A common problem faced by our clients here in Kenya is how to legalize or attest or apostille documents for use in another country e.g. in the US, UAE, Malaysia, Belgium, Spain, Italy. See a list of Embassies, High Commissions, and Consulates in Kenya that we can legalize documents.

Kenya is not a signatory to the Hague Convention and therefore does not issue apostille rather legalization of documents is required.

What is legalization? This is verification that an original document is legitimate and authentic for use in another country.

Below the procedure of legalization of a document in Kenya;

1. Present the document (s) that need to be legalized and your identification card or passport to the Notary Public.
2. The notary public place a seal on the documents and sign. Request to see that the Notary Public is admitted in Kenya and has a valid certificate.
3. The notary public will be required to obtain a letter from the High Court of Kenya stating that he/she is recognized in Kenya as a notary public and for verification of the signature. The High Court officer will issue a letter.
4. The notarized documents will be taken to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (This can be done at Huduma Centre, City Centre branch) for verification. The foreign affairs officer will issue a letter. This should take at least 4 working days
5. The notarized documents will then be taken to the Embassy e.g. if the document is required to be used in the US, they will be taken to the US Embassy. This can take a maximum of 3-5 days depending on the Embassy procedures. Please NOTE that this varies from Embassy to Embassy. Please check with the relevant Embassy beforehand for the number of days required.

Note/ Please arrange to have your documents legalized as early as possible as time may vary from embassy to embassy.

Birth Certificates- It is now required that birth certificates obtain certification from the Ministry of Interior, Civil Department before they are taken to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kenya.

Educational Certificates need to be verified by the relevant University before they can be taken to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kenya.

Attestation of Marriage Certificates requires authentication by the Registrar of Marriages in Kenya.

If you would like to legalize a document in Kenya, please fill in this legalization request form DOCX or legalization request form PDF

Fees

Our professional fee inclusive of certification/ notarization of the documents is US $ 250 per document excluding embassy fees.

Update

If you are traveling to Dubai, you will be required to obtain a Clearance Certificate from the CID and have it legalized at the UAE Embassy. Please contact us for assistance.

Links
Apostille and the Authentication/Legalization of Documents

www.hcch.net/en/instruments/convent