Certifications, Notarizations and Apostille

Are you required to have your signature or a document notarized?

Do you need an apostille?

Are you in need of a certificate of good conduct or does the signature on your life certificate form need to be certified?

The German Missions in the U.S. can provide you with information on these or similar questions at the following links:

Certifications and Notarizations

You are required to sign in front of a Consular Officer at a German Mission, or you need a certified/notarized photocopy?

Apostille

An Apostille is the confirmation of the authenticity of a public document and is only conferred by a designated authority of the country which issued the document. The German Missions cannot issue Apostilles.

Life Certificate (“Lebensbescheinigung”)

If you are entitled to receive German retirement benefits from the statutory pension insurance or the statutory accident insurance and supplementary pension systems, you will be asked once a year to…

Certificate of Conduct

Do you need a Certificate of Conduct (“Führungszeugnis”) from the Federal Office of Justice (“Bundesamt für Justiz”)?

Bank Accounts in Germany – Identity Verification

Following the amendment of the German Money Laundering Act the German missions abroad can no longer notarize signatures or perform identity verification to open a new account, for loan applications of more than 15,000 EUR, or similar cases.

Service of Documents between the US and Germany

General Information The service of documents in cross-border legal relations is governed by the Hague Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil…

Transport Certificate for a Corpse or an Urn

The German Missions in the United States issue permits to transport a body/human remains (Laissez-passer for corpse) and certificates for shipping cremains (urn).