Documents from Bavarian courts or notaries for use abroad; application for pre-certification for legalization

If you want to use a document from a court or notary abroad, it may have to be legalized. For this purpose, it may have to be pre-certified by the competent German authority beforehand.

Description

German public documents are generally only recognized abroad if their authenticity has been confirmed by the competent representation of the country concerned in Germany (legalization). The representations of the foreign states generally require prior certification of the German documents by the competent German authorities.

In Bavaria, the president of the regional court in whose business district the document was drawn up is responsible for the preliminary certification of documents from the area of ordinary jurisdiction, including notaries. Within the scope of the legalization procedure for foreign representations, the regional courts certify, for example, German judgments, decisions, court documents, notarial deeds and translations.

There are international agreements according to which certain documents are exempt from legalization.

Prerequisites

You want to use a judicial or notarial document abroad and need a pre-certification for the legalization.

Procedure

If you need an authentication for a legalization procedure, you can contact the president of the respective district court informally with a short letter, depending on the jurisdiction.

When sending the document by mail, it is essential to specify the country for which the document is required. In general, the original documents must be enclosed. The documents can also be delivered in person.

Special notes

The diplomatic missions of certain countries also require a so-called final certification for the legalization of German documents - irrespective of the pre-certification described above. This must be applied for at the Federal Office for Foreign Affairs.

Deadlines

none

Processing time

For the completion of the certificates, a processing time of 2-3 working days must be accepted.

Required documents

  • Document from the court or notary in the original

Fees

  • Framework fees are provided for the certification within the scope of a legalization procedure. A fee of 25.00 EUR for each document is to be expected.

Legal bases

Links to more information

Related issues

Status:18.07.2023

Responsible for editing:Bayerisches Staatsministerium der Justiz

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