Apostille in Portugal: What You Need to Know

What is an Apostille?

An apostille (from the French word meaning "certification") is a form of authentication issued to documents for use in countries that participate in the Hague Apostille Convention. It's a standardized certificate that verifies the authenticity of the signature, the capacity of the person who signed the document, and the identity of any seal or stamp on the document.

The apostille itself is a separate page or stamp attached to your document. It contains:

• The country where the apostille was issued
• The name of the person who signed the original document
• The capacity of the signatory
• Details of any seal or stamp
• Place and date of issue
• Name and signature of the issuing authority
• A unique identification number

The Hague Apostille Convention

The Hague Convention of 5 October 1961 (officially: "Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents") simplified the process of authenticating documents for international use. Before this convention, documents needed to go through a lengthy chain of certifications involving multiple government offices and embassies.

You can check the current list of Contracting Parties on theHague Conference website .

Which Portuguese documents can be apostilled?

• Which Portuguese Documents Can Be Apostilled?
• Apostille for Academic Documents

Apostille applies to eligible Portuguese public documents, including many documents issued by ministries, courts, civil registries, notarial offices, public educational institutions, municipalities and parish councils.

Not every private document can be apostilled directly. The correct authentication path depends on the document and destination.

When Do You Need an Apostille?

Common situations where an apostille may be required include:

Portuguese document abroad, or foreign document in Portugal?

This guide is about Portuguese public documents being used in another country. Portugal apostilles documents that originate in Portugal.

A document issued by another country is not apostilled by Portugal merely because you are in Portugal: the apostille is issued by the country of origin. If a foreign document has to be accepted here, the route runs through that country's own apostille or legalization procedure, and then through translation requirements in Portugal where they apply.

Official Costs

• Apostille Cost in Portugal

The official fee for an apostille in Portugal is set by law at one-tenth of the unit of account (UC), which currently equals:

This fee applies regardless of the document type or the requesting method (in person or online).

Fee exemption: Individuals who can prove economic insufficiency (through documentation from a public assistance institution) may be exempt from the fee.

Source: Ministério Público

Where to Request an Apostille

• Where to Get an Apostille in Portugal

In Portugal, the competent authority for issuing apostilles is the Procurador-Geral da República (Attorney General), with delegated regional competence. There are seven public-facing issuing locations: Lisbon plus Porto, Coimbra, Guimarães, Évora, Ponta Delgada and Funchal.

Lisbon can process documents originating anywhere in Portugal. Outside Lisbon, the ordinary rule follows the judicial area of the issuing entity, subject to the exceptions in the Apostille Service Regulation. In-person service in Lisbon currently works by prior appointment through the e-APP system.

Office addresses, opening hours, contact details and appointment rules are kept on the guide to where to get an apostille in Portugal, which is the page that maintains them.

The Apostille Process

Requesting an apostille in person is straightforward:

Electronic documents and e-Apostille

If a Portuguese public document is issued electronically with a digital signature or an access code and apostille is required, the apostille must also be electronic. The request is made through the Ministério Público e-APP service.

Electronic apostilles are fully valid under the Hague system. In day-to-day international filing, some institutions still work more comfortably with paper. Portugal Papers handles both routes. If the destination is paper-heavy, we build the paper source-document route instead of leaving the format question until the end.

• Electronic Apostille
• Paper Apostille
• Electronic vs Paper Apostille

Using Portuguese public documents in another EU country

For public documents covered by Regulation (EU) 2016/1191 and presented between EU Member States, apostille is not required. Multilingual standard forms may also help reduce translation requirements.

The receiving authority still decides the substantive requirements and legal effect of the document.

What if the Apostille Convention route does not apply?

• Consular Legalisation

Do not rely on an old static country list. Check the current HCCH status for the destination and, where relevant, whether the Convention is effective between Portugal and that Contracting Party.

If the Apostille route is unavailable, consular or another legalization route may be required.

Related Guides

Frequently Asked Questions

Official Sources

• Ministério Público — Serviço de Apostilas
• Hague Conference — Apostille Convention
• Decreto-Lei n.º 86/2009 — Portuguese Apostille Law