Do you intend to use your public documents abroad? This post outlines the actions required before you can use the document abroad.

The first step is always to confirm the requirement of the foreign government or organization. However, in most cases you may be required to notarize, authenticate and legalize the documents to prove its authenticity.

Notarization is the process of affixing the seal and signature of a notary public to a document to confirm the document’s validity and/or the identity of the maker/signer. Authentication confirms the genuineness of the notary seal and signature affixed to a legal document. Legalization involves having your document certified by the embassy, high commission or consulate of the destination country in Canada, confirming its validity in the destination country.

Actions Required to Prepare a Canadian Public Document for Use Abroad

1. CONFIRM THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE FOREIGN GOVERNMENT OR INSTITUTION where the documents will be used. Requirements may be confirmed with the foreign organization requesting your documents or the destination country’s embassy, high commission, or consulate in Canada. NotaryServe cannot advise on the requirements of a foreign organization or destination country
2. NOTARIZE the document. Visit a Notary Public near you to get the document notarized. You must have the original copy of the document and proof of ID. In addition, please note the following:
   1. Affidavits, oaths, declarations, affirmations and documents that require witnessing must be signed in the presence of the Notary Public. You must not sign your legal documents before visiting the Notary Public.
   2. A certified translation is required for documents not written in English or French Language.
   3. Inform the Notary Public of any special requirements of the destination country or organization
3. AUTHENTICATE the notary seal and signature with the Global Affairs Canada or the Official Document Service and obtain a Certificate of Authentication
4. LEGALIZE the document at the destination country’s embassy, high commission or consulate in Canada.

Effective January 11, 2024, legalization is no longer required if the destination country is a member of the Apostille Convention. The appropriate government agency in Canada will issue an Apostille Certificate, which does not need to be legalized. For more information, refer to our post on the changes to the authentication process in Canada.

Authenticating Your Canadian Public Document (After it has been Notarized)

Global Affairs Canada completes the authentication of Canadian public documents. Some provincial agencies also have the authority to authenticate documents issued in the province.

Authentication confirms the genuineness of the notary seal and signature affixed to a legal document. When confirmed, the applicable government agency will attach a Certificate of Authentication to the document.

Things to keep in mind when choosing whether to authenticate your document at Global Affairs Canada or your local provincial authority:

• The processing time and the fees associated with the authentication process
• Global Affairs Canada does not charge to issue a Certificate of Authentication but may have a longer processing time than provincial authorities. Refer to the table below for the details of authorized provincial agencies
• A provincial authority only authenticates documents issued in the province
• Not all countries will recognize a document authenticated by provincial agencies. Confirm with the foreign government or organization if they accept Certificates of Authentication issued by provincial authorities.

Legalizing the Canadian Public Document (After it has been Authenticated)

Legalizing the public document is the final step of the process and is required for countries that are not signatories to the Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents (the Apostille Convention). Canada recently joined the convention, which will come into effect in Canada on January 11, 2024. Until then, Canadian documents will need to be legalized to be used abroad.

Each country has its legalization requirements and process. Contact the destination country’s embassy, high commission or consulate in Canada for directions.

Table of Provincial Agencies Authorized to Authenticate Public Documents

Province	Authentication Authority	Contact
Alberta1	The Deputy Provincial Secretary’s Office	Deputy Provincial Secretary’s Office Room 111, Bowker Building, 9833 109 Street Edmonton, Alberta  T5K 2E8
British Columbia2	The Order in Council (OIC), Ministry of Attorney General	Ministry of Attorney General OIC Administration Office Attention: BC Authentication Program, 1001 Douglas Street, Victoria, BC V8W 2C5 BCAuthentication@gov.bc.ca Phone: 250 387-4376
Manitoba3	The Companies Office	Companies Office 405 Broadway, Room 1010, Winnipeg, MB, R3C 3L6
Ontario4	The Official Document Services	Official Documents Services 222 Jarvis St, Main Floor, Toronto, ON M7A 0B6 OR Service Ontario locations in Ottawa, Windsor, and Sault Ste. Marie and Thunder Bay
Prince Edward Island5	Legal Services Section, Department of Justice and Public Safety	Legal Services Section, Department of Justice and Public Safety PO Box 2000 95 Rochford St., 4th Fl. Shaw S., Charlottetown, C1A 7N8 Phone: 902-368-6522
Saskatchewan6	Authentication Services, Ministry of Justice	Ministry of Justice and Attorney General Authentication Services 1010 – 1874 Scarth Street, Regina SK  S4P 4B3 Phone: 306-787-5972 Email: authserv@gov.sk.ca
Quebec7	The Secretary of the Order	Chambre des notaires du Québec Attention: Certificate Officer 101-2045 Stanley Street, Montreal, QC  H3A 2V4
Yukon8	The Law Society of Yukon – for a Certificate of Authentication The Registrar of Notaries – for a Letter of verification	Law Society of Yukon 304-104 Elliott Street, Whitehorse. Phone: 867-668-4231 Fax: 867-667-7556

FOOTNOTES

1. Government of Alberta, Document authentication for other jurisdictions and countries, accessed on https://www.alberta.ca/document-authentication-other-jurisdictions-countries (November 12, 2023) ↩︎
2. British Columbia, Guide to the Authentication of Documents, accessed on https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/governments/government-id/guide-to-the-authentication-of-documents (November 12, 2023) ↩︎
3. Manitoba, Authentications, accessed on https://companiesoffice.gov.mb.ca/authentications.html (November 12, 2023) ↩︎
4. Government of Ontario, Authenticate a document for use outside Canada, accessed on https://www.ontario.ca/page/authenticate-document-use-outside-canada (November 12, 2023) ↩︎
5. Government of Prince Edward Island, Authentication of Documents, accessed on https://www.princeedwardisland.ca/en/information/justice-and-public-safety/authentication-of-documents (November 12, 2023) ↩︎
6. Government of Saskatchewan, Authenticating Notarized Documents, https://www.saskatchewan.ca/government/notarized-documents-legislation-maps/authenticating-notarized-documents (November 12, 2023) ↩︎
7. Chambre des Notaires du Quebec, Quality and Authenticity Certificates, https://www.cnq.org/en/the-chambre-and-your-protection/the-chambres-services/quality-and-authenticity-certificates/ (November 12, 2023) ↩︎
8. Government of Yukon, Find a Notary, https://yukon.ca/en/legal-and-social-supports/legal-services/find-notary (November 12, 2023) ↩︎

NotaryServe is authorized to notarize documents issued in Ontario intended to be used outside of Canada and can help prepare your Canadian document for international use. Our seals and signatures are registered with the Ontario Official Document Service (ODS) and recognized by Global Affairs Canada. For inquiries, contact NotaryServe at contact@notaryserve.ca or 613-558-5363.

This document is valid until January 11, 2024, and is intended for information only. It does not constitute legal advice.