The authentication of public documents is required in order to recognize their validity in a country other than the one in which they were issued- Apostile in Israel
The verification is subject to the authority of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Details about the verification process, the types of documents, the addresses of the issuing authorities and more can be found on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
As part of the authentication process of the public documents, they are authenticated by a notary along with the accompanying certificate.
The notarized certificate is a public document that requires additional verification in order to obtain official status in a foreign country.
International authentication of this public document, and that alone, is under the jurisdiction of the secretariat of the court.
The verification is done with a certificate that complies with the law agreed upon between Israel and the destination country.
Certificates Used to Verify a Signature of a Notary by the Courts
There are two types of certificates that are used for the verification of such official documents. Please find below more detailed information and elaboration about each of those types.
"Apostille" - a certificate intended for member states of the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents (hereinafter the Convention).
The State of Israel is a member of the Convention, and therefore the courts verify notarized certificates intended for the country that is a member of the convention with an "Apostille" certificate.
The "Apostille" certificate is written in the wording and form as it is stipulated in the convention.
The "Apostille" certificate is recognized according to the Convention as an exclusive and sufficient verification in the member states of the Convention, and it is sufficient for the destination country to recognize the validity of the documents accompanying the notarization in the country where they were issued.
The certificate is pasted on top of the notarized certificate, and receiving an apostille certificate involves paying a fee.
The payment is made at the secretariat of the court. It is possible to pay the fee by credit card at the secretariat of the court, or in cash at any post office, using a payment voucher that is possible to get from the secretariat of the court.
"A certificate that is not according to the Convention" - this certificate is issued by virtue of the Notaries Law, 5736 - 1976.
The certificate verifies the signature of a notary on a notarized certificate which is attached to public documents that are intended for a country that is not a member of the convention.
The certificate is pasted on top of the notarized certificate.
Please see a sample of a certificate in the attached file at the bottom of this page - "Apostille- example document 2".
Please note that any "certificate that is not in accordance with the Convention" requires an additional approval from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, this is for the recognition by the destination country.
A "certificate that is not according to the Convention" is exempt from paying a fee to the court.
Details of the Service in the Courts
Employees in court secretariats across the country have been authorized by the Minister of Justice to verify notary signatures.
The service is provided during the regular reception hours of the courts, Sunday to Thursday between 08:30-13:30.
When the courts are on recess it is necessary to get updated information about the activity of the courts and labor courts during recess.
In urgent situations, it is possible to contact the manager of the unit or the manager of the district.
Quantity Limitation
The authentication certificates ("Apostille" and "certificate which is not according to the convention"), will be given to applicants on the spot. It is possible to receive up to 10 certificates per one application.