Apostille Belgium, Brussels
What is a Belgian Apostille?
The Belgian apostille is a square-shaped stamp, the content, purpose, and requirements of which are determined by the 1961 Hague Convention on Apostilles. That means the apostille in Belgium differs only slightly from the internationally approved apostille. The Belgian apostille contains information in German, French, and Dutch (Flemish). There is no information on the apostille in English.
Belgium was one of the first countries to join the Hague Convention on Apostilles. The apostille has been valid in Belgium since December 11, 1975. Documents issued before this date cannot be apostilled. Moreover, documents issued before 2019 fall under the old format category. Such documents need to be reissued in the new format.
Belgium introduced electronic civil status documents (birth, marriage, death certificates, and others) on March 31, 2019. From this point on, documents have been stored electronically in a national database called “Databank Akten van de Burgerlijke Stand” (DABS). This allowed for faster document processing and better accessibility for citizens and government bodies.
What does a Belgian Apostille look like?
Photo or image of the Belgian apostille:
Text of the Belgian Apostille
Dutch / French / German text of the Belgian apostille
Text as shown in the image of the Belgian apostille:
APOSTILLE
(Convention de La Haye du 5 octobre 1961)
1. Land/Pays/Land
BELGIË – BELGIQUE – BELGIEN
2. This public document was signed by / Le présent acte a été signé par / Diese öffentliche Urkunde ist unterschrieben von
IBZ / DABS / BAEC / DPSU
3. Acting in the capacity of / Agissant en qualité de / In seiner/ihrer Eigenschaft als
Federal Public Service / Service Public Fédéral / Föderaler Öffentlicher Dienst
4. Bearer of the seal of / Est revêtu du sceau de / Sie ist versehen mit dem Siegel des/der
FPS Home Affairs / SPF Intérieur / FÖD Inneres
Certified as genuine / Attesté / Bestätigt
5. In Brussels / À Bruxelles / In Brüssel
6. On / Le / Am: __/__/2024
7. By FPS Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation / Par le SPF Affaires étrangères, Commerce extérieur et Coopération au Développement / Durch FÖD Auswärtige Angelegenheiten, Außenhandel und Entwicklungszusammenarbeit
8. Under no. / Sous le n° / Unter Nr.: _____________
9. Stamp / Sceau / Stempel
10. Signature / Signature / Unterschrift:
_____________________________________________________
Additional text:
“This Apostille does not guarantee the authenticity of the document’s content.”
“Cette Apostille ne garantit pas l’authenticité du contenu du document.”
“Diese Apostille dient nicht dem Beweis des Authentizität des Inhalts des Dokuments.”
Translation of the Belgian Apostille into English
APOSTILLE
(Hague Convention of October 5, 1961)
- Country BELGIUM
- This official document is signed by ____________
- Acting in the capacity of Federal Public Service
- With the seal of Federal Service of Home Affairs
Certified as genuine
- In Brussels
- Date: __________
- Issued by the Federal Public Service of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade, and Development Cooperation
- Under number: __________________
- Stamp: (Royal Coat of Arms of Belgium)
- Signature: Digital signature of the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
“This Apostille does not guarantee the authenticity of the document’s content.” “Cette Apostille ne garantit pas l’authenticité du contenu du document.” “This Apostille is not proof of the authenticity of the document’s content.”
Apostille for company documents, LLC, JSC (apostille for founding documents)
The apostille can be affixed to an LLC company extract from the Belgian commercial register, namely from the Crossroads Bank of Belgium, as well as other company documents: the charter and founding documents.
Why is an apostille needed if Belgian documents already have an electronic signature from an official?
The fact is that in ministries and departments, government bodies, archives, and civil registries in Belgium, many officials work.
Officials change periodically. This means there are many signatures, and they also change. To verify the originality and authenticity of the document and to avoid forgery, it is necessary to check whether the official’s signature matches the samples of their signature and whether it was they who signed the document.
Given the volume of documents and the number of officials, this is difficult to do. It is especially difficult for officials abroad who are reviewing your documents.
That is why a system of confirming all signatures and seals by multiple parties was introduced—to facilitate the work of foreign officials. This also reduces the time for document review abroad, as well as the waiting time for applicants. In such a system, local officials responsible for apostilles find it easier to verify signatures, seals, and the documents themselves (their forms and content).
Employees with access to the internal database of signatures, seals, and document samples are also included in a special register with their signatures. However, this register is limited to a few dozen signatures, which are shared with partner countries or easily verified by other means.
There are two procedures for such confirmation. The first procedure—the most reliable—is electronic document legalization. When documents are signed by an issuing official, then the document is certified by a ministry employee (usually the Ministry of Foreign Affairs), then the final signature is verified and certified by the consulate of the country where the documents need to be submitted. The check is based on the up-to-date list of signatures—through a chain of three authorities (departments, state agencies).
The second procedure is based on greater trust and bypasses one department, typically the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In this case, it refers to the apostille. The electronic apostille replaces a special printed stamp of a specific form and greatly simplifies the process of recognizing documents from one country in the territory of another.
Why affix an apostille if Belgian documents can be verified online?
Online document verification systems are a new solution for verifying the authenticity of documents. However, due to international norms and agreements, apostilles are still required for additional security in verifying the documents and officials’ signatures on them.
Can an apostille be obtained at the Belgian consulate?
According to the Hague Apostille Convention, an apostille on Belgian documents cannot be obtained at the Belgian consulate. This applies regardless of the country where the consulate is located, whether it is Moldova, Italy, Greece, or elsewhere.
Is there an electronic apostille in Belgium – E-apostille?
In Belgium, the electronic apostille (e-Apostille) was introduced in 2021. This was made possible by the digitization of processes in the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which simplified and accelerated the process of obtaining apostilles. The electronic apostille allows for official certification of documents in digital format and provides the ability to verify them online.
This system complies with the 1961 Hague Convention, which regulates the apostille process for use in international legal relations and is part of the general trend toward digitalization of administrative services in the country.
The electronic apostille allows for the certification of birth and marriage certificates, medical documents, court rulings, and other documents for use abroad.
How can an electronic apostille be verified?
The apostille is verified by the apostille order number and date of issuance—via the apostille’s QR code located in the bottom right corner of the apostille. With the electronic apostille registry, any interested party can visually verify the apostilled document, including the apostilled document itself.