Prerequisites
- You need confirmation of authenticity for original documents from the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (FHH), for example the registry office, Hamburg Service on site (formerly the customer center), the tax office or a state-recognized school in Hamburg.
- Your document was not issued for a specific purpose, such as a birth certificate for applying for parental allowance (printed on the certificate).
- Your document has been signed by an authorized person of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg.
- If you need confirmation of authenticity for a notarial document: The certification took place in a Hamburg notary's office.
- The signatory is known to the competent authority.
- You have clarified your issue in advance with the responsible department, for example by email.
Documents required
In the appointment procedure
Preliminary check absolutely necessary!
For preliminary checking, send an email with the document(s) attached as a scan or photo immediately after booking your appointment. Also include your name, telephone number, day and time of your appointment and the destination country of the documents (e.g. Spain). m2511@amtfuermigration.hamburg.de
If it was not possible to check the documents by the deadline, only the documents themselves can be accepted. A collection date will be arranged by the clerk after completion.
For certified copies!
The original document with the certified copy must be presented at the appointment.
In translations!
The interpreter/translator must have been sworn in Hamburg.
Please use the homepage to find a suitable translator for Hamburg. www.justiz-dolmetscher.de (Please enter the language and state here)
Please bring the following documents with you to the appointment:
- - Your original, non-restricted document, which you sent to us by email for preliminary review.
- - appointment booking proof
- - identification document
- - An apostille/pre-authentication is carried out on a document-specific and not on a personal basis, which is why even a non-affected person can apply for it at the Office for Migration without a power of attorney.
- - EC card or credit card (cash payment only possible in exceptional cases)
- If your booking is for a postal procedure, cancel the booked appointment or send us an email.
In the procedure by post
Address to:
Ministry of the Interior and Sport
Office for Migration
M251
Hammer Straße 30-34
22041 Hamburg
Necessary information in the cover letter of the postal procedure:
- - Country of destination of the document (e.g. Russia)
- - Your address
- - Email and phone number
- - We also need the original documents to be certified.
- - To shorten the processing time, send an email with an attachment of the document(s) as a scan or photo to the local authority for preliminary checking of your documents. Please state in your email that you do not want an appointment, but that your document is in the mail.
Further information:
- - If you are resident in Germany, the fee will be charged by means of a fee notice.
- - If the fee is €100 or more or if you live abroad, an advance payment will be required after completion. You will be sent a fee notice for this. Your documents will be sent back to you after the value date.
Fees for consultation:
Status: 01.01.2025
Fees for appointments:
- 14.50 € per apostille
- 9.50 € per pre-certification
- 5 € translator stamp
- 6 € Copy certification/official certification - per 1st page of the document
- 1 € Copy Certification/Official Certification - from the 2nd page of each document
- 0.60 € copies - from the 1st page to the 10th page
- 0.30 € copies - from the 11th page
Different fees in the postal procedure
- 35.50 € per apostille
- 30.50 € per pre-certification
Payment by invoice/fee notice is only possible if the application is submitted by post.
Please note
The subsequent legalization is carried out by a consular officer at the foreign representation of the state in which the document or certificate is required.
The pre-certification or apostille is done for the document and is not personal. A non-affected person can also apply for the pre-certification or apostille without a power of attorney.
For confirmation of authenticity of federal certificates (such as certificates of good conduct) or federal documents, please contact the Federal Office for Foreign Affairs.
Final certifications of pre-certified documents from the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg can be obtained from the Federal Office for Foreign Affairs.
Final certifications by the Federal Office for Foreign Affairs are only carried out for pre-certified copies/duplicates from the issuing authority. For example, for documents from the University of Hamburg, only copies/duplicates from the University of Hamburg are accepted.
The federal state in which the swearing-in took place is responsible for confirming the authenticity of translations by interpreters who have not been sworn in Hamburg.
For confirmation of authenticity of certificates or documents issued in other federal states or nations, please contact the issuing country or federal state.
Deadlines
Apply for the certificate of authenticity early.
To ensure the validity of the confirmation of authenticity (apostille/legalization), find out from the submitting authority abroad (embassy, authority abroad) how old it may be.
The competent authority is not aware of the sovereign provisions of the respective country in this regard.
