be used abroad.
This requires obtaining an apostille stamp, which is a document attached to your marriage certificate that informs foreign authorities all the information on your certificate is genuine, including all signatures, seals and stamps.
All countries part of the Hague Convention require marriage certificates to have an apostille and you will need to prepare this in advance of travelling as it is not a document that can be obtained with immediate effect.
Who can issue an apostille?
Apostille stamps are issued by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), however it’s usually best to use a professional apostille service to handle the process for you. MSC Notaries have been helping customers across the UK to obtain apostille stamps for decades; we can provide all this for you and obtain your apostille as efficiently as possible without you having to worry about the finer details of the application process.
MSC Notaries can arrange apostille stamps for birth certificates from:
England
Wales
Scotland
Northern Ireland
MSC Notaries offer two services for marriage certificate apostille:
Apostille stamp for your marriage certificate. For those that have an official certificate ready to be apostilled, we carry out the entire process of obtaining an authenticated apostille stamp from the FCO and will post your legalised certificate to your chosen address ready for use.
Replacement copy and apostille stamp. We handle both the ordering of a replacement official marriage certificate from the GRO, and will then carry out the process of attaching an apostille stamp so it’s legalised and ready for use abroad. Fee for us to order a copy of the certificate for you is £60 for the priority service (2-3 working days) or £30 for standard service (15-20 working days). Once received from the registry office, we can arrange for the certificate to be apostilled.
We’re passionate about providing notary and apostille services for both business and personal documents that are affordable, accessible and efficient. You can get in touch to find out more about our pricing, let us know your required timeframe and we’ll provide a quick turnaround of your legalised documents.
Do I need to apostille my marriage certificate?
There are various instances where you may need an apostille for your marriage certificate whether it’s for personal, work or legal purposes:
Residing abroad with a spouse, for example, if your partner has been offered a job in a country where a visa is required
To confirm employment in another country
Visiting a spouse in another country
To obtain a visa or citizenship abroad, or apply for dual citizenship
For previously dissolved marriages to confirm divorce status overseas
Registering a marriage overseas
Purchasing or selling property jointly with a spouse overseas
Executing a will or for dealing with assets overseas in the event of death of a spouse to prove marriage status
Why use MSC Notaries to obtain your marriage certificate apostille stamp?
We can have UK marriage certificate’s apostilled at one of our offices in London on the same day you require one
We have access to FCO agents on hand to clarify the requirements of your case and speed up the process
We are constantly kept up to date with any new international regulations so can advise on further documentation required where necessary
Our apostille service is based in Central London and less than half an hour away from the FCO should you need a quick turnaround of your apostille
Our fees are competitive, affordable and fair
We can provide apostille services on evenings and weekends where possible
Enquire about marriage certificate legalisation
To enquire about obtaining an apostille stamp for your marriage certificate or another certificate such as birth or death, you can speak to our friendly team who will be happy to provide a quote and an estimated timeframe.