Learn how to obtain a police clearance certificate in France, when an apostille or legalization is required, and how to properly prepare the document for use abroad.
The Paris Notaries’ Chamber has published information on the certification of documents with an apostille under updated procedures in 2025. The information is available on the official website of the notaries’ chamber.
The People's Democratic Republic of Algeria has officially become a party to the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents (the Apostille Convention).
Since September, France has implemented a new procedure for consular legalization. This change is part of a large-scale reform of document authentication for use abroad, following the modification of the apostille process. Detailed information is available on the official portal of the French government administration.
France has updated its online portal for ordering document apostilles, and it is now working again. Earlier, French experts said that after the legalization reform, the portal was not working.
France publishes clarifications on new apostille procedures with exceptions on the official portal of the Hague Conference on Private International Law
As part of its ongoing reform of the document legalization process, the French Ministry of Justice has issued an order regulating the fees charged for apostille services. The text of the regulation is available on the Legifrance portal.
On March 25, 2025, the French Ministry of Justice issued an order establishing a personal data processing system known as the “National Public Signatures Database.” This register has been created to support the implementation of the country's apostille reform.
French municipalities have appointed special representatives who will interact with the High Council of Notaries regarding apostille matters. This is reported by MAIRE INFO.
The authority to certify documents with an apostille will be transferred from the courts of appeal to the notary chambers from January 1, 2025. This was reported by La Gazette Du Midi, citing the head of the Toulouse Notary Chamber, Hubert Letignier.
Degrees, certificates and other educational documents issued in France have no legal force abroad. Therefore, an apostille may be required in a number of cases, most notably when enrolling in graduate or post-graduate studies.
