Frequently Asked Questions:
Bermuda Apostille and Legalization Services
General Questions
- Can Bermudan documents be legalized by Apostille?
- What types of documents can be legalized in Bermuda for use abroad?
- How long does it take to obtain an apostille on a document in Bermuda?
- How can I legalize Bermudan documents for use in the United Arab Emirates?
- How can I legalize Bermudan documents for use in Qatar?
- Who issues apostilles in Bermuda?
- What is a Bermudan Apostille Stamp and why would I need one?
- Who can legalize documents in Bermuda?
- What is document legalization in Bermuda?
- What services does Isarey Certification Services provide in Bermuda?
- Where can I see reviews of Isarey's Bermudan Attestation and Apostille Services?
- What does a Bermuda Apostille look like?
Birth, death and marriage certificates
- How can I obtain a copy of a Bermudan birth, marriage or death certificate?
- How can I obtain an apostille for a Bermudan birth, death or marriage certificate?
- I need an apostille for my Bermudan birth, death or marriage certificate - do I need to provide an original certificate?
Corporate documents
- How do I obtain an apostille for company registration documents issued in Bermuda?
- How can I obtain a Certificate of Good Standing for a company in Bermuda?
- How can I obtain a Certificate of Incorporation for a company in Bermuda?
- What certificates are available to certify the status of a company in Bermuda?
Criminal record certificates
- How can I obtain an apostille for my Bermudan Police Background Check?
- How can I obtain my Bermudan Criminal Record Certificate to use abroad?
Notarized documents
Answers
Can Bermudan documents be legalized by Apostille?
Yes - Bermuda as a British Overseas Territory, Bermuda is part of the Apostille Convention. Bermuda documents can be legalized for use abroad with an Apostille Stamp from the Parliamentary Registry in Hamilton when destined for other signatory countries without additional certification by the destination country.
When Bermuda documents are required for non-apostille countries, such as United Arab Emirates -
Taiwan -
Malaysia -
Thailand -
Qatar they need additional authentication by the UK Foreign Office and by the embassy of the destination country in London.
For further information about Apostille certification in Bermuda, see:
Bermuda Apostille Services
What types of documents can be legalized in Bermuda for use abroad?
Official documents that can be legalized in Bermuda include:
- Bermuda birth, death and marriage certificates
- Police Record Checks
- Incorporation Documents for Bermuda-registered companies (including Certificates of Incorporation and Good Standing Certificates).
To confirm whether your document is eligible for apostille authentication in Bermuda, please Contact us and we’ll check your document free of charge. For further information about our Bermudan apostille services and for assistance obtaining official copies of Bermudan documents, see:
Bermuda Apostille Services
How long does it take to obtain an apostille on a document in Bermuda?
Bermuda Apostilles from the Parliamentary Registry in Hamilton can normally be obtained in 2-3 business days
How can I legalize Bermudan documents for use in the United Arab Emirates?
Bermuda documents, such as certificates of incorporation and marriage certificates, required for submission to the United Arab Emirates must first be authenticated in Bermuda with an Apostille Stamp from the Parliamentary Registry in Hamilton. Once the document has been legalized in Bermuda, it must be authenticated with a second Apostille from the UK Foreign Office and then attested by the UAE Embassy in London.
The UAE embassy will now also provide digital attestation by the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, so that no further certifications are required for submission to UAE authorities after attestation by the embassy.
How can I legalize Bermudan documents for use in Qatar?
Bermuda documents required for submission to the authorities of Qatar or in support of Qatar visa applications must first be authenticated in Bermuda with an Apostille Stamp from the Parliamentary Registry in Hamilton. Once the document has been legalized in Bermuda, it must be authenticated with a second Apostille from the UK Foreign Office and then attested by the Qatari Embassy in London.
Who issues apostilles in Bermuda?
Apostilles for Bermuda documents are issued by the Parliamentary Register in Hamilton.
What is a Bermudan Apostille Stamp and why would I need one?
A Bermudan Apostille is a certificate that is affixed to a public document. It certifies the authenticity of the signature appearing on the document as that of an authorized public official in Bermuda and confirms the capacity of that official.
Bermudan Apostille stamps are often required when submitting a Bermudan document, such as a birth certificate, to the authorities of a foreign country or to a foreign embassy in Bermuda (for example, as part of a visa or citizenship application). Apostilles are recognised by the authorities and embassies of countries that are members of the Hague Apostille Convention
For more information on Apostilles, see:
The ABCs of Apostilles (PDF)
Who can legalize documents in Bermuda?
Bermuda documents needed for submission in non-apostille countries are legalized by the Parliamentary Registry and then by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
What is document legalization in Bermuda?
Document legalization (or attestation) is a procedure which authenticates a public Bermudan document so that it can be submitted in another country for official or legal purposes - for example, if you need to submit a Bermudan birth certificate to the authority or embassy of another country, it will often need to be legalized.
Legalizing a document in Bermuda certifies the authenticity of the signature appearing on the document as that of an authorized public official in Bermuda and confirms the capacity of that official.
- Because Bermuda is a member of the Apostille Convention, Bermudan documents can be legalized by means of an Apostille Stamp when being submitted to countries that are also members of the
Hague Apostille Convention
- If a Bermudan document is required for a country that is not a member of the Apostille Convention, it will need to be legalized both by Bermudan authorities and by the embassy of the recipient country (embassy in Bermuda or non-resident embassy accredited to Bermuda).
See:Document legalization - Wikipedia
What services does Isarey Certification Services provide in Bermuda?
Isarey Certification Services provides a range of services in Bermuda including Apostille and legalization services, notarization services, certified translation services and document retrieval services.
Where can I see reviews of Isarey's Bermudan Attestation and Apostille Services?
You can see reviews from past clients who have used our attestation and apostille services:
What does a Bermuda Apostille look like?
Bermuda Apostilles follow the standard format laid down in the Apostille Convention. Some examples of Bermudan documents certified with Apostille stamps:
How can I obtain a copy of a Bermudan birth, marriage or death certificate?
Bermuda birth certificates, marriage certificates and death certificates can be obtained from the Registry General Department
Certificates can be ordered by email using the order form provided by the Registry General Department on their website (credit card payments accepted). If you do not know the Certificate Registration Number, a search of the records must be performed (additional fees apply).
For assistance in obtaining Bermuda marriage certificates and other certificates of civil status, please Contact us
How can I obtain an apostille for a Bermudan birth, death or marriage certificate?
Bermuda birth and marriage certificates must be notarized before being submitted to the Parliamentary Registry in Hamilton. Replacement certificates can be ordered from the Bermuda Registry General.
For further information about Bahamas Apostilles, see:
Bermudan birth, death and marriage certificates
I need an apostille for my Bermudan birth, death or marriage certificate - do I need to provide an original certificate?
To obtain an Apostille for a Bermuda marriage certificate or birth certificate, an original issued by the Registry General is required. However, Isarey can obtain official copies from the Registry General, so you do not need to send your original certificate to obtain the Apostille.
How do I obtain an apostille for company registration documents issued in Bermuda?
Certificate of Incorporation and Good Standing Certificate can be obtained directly from the Bermuda Registrar of Companies,, then submitted to the Parliamentary Registrar for an Apostille. The following documents require prior notarization: Certificates of Incumbency, Memorandum of Association, Bye-laws, Resolution on Appointment of the First Directors, and Registers of Directors. For assistance obtaining and authenticating certified documents for Bermuda corporations, please Contact us.
How can I obtain a Certificate of Good Standing for a company in Bermuda?
Bermuda Certificates of Good Standing (Certificates of Compliance) can be obtained online from the Bermuda Registrar of Companies,
How can I obtain a Certificate of Incorporation for a company in Bermuda?
Certified copies of Bermuda Certificates of Incorporation can be obtained online from the Bermuda Registrar of Companies,
What certificates are available to certify the status of a company in Bermuda?
The following certificates are available to certify the status of a Bermuda Company:
- A Certificate of Compliance (Certificate of Good Standing) confirms that a company is duly incorporated under the laws of Bermuda, that the company is in compliance with all applicable administrative and filing requirements, has no outstanding Government fees or penalties and that the company is in continued legal existence (i.e. the company is not in voluntary liquidation or subject to strike-off proceedings).
- An Entity Extract only confirms the status of the company in the register (e.g. active, struck off) but does not confirm that the company is in good standing.
How can I obtain an apostille for my Bermudan Police Background Check?
Criminal Record Checks issued by the Bermuda Police Service can be authenticated with an Apostille from the Parliamentary Registry following certification by a Bermuda notary, Police certificates can be obtained from the Bermuda Police Service.
For further information, please see:
Bermuda Police Record Checks
How can I obtain my Bermudan Criminal Record Certificate to use abroad?
To obtain a Bermuda Criminal Record Check, an application must be submitted in person or by email to the Bermuda Police Service. Certificates can then be notarized and legalized for presentation abroad by the Parliamentary Registry in Hamilton.
Can documents be notarized remotely for a Bermudan Apostille?
It is possible to notarize some documents remotely in Bermuda using good quality scans and obtain Apostilles. Please Contact us for details.
To receive a quote, you can upload your documents using our online quotation form or send us your documents by email. After reviewing your documents and requirements, we will get back to you with a quotation:
If you don’t have the documents available, just describe the documents you need to certify, and we will get back to you with an estimation of cost and delivery times.
Using our quotation form, your documents will be uploaded over a secure connection and immediately encrypted on our server. For added protection, you can upload password-protected files and provide us with the passwords separately:
PDF,
PERSONAL DATA: If your documents contain personal data belonging to people outside your household, please ensure that you are authorised to share this data before uploading your documents. If your documents contain sensitive personal data, such as biometric data, medical data or data on criminal convictions, please ensure that you indicate this when prompted, upon submitting your documents. For further information on our processing of personal data contained in uploaded documents, please see:
Privacy Policy (Customer Inquiries)
For further information on confidentiality in our handling of document content please see:
Confidentiality (Client Content)