Legalisation requirements for India
India is a member of the Hague Convention of 1961 and the FCDO Apostille only should suffice for documents to be used in India.
However, in practice that India has ratified The Hague Convention 1961, some local authorities in India insist in having further attestation by the Indian High Commission (IHC) in London.
Please check the requirements with the local requesting party in India to avoid rejection.
Additional Fees for India
The Indian High Commission fee is £45.44 per company document plus VFS Global fees.
Additional Processing Time for India
The Indian High Commission via VFS Global processing time is likely to be 3-5 working days from the date of submission.
Important Notes for India
We are unable to assist with the legalisation of personal and commercial documents for India. We can help with the Apostille Legalisation and Notary Public certification only.
Private Documents:
For any type of private documents, if further legalisation by the IHC is required, the document holder must submit the application through VFS in person with a valid original ID.
Commercial Documents:
Only commercial/company documents can be legalised via Agents.
The legalisation of documents is currently carried out by an external agency (VFS Global) and an appointment for submission of the documentation must be booked in advance.
The IHC shall attest commercial documents ONLY if the company in question is incorporated in the UK and if these documents are required by the requesting party in India to be attested by the High Commission.
For submission of commercial documents for attestation by the IHC via VFS Global, the following subordinate documents are required:
- Miscellaneous Application Form dully filled in and signed by the applicant/representative of the company;
- A request letter for the service on Company Letterhead paper with the seal of the company stamped on the Company. The request letter should be signed by one of the Directors of the Company and should be accompanied by a copy of the Certificate of Incorporation in respect of the company duly notarised & Apostilled by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office;
- The document(s) to be attested in original along with a photocopy set of the original document(s). All commercial documents issued in the UK that require attestation should be duly notarised & Apostilled by the UK FCDO;
- The commercial documents must be submitted along with the valid original passport and photocopy of the passport pages containing personal particulars of one of the Directors of the Company. If due to any reason, the original passport cannot be submitted, duly notarised copies of the passport pages containing personal particulars of one of the Directors of the Company should be submitted.
Method of payment: card or cash only
Hague Apostille Fees
The FCDO Apostille Disbursement fee is:
- £40 for Standard & Express
- £100 for Premium (Restrictions apply)
- £35 for e-Apostille (Restrictions apply)
Apostille Processing Times
Turnaround time is likely to be:
- Standard: 5 working days
- Express: Next-Day Service (If document arrives by 11:15 am)
- Premium: 2-3 hours
- e-Apostille: 1-2 working days
Apostille Processing Terms
Express: For the Express Apostille Next-Day Service (paper-based Apostille), we must receive the original documentation by 11:15 am am to be despatched the next working day. If the document arrived after 11:15 am it will be processed on the next-working day.
Premium: The Premium Apostille is a restrictive service the FCDO can provide for a few eligible types of documents and they require evidence to support the urgency requirement. Please contact our legalisation team for further details.
e-Apostille: Documents eligible for the e-Apostille must be first e-notarised with an Advanced Electronic Signature (AES) or a Qualified Electronic Signature (QES).
CONSULATE ADDRESS
India House, Aldwych, London WC2B 4NA