Skip to content Document legalization is the process through which the competent authorities certify the authenticity of the signature, the capacity in which the person signing the document has acted and, where applicable, the seal or stamp affixed to the document. Legalization does not certify or validate the content of the document.
This procedure may apply to documents issued by foreign authorities, such as birth and marriage certificates, driving licences, criminal records and other official records, when they need to be used before Italian authorities
Which documents need legalization for Italy
The documents that need legalization are acts issued by local authorities and may include birth and marriage certificates, driving licenses, criminal records and more. The applicable procedure depends on the issuing country and on the type of document: documents from countries party to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention usually require an apostille, while documents from non-party countries generally require consular legalization. Some EU public documents, multilingual standard forms or specific conventions may be exempt, and an Italian translation may be required depending on the case
The legalization of documents is necessary when you need to validate a document issued by a foreign local authority for use abroad, in this case, Italy.
Sworn Translation into Italian of foreign documents
Foreign documents to be used in Italy generally need an Italian translation, unless an exemption applies. Depending on the case, the translation may need to be sworn, certified by an official translator, or certified as conforming by the consular office.
A sworn translation is the procedure that officially certifies the correspondence between an original document and its translation.
By using a specific affidavit, the translator signs the sworn translation assuming civil and criminal responsibility for the translation.
Legalization of documents for Italy
Those who need to legalize foreign documents for use in Italy must apply to the competent Italian diplomatic or consular representation for the country where the document was issued. This is known as consular legalization. This is also known as consular legalization, where there are no International Conventions in force. Applicants must therefore rely on the support of Diplomatic Institutions.
On the other hand, and when applicable, International Conventions exempt you from the entire legalization process if the Countries involved are part of specific agreements.
The Conventions in force that make legalization unnecessary are:
- Convention on the Free Issue and Dispensation from Legalization of Civil Status Records;
- Convention Concerning the Abolition of the Legalization of Foreign Public Documents;
- European Convention;
- Convention on the dispensation from legalization for certain acts and documents;
- Convention on the Abolition of the Legalization of Documents in the Member States of the European Communities.
For a full list of the Conventions, find out more in our article on the cases of exemption from Legalization.
When legalization is not necessary: Does Italy require Apostille?
The apostille simplifies the legalization process for those Countries that signed the Hague Convention on the Abolition of the Legalization of Foreign Public Documents. The apostille is an annotation, with a specific stamp, put on the original document.
The document must be submitted to the competent authority designated by the issuing country under the Hague Apostille Convention.
For further details on the Apostille and how to apply, have a look at our guide on the definition and steps to apply for the apostille of documents.
Authorities in charge of the legalization of documents
The competent local jurisdiction body is responsible for taking care of the legalization of documents in foreign countries.
Depending on the country that has issued a specific document, the competent authority may change. For further information and to check the dedicated jurisdiction body in each country please refer to the Hague Conference Official website.
If you need to legalize or get apostille for your documents, take a look at our legalization and apostille services.
Learn more about legalization and apostille of Italian documents for abroad in our dedicated guide.