In Vietnam, a government decree has been signed regulating all aspects of the implementation of the apostille procedure in the country — from informing citizens about new opportunities to preventing fraud. This is reported by the portal Vietnam.vn.
How it will be possible to legalize documents in Vietnam from September 11, 2026
Using documents issued in one country in the territory of another has always been a challenging task. Institutions and organizations often refused to accept foreign certificates, references, diplomas, and credentials due to the inability to verify their authenticity. In addition, problems arose related to bringing foreign documents into compliance with national legal norms.
For a long time, the only way to use documents abroad was through consular legalization — a special procedure that involved certifying the document in an authorized body of the issuing country (most often the Ministry of Foreign Affairs), officially translating it, and then having it certified at the consulate of the country of use. This is a rather long, expensive, and bureaucratic process.
To simplify the process, the Hague Convention was signed in 1961, abolishing the requirement for legalization of foreign official documents. According to this international act, to use a document issued by one of the Convention's signatory countries in the territory of all the others, it is enough to use an apostille.
An apostille is an internationally standardized form for recording information about the legality of a document for presentation in countries that recognize this form of legalization. It usually appears as a special stamp or certificate. However, in recent years, the electronic apostille (e-Apostille) has also become widespread — a special digital mark confirming the authenticity of documents issued in virtual form.
If a state does not wish to accept apostilles from a particular country, it may raise an objection to that country’s participation in the Convention or issue a special declaration. Specifically, apostilling will not be applied between these states.
Apostilling is obviously more convenient than consular legalization. However, for various political and legal reasons, many countries, including major ones, have long avoided joining the Hague Convention. Recently, however, there has been a real boom in apostilling worldwide.
In 2019, the Convention came into force for the Cooperative Republic of Guyana and the Philippines; in 2020 — for Palau and Jamaica; in 2022 — for Indonesia and Saudi Arabia; in 2023 — for Senegal, Pakistan, and China; in 2024 — for Rwanda and Canada; and in 2025 — for Bangladesh. Algeria has joined the Convention, and Thailand is preparing to join.
As Schmidt & Schmidt wrote earlier, one of the countries that long avoided joining the 1961 Convention was Vietnam. Despite active economic growth (Vietnam ranks 25th in the world by GDP at PPP) and attracting foreign investment (22nd in the world), it relied on the consular legalization procedure.
However, recently this document certification scheme became a “brake” on economic development. In 2025, the Vietnamese authorities even abolished the requirement for legalization of foreign documents for investors for certain administrative procedures. But the problem required a fundamental solution.
As a result, on December 31, 2025, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam deposited the instrument of accession to the Apostille Convention. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands serves as the depositary. No objections from other Convention participants regarding Vietnam’s accession have been received so far — but they have six months to submit any.
For Vietnam, the Convention will come into force on September 11, 2026. Until that moment, the use of foreign documents in Vietnam is possible, except in specific situations, only after consular legalization.
The authorized body for apostilling documents in Vietnam has been designated as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, namely: the Consular Department, which is part of the MFA headquarters in Hanoi, and the Department of External Relations of Ho Chi Minh City.
According to experts, the introduction of apostilling will simplify administrative procedures in Vietnam, have a positive effect on the investment climate, and make life more convenient for participants in international migration processes.
Accession to the Apostille Convention aligns with the party and government’s policy on promoting administrative reform, digital transformation, and international integration. It is expected to lead to a significant change in the procedures for using foreign government documents in Vietnam, thereby enhancing Vietnam’s position, prestige, and authority in international legal relations, fulfilling recommendations from international organizations, and contributing to improved business environment indicators, increased national competitiveness, and attracting external resources.
— states the official announcement of the Ministry of Justice of Vietnam.
How Vietnam will implement apostilling in its territory
Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son signed Decree No. 330/QD-TTg on February 25, 2026. This document contains an action plan for the implementation of the provisions of the 1961 Hague Convention.
The plan aims to ensure full and comprehensive compliance with the Convention, as well as the gradual introduction of apostilling, including electronic apostilles. Another goal is to improve the legal framework to facilitate cross-border use of government documents between Vietnam and other signatory states of the Hague Convention. The plan also defines the duties and powers of various ministries and institutions in Vietnam to effectively bring the Convention into practice.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will play the leading role in the process of implementing apostilling in Vietnam. It will coordinate the activities of ministries, agencies, local authorities, and Vietnam’s foreign representations — including in the development of communication campaigns and methodological guidelines. The MFA will also oversee the updating of information on apostilling on the Internet resources of the authorized state bodies.
By June 15, 2025, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in coordination with the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Finance, and other authorities, must draft a decree regulating the implementation of the Convention and submit it to the government.
In addition, Vietnam’s foreign affairs ministry, in cooperation with other state agencies, as well as the people’s committees of provinces and centrally governed cities, will develop the apostilling system itself, the electronic apostille database, and a service for their verification. All these tools are to be launched starting September 11, 2026.
Together with the Ministry of Justice and other authorized ministries, the MFA will participate in the sessions of the Hague Conference on Private International Law, representing Vietnam and proposing amendments to international acts on its behalf. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is authorized to participate in information exchange and training programs, respond to requests from other countries regarding the authenticity of apostilles, and, in turn, send similar requests abroad. A separate area of MFA work, according to the plan, is promoting apostilling on the international stage.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (in coordination with the Ministry of Justice and other authorized bodies) must approach the Supreme People’s Court and the Supreme People’s Procuracy to request that officials involved in the apostilling process receive training on document legalization. The MFA will train staff of various state agencies to verify the authenticity of foreign apostilles and to oversee national documents subject to legalization for use abroad.
All agencies involved in the apostilling process and the verification of foreign documents must issue instructions to their functional units concerning the detection of forgeries, as well as preventive measures in this area. The Ministry of Public Security will be involved in this work to prevent fraud.
The MFA, in coordination with the people’s committees of the relevant provinces and centrally governed cities, will prepare, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs will approve, a document delegating powers for apostilling to local authorities. This work will be carried out in stages from 2027 to 2030.
The MFA will also be responsible for developing an electronic apostille database. It will include information on issued apostilles, samples of foreign apostille stamps, samples of seals and signatures, as well as data on the titles of Vietnamese officials.
The process of submitting and receiving applications for apostilling in Vietnam will be carried out through the National Public Service Portal and the information systems of administrative permit procedures at all levels.
The authorities will provide the full range of public services in the field of apostilling online. The digital system will allow applicants to submit requests, track the document certification process, and receive results electronically. According to government plans, the authorized bodies will ensure complete information security throughout these processes.
What is an apostille?
What is an apostille? Why do I need an apostille? How do I get an apostille? - Our video will explain everything you need to know about the apostille. If you have a document that needs to be certified with an apostille for use abroad, Schmidt and Schmidt will assist you! We provide apostille services in more than 100 countries worldwide.
