Legalisation of Documents

LEGALIZATION OF DOCUMENTS

A document legalization is needed, so that the documents of one country can be considered by the institutions of another country when applicable.

The legalization of documents confirms the authenticity of the signature, the position of the signatory, and the stamp on the document by a competent authority, usually the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the diplomatic mission, or the consular post of that country. Consular legalization does not authenticate the content of the document.

WHAT DOCUMENTS ARE ACCEPTED FOR LEGALIZATION AT THE EMBASSY

The Embassy of the Republic of Lithuania in the United Arab Emirates accepts documents for legalization that have been issued by the competent authorities of Lithuania and countries embassy is accredited to, i.e. UAE, Iraq, and Kuwait, which are not members of the Hague Convention on the Abolition of the Legalization of Documents Issued in Foreign Countries:

1. The Republic of Lithuania.
   Note: Documents issued by the competent authorities of the Republic of Lithuania should be signed and/or stamped by an authorized officer from the Republic of Lithuania. Legalization stamp of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania is optional. Embassy cannot legalize documents issued by private companies or private institutions.
2. The Accredited Foreign Countries.
   The documents issued by the competent authorities of the Accredited Foreign Countries must also bear the physical legalization stamps of the authorized officer from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates or the Embassy of Kuwait or the Embassy of Iraq in the United Arab Emirates. Click the following link to find information on how to legalize documents at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates - https://www.mofa.gov.ae/en/services/attestation.

The Embassy of the Republic of Lithuania in the UAE will accept for legalization documents issued by countries where the Embassy is not accredited, provided they meet the following criteria:

1. The foreign national presenting the document must be legally residing in the country where the Embassy is accredited (UAE, Iraq, and Kuwait) and must provide proof of this residency.
2. The foreign national, legally residing in the country of accreditation, must present the documents in person, either for themselves or on behalf of immediate family members (spouse, parents, children, and adopted children).
3. The submitted document must also be legalized by the embassy of the issuing country that operates in the UAE (Iraq, and Kuwait) and has provided the samples of the signatures and stamps of its consular officers to the embassy of Lithuania.

Documents issued by countries that do not have diplomatic relations with the Republic of Lithuania will not be accepted or legalized at the Embassy. Currently, there are five UN Member States in this category: Bhutan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Papua New Guinea, South Sudan, and Equatorial Guinea.

The criteria mentioned above apply to the acceptance of documents issued by foreign missions in the UAE for legalization.

If documents submitted for legalization to the Embassy in the UAE do not meet the criteria mentioned above, you must submit them directly to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania for legalization, following the procedure outlined by the Ministry at this link.

!IMPORTANT! The legalization of Police Clearance Certificates for foreign citizens who intend to study in Lithuania is done at MFA of the Republic of Lithuania through the educational institutions. The students should contact the educational institutions in Lithuania, in which they plan to study and to clarify the process of legalization of documents.

THE PROCEDURE FOR SUBMITTING DOCUMENTS FOR LEGALIZATION AT THE EMBASSY

All documents submitted for legalization must be well-organized and easily readable. If a document consists of multiple pages, it must be bound together.

Documents must have a physical stamp and signature. Electronically signed documents cannot be accepted.

Documents can be submitted either in person by their owner or through the owner's authorized representative. This can be done by online appointment only.

During one appointment, the owner or their representative may submit up to 3 (three) documents for legalization.

Please visit the following website to schedule an appointment in advance: https://keliauk.urm.lt/en/consult_registration

Follow the instructions provided on the website. Choose the appropriate option based on the place where the document requiring legalization was issued:

1. Legalization of Documents Issued in Lithuania
2. Legalization of Documents from Accredited Foreign Countries
3. Legalisation of documents following pre-review by the Migration Department under the Ministry of the Interior in regard of the application for TRP issuance

WHO MAY SUBMIT DOCUMENTS FOR LEGALIZATION

If the documents are being submitted by their owner, please include the following:

1. Document(s) to be legalized, up to 3 (three) per appointment.
2. Emirati ID, or valid national passport of the person submitting the document(s) for legalization.

If the documents are being submitted by a representative, please include the following:

1. Document(s) to be legalized, up to 3 (three) per appointment.
2. Emirati ID, or valid national passport of the person submitting the document for legalization.
3. A written request from the owner, authorizing the representative. The request should include the owner's full name, surname, contact details (email address and telephone number), copy of the national passport and the country to which the legalized document will be submitted as well as the representative's full name, surname, Emirati ID number.

CONSULAR FEE

The consular fee for legalization is 30 (twenty) Euros per 1 (one) document.

The consular fee for legalization must be paid on the spot, using a bank card only. No cash in Euros or AED will be accepted under any circumstances.

THE PROCEDURE OF LEGALIZATION

Each document submitted to the Embassy will be separately attested by a legalization stamp. For example, a diploma and its appendix will be considered as 2 (two) separate documents.

Please note that one visitor may submit up to 3 (three) documents during one appointment.

APOSTILIZATION OF DOCUMENTS

The apostilization of documents involves certifying them with an Apostille certificate. This certificate confirms the authenticity of the signature on the document, the responsibilities of the signatory, and the stamp from the competent authority. The apostille certificate is provided for in the Convention of 5 October 1961, which abolishes the requirement of legalization for foreign public documents.

Two of the Accredited Foreign Countries, i.e. the Kingdom of Bahrain and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are party countries to the Apostille Convention. As a result, documents issued and approved with an apostille in these countries can be submitted in the Republic of Lithuania without the need for additional apostilization, and vice versa.