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e-App

Hague Conference and NNA Collaborate on Electronic Apostille Program

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Hague
Hague

The Hague Conference on Private International Law is partnering with the National Notary Association (NNA) to introduce the Electronic Apostille Pilot Program (e-APP).  The program is intended as a solution to reduce document fraud and business costs by streamlining business and fortifying security.

Apostilles are used all over the world for a variety of documents, including powers of attorney, contracts, and international adoptions. The apostille provides a “seal of approval” from the issuing country that all participating members can trust as accurate and authentic.

The e-APP offers a standardized, secure format for authenticating documents and relies on a paperless process. More than 90 states are currently participating in the e-APP program. The United States alone issues about 1,000,000 apostilles each year and is expected to do so with even more speed and security thanks to the e-APP.

The e-APP will save US residents both time and money by reducing the number of documents that are rejected by foreign countries, simplifying the process of using documents overseas.

Excellent Turnout at Apostille Convention Meeting on the Practical Operation of the Apostille Convention

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The third meeting of the Apostille Convention’s Special Commission on the practical operation of the Hague Convention on Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents was held during November 6~9, 2012. Over 160 experts from 75 States and international organizations attended the meeting.

Of all conventions ratified by the Hague Convention, the Apostille Convention has been the most widely ratified (with 104 Contracting States). This is mainly due to Apostille’s relevance with people’s daily lives as well as cross-border business. The Convention has simplified the process of producing public documents abroad, including civil status certificates and notarial acts, as well as facilitate the circulation of public documents issued by one Contracting State for use in another, thus gaining extreme popularity throughout the world.

The Special Commission meeting allowed the Contracting States and interested international organization to discuss the Apostille Conventions’ operations. The discussed subjects included the applicability of the Convention, options that can further simplify the Apostille process, and options for the potential globalization of the successful electronic Apostille Program (e-APP), which is an innovative technological solution for modernizing existing Apostille procedures. To help designated Competent Authorities perform their functions under the Apostille Convention, the meeting also approved the final text of a Handbook on practical operation of the Apostille Convention.

Currently, more than 150 Competent Authorities throughout 15 Contracting States have already implemented at least one of the components of the Apostille Convention. Furthermore, thousands of e-Apostilles have been issued.