Document apostille and legalisation for Vietnam

The single longest-lead document task in a Vietnam move is legalisation — getting your foreign documents recognised by Vietnamese authorities. Because Vietnam is not a signatory to the Hague Apostille Convention, the simple "apostille and go" process used between most Western countries doesn't apply here. The correct chain is more complex and source-country specific.

This page is the practical step-by-step. The legal substance — which documents you need for which visa class — sits in the visa section and the work-permit page.

Not legal advice. Legalisation rules change. Confirm with the Vietnamese embassy in your country of citizenship and the document-issuing authority before booking any timelines.

Apostille vs consular legalisation — the core distinction

The Hague Apostille Convention (1961) lets member states recognise each other's documents with a single apostille stamp from the issuing country's designated authority. Almost all European countries, the US, the UK, Australia, Japan, Korea, Russia, and most of South America are signatories.

Vietnam is not a signatory. Vietnamese authorities therefore typically do not accept a foreign apostille alone. Documents need to be legalised — which in practice means a multi-step chain ending with the Vietnamese embassy / consulate in the issuing country.

Common chain:

1. Source-country issue (e.g. council issues birth certificate)
2. Notarisation (where required)
3. Apostille / source-country foreign-ministry authentication
4. Vietnamese embassy / consulate legalisation (the step that actually matters for VN)
5. Translation into Vietnamese on arrival (by an authorised Vietnamese translation agency)
6. Notarisation of the Vietnamese translation by a Vietnamese notary (công chứng)

A document missing step 4 is technically incomplete for most Vietnamese official uses.

What documents need this treatment

Country-by-country quick map

United Kingdom

• Source documents: General Register Office (birth, marriage, death), DBS (criminal record), University (degree). Get the long-form certificate, not the short.
• Apostille / authentication: Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO Legalisation Office) — apostille issued in ~2 working days online.
• Vietnamese consular legalisation: Embassy of Vietnam in London (or honorary consul) — typically 5–10 working days; charge ~£40–60 per document.
• Total time, end-to-end: 3–5 weeks if posted; faster if hand-walked.

United States

• Source documents: state vital records office (birth, marriage), state police or FBI (criminal record), University (degree).
• Apostille / authentication: State Secretary of State for state-issued documents; US Department of State for federal documents (FBI report, federal court documents).
• Vietnamese consular legalisation: Embassy of Vietnam in Washington DC, Consulate-General in San Francisco, Consulate-General in Houston. Mailed-in process; 2–4 weeks.
• Watch for: short-form birth certificates from some states. Ask for the long form.

Australia

• Source documents: state Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages; AFP (criminal record); University.
• Apostille / authentication: DFAT issues apostilles via the Australian Passport Office.
• Vietnamese consular legalisation: Embassy of Vietnam in Canberra, Consulate-General in Sydney. 5–10 working days.

Canada

• Canada joined the Hague Apostille Convention only recently (2024). Older Canadian documents may still need consular legalisation; newer ones may be apostille-only. Verify the current Vietnamese-embassy position.

EU (France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Netherlands)

• All apostille-issuing; all require Vietnamese-embassy legalisation on top. Local Vietnamese embassies in Paris, Berlin, Madrid, Rome and The Hague handle this.

Other

• For nationalities not listed: check the Vietnamese embassy or consulate-general nearest you. Most embassies publish per-document legalisation fees and turnaround times.

Timing — when documents must be issued

Many Vietnamese visa applications require source documents to be issued within 6 months of the visa application. This is the trap: applying for a 12-month visa cycle, then renewing in year 2 means re-pulling fresh documents for some classes.

Specifically:

• Criminal record check: must be issued within 6 months for work-permit applications.
• Marriage certificate: must be issued within 6 months for marriage-registration recognition in Vietnam (Department of Justice).
• Birth certificate: typically valid for longer but in most cases required as the long form, not short.

If you're moving in stages, time your document-pulling to land your visa cycle in the freshest window.

Translation and notarisation on arrival

Once the legalised foreign document arrives with you in Vietnam, it must be translated into Vietnamese and the translation notarised before most official uses.

Process:

1. Walk into any authorised Vietnamese translation agency with the legalised document.
2. Pay $20–40 per page.
3. Pick up the Vietnamese translation 2–4 working days later.
4. Take both originals (foreign + translation) to a Vietnamese notary (công chứng) — usually $5–15 per stamp.

The notarised pair is then accepted by Vietnamese government offices.

Costs end-to-end

For a single document (e.g. birth certificate) UK → Vietnam:

Per document. A family of four with full document pulls (birth × 4, marriage, degree × 2, police × 2) can run $1,500–2,500 in legalisation costs alone.

Common pitfalls

• Short-form certificates. Get the long form for births in particular.
• Stale documents. Police checks specifically must be issued within 6 months; a 10-month-old check is rejected for work-permit applications.
• Skipping consular legalisation. Apostille alone may be accepted for some narrow uses (academic admissions in some cases) but not for visa / TRC applications.
• Translation by a non-authorised translator. Vietnamese government offices only accept translations from authorised translation companies; an in-laws-helping translation won't work.
• Translation that doesn't pair with the original. Notary services need the original and translation stapled together with the notary's seal across the join.

Related

• Vietnam visa section
• Work permit
• Marriage process for foreigner + Vietnamese
• School enrolment waitlist timing
• Arrival week checklist

Legalisation rules change. Confirm with the Vietnamese embassy in your country and the document-issuing authority before relying on any specific step or fee here.