Document legalization

Legalization of document or approval certificate (Apostille) is a verification of signature, signed person’s held position and stamp in the document. Legalization of document or approval certificate (Apostille)  is needed for official documents issued in one country to be valid in another country.

These official documents can be legalized or approved by certificate (Apostille):

• Issued by government or municipal institutions or officials, also by a prosecutor, court official or person performing court decisions;
• Administrative documents;
• Notarial acts;
• Official confirmations of documents signed by a natural person;
• Notarial transcripts of official documents.

When an application for a temporary residence permit is submitted, the following documents that were issued abroad must be certified by an Apostille or legalised:

• documents confirming family ties;
• marriage certificate;
• document confirming the dissolution of marriage or the death of a family member;
• document that confirms the conclusion of a registered partnership contract;
• higher education diploma;
• a certificate regarding (the absence of) conviction. 

Documents have to be orderly and readable. If a document consists of few pages, they have to be sewn.

Every document is approved separately (for example: diploma and its appendix are two separate documents).

IMPORTANT! Documents issued before 11th of March of 1990 with symbols of Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic are neither legalized nor approved by certificate (Apostille). These documents must be renewed.

In order to provide foreign issued documents to either Migration Department, Migration Office or any other Lithuanian state institution, copies of the documents not only have to be approved according to the law but also officially translated to Lithuanian language and signed by a translator.

EU multilingual standard forms

Since February 2019, EU countries upon request can issue a multilingual standard form together with public documents related to: 

• birth;
• a person being alive;
• death;
• marriage, including capacity to marry and marital status;
• registered partnership, including capacity to enter into a registered partnership and registered partnership status;
• domicile and/or residence;
• absence of a criminal record.

If the document has been issued in an EU country and you have such a multilingual standard form, there is no need for a translation into Lithuanian. If the document has been issued in the national language only (not as a multilingual form), the translation into Lithuanian will most likely be required.

Documents issued in EU member states, Ukraine, Moldova or Russia

Documents issued in EU member states, as well as in Ukraine, Moldova and Russia do not have to be certified with an Apostille (they only have to be translated into the Lithuanian language). If the multilingual standard form of the European Union is attached to the document issued in the EU country, it is not necessary to translate it separately into Lithuanian.

Document approval certificate (Apostille) 

If a legal document was issued in one of the countries, which acceded to the Hague Convention in 1961, the documents must be certified with an Apostille. This Apostille is issued by the institutions of the authorised foreign state. Their list is available here. Document approval certificate (Apostille) is done by notaries of the Republic of Lithuania or in diplomatic embassies or consular posts if one is abroad.

Double legalization

If a document is issued in the country, which has not acceded to the above-mentioned Hague Convention, the document issued abroad must be legalised not only at the institution of the country, which is responsible for the legalisation of the documents for their use abroad but also at the Embassy of Lithuania abroad, or at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania (e.g., the certificate of birth issued in Egypt should be certified both by an institution authorized by Egypt and by the Embassy of Lithuania in Cairo or at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Vilnius).

To legalize documents in Lithuania you have to address Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, location: J.Tumo-Vaižganto g. 2, Vilnius (entrance on the left side of the Ministry).

Applicants’ admission times:

• For document presentation: Monday to Friday 9am–12pm
• For document collection: Monday to Thursday 2pm–4pm, Friday 9am–12pm and 2pm–3pm

Note. For document presentation you have to book an appointment time registering for the document legalisation service. Documents should to be submitted directly to the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (or via courier, but cannot be submitted by post).

Together with documents for legalization you have to provide a passport or other valid personal identity document. If document is submitted by other person, he has to provide authorization document.

Consular tax for legalization of 1 document is 20 Euros. 

Material prepared according to information provided by Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania