Hague Conference

Armenia wants to take part in Hague Conference

April 12, 2014 By Atlanta Apostille

After the Netherlands proposed that the Hague Conference on Private International Law admit the Republic of Armenia as its newest member, the Secretary General of the Organization has officially commenced a six-month voting period for existing members to decide on Armenia’s admission. The Netherlands submitted the proposal after Armenia had expressed interest in joining the Hague Conference.

Existing members now have until May 6, 2014 to submit their vote. Armenia only needs a simple majority of the votes in order to join this organization.

Hague Conference and NNA Collaborate on Electronic Apostille Program

January 24, 2014 By Atlanta Apostille

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.

APEC Member Economies Show Support for Apostille Convention Following Workshop

January 18, 2013 By Atlanta Apostille

In June 2013, the APEC Committee and the Asia Pacific Regional Office of the Hague Conference sponsored the Department of Justice of Hong Kong to host a workshop on the Apostille Convention for representatives of Member Economies of APEC. During the workshop, members learned about the benefits of adopting the Apostille Convention. Mainly, adopting the Apostille Convention will boost the effectiveness of APEC’s current initiative, the EoDB (Easy of Doing Business). This program will improve by making it easier to process international transactions and trading.

Following the workshop at the APEC summit in Bali, Indonesia, the APEC Ministers maintained their positive opinion of the Apostille Convention. This is a good indicator that APEC will fully adopt the Apostille Convention within the next year or so.