Document for a non-Apostille country?

Countries that never joined the Hague Apostille Convention (e.g. Canada, the UAE, and Vietnam in most cases) don't accept an apostille at all — they require consular legalization: a two-step chain of confirmation that ends at that country's own embassy in Korea, rather than a single certification from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Why this process exists

Without a shared treaty like the Hague Convention, a non-member country has no automatic way to trust a stamp or seal from a foreign government office. Consular legalization rebuilds that trust manually: the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs first confirms the document is genuine, and then the destination country's own embassy in Seoul re-confirms it on their end, since only their own diplomatic staff can vouch for what their government will accept.

How consular legalization works

1. Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmation — the Korean document (or its notarized/translated version) is confirmed as authentic public or notarized paperwork.
2. Embassy legalization — the destination country's embassy in Seoul then legalizes the confirmed document for use back in that country, often requiring its own appointment and fee.

What we coordinate

• Document preparation and notarization, if the document is private rather than government-issued
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmation filing
• Embassy appointment scheduling and legalization filing, across all embassies in Seoul
• Certified translation into English or the destination country's language, where the embassy requires it

Who typically needs this

Foreign nationals and Korean citizens sending documents to countries outside the Hague Convention — commonly for family registration, court proceedings, property transactions, or business dealings in Canada, the UAE, Vietnam, and similar non-member countries.

Common pitfalls

• Assuming an apostille will work for a non-member country — it won't, and most embassies reject it outright
• Not accounting for each embassy's own appointment backlog, which can add several days
• Skipping the translation step when the destination embassy specifically requires it before legalization

How long consular legalization takes

Typically 3–7 business days depending on the specific embassy's processing schedule and appointment availability — some embassies move faster, others require a scheduled appointment well in advance.