Guatemala – Legalization of Documents Waived Under Apostille Convention
Effective September 18, 2017, the Hague Apostille Convention has entered into force in Guatemala. Guatemalan documents for use in other signatory countries, and documents from other signatory countries for use in Guatemala, will no longer require consular or embassy legalization, if they have been affixed with an apostille.
The Apostille Convention (also known as the Apostille Treaty, or the Hague Convention Abolishing the requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents) was signed on October 5, 1961. It has since been signed by 115 countries, in two of which (Bolivia and Tunisia) the Convention has not yet entered into force.
The Convention specifies how a public document issued in one of the signatory countries can be certified by a competent authority of that country for use in any other of the signatory countries without the need for consular legalization (certification by the Foreign Ministry of the country where the document is to be used).
Therefore, companies can expect faster preparation of Guatemalan documents for use in other signatory countries, and documents from other signatory countries for use in Guatemala.