Hague Apostille Countries List: Where Apostilled Documents Are Accepted and Which Languages to Check

If a country is part of the Hague Apostille Convention and the Convention is in force between the issuing and receiving countries, many public documents can move through an apostille route instead of full diplomatic or consular legalisation. That does not mean every document is automatically accepted. The receiving authority can still ask for the correct original, a certified translation, specific formatting, or a fresh apostille from the competent authority.

This list is built from the official HCCH status table for the 1961 Apostille Convention, checked on 28 September 2026. The HCCH table lists 130 contracting parties. Thailand appears in the table, but its entry into force is shown as 28 February 2027, so it should not be treated as a currently in-force Apostille destination on today’s date.

What “Apostille country” means for document translation

An apostille confirms the origin of a public document signature, seal or stamp. It does not translate the document and it does not replace the receiving authority’s document checklist. For immigration, work, education, marriage, company and court-adjacent files, the translation step often sits beside the apostille step: the original public document may need apostille, and the translated copy may need certification, translator details, or a format requested by the authority.

For Indian documents, the practical question is usually: which country will receive the document, which authority is asking for it, and whether that authority wants apostille before translation, after translation, or only on the original. Do not assume that an old apostille, a notarised photocopy, or a translation alone will be enough.

All HCCH Apostille Convention countries and entry-into-force notes

Countries newly important for 2026 checks

Vietnam is now in force in the HCCH table, with entry into force shown as 11 September 2026. Algeria is also listed with an entry-into-force date in 2026. Thailand is the caution case: it is listed by HCCH but is future-dated, so a document user should not file it as an active Apostille destination before 28 February 2027.

How to use the language column

The language column is a document-planning aid, not a complete linguistic inventory of every country. For official use, check the language requested by the receiving authority, the language on the original document, and whether the translation must be into English, the destination country’s official language, or another stated language.

How to use this list before sending a document

• Confirm the destination country in the HCCH table and check the entry-into-force date.
• Identify the receiving authority, because universities, employers, courts, civil registries and immigration offices can ask for different supporting steps.
• Check whether the apostille is required on the original document, a notarised copy, or another certified copy.
• Confirm whether translation must be attached to the apostilled original or prepared separately.
• Keep spellings, dates, passport names, certificate numbers and issuing-office names consistent across the original and translated file.

When an Apostille country list is not enough

The safest workflow is to read the receiving instruction first, not only the country list. A country can be in the Apostille Convention while a particular office still requires a specific translation format or a document issued within a limited time. A country can also have internal authorities with different habits for education, family, corporate and civil-status submissions.

If the destination is not covered by the Apostille route, legalisation or embassy attestation may be needed instead. That is a different workflow and should be checked before translation, especially when the document will be used for work, visa, marriage, education, company registration or public-record submission.

Related Enuncia resources

• Translation services for multilingual document work.
• Translation, apostille and attestation workflow for official document planning.
• Get a document translation quote with the destination authority and file scans.