In Bulgaria the legalization is carried out by the “Certificates and Legalizations” sector of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice.
Intelligence will help with document validation in the relevant institutions so that they can be legalized. The legalization is expressed in the affixing of a certificate (apostille) to the certified documents.
Apostille is a validation of a document in the country in which it was issued. This is a way of legalizing public acts and documents that are presented abroad. Once the document has received an apostille, it is exempt from any subsequent form of certification and legalization, both in the issuing State and in the State Party where the document will be presented.
It was introduced in Bulgaria on 30 April 2001 when it became a party to the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961.
Presence of stamps and certificates by the respective state institutions;
Translation by an agency authorized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
This procedure is complicated and time consuming, because most documents pass the so-called Pre-consular certification in various ministries, agencies and offices. Subsequently, most of the documents are finally certified at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The legalization of the Bulgarian documents can be done in one of the following ways:
1. Placing only apostille.
2. Verification of the translator’s signature.
3. Placing apostille and certifying the translator’s signature.
Choosing each of these legalization procedures takes time and financial resources so it’s very important to find out whether you are required to provide a LEGALIZED document or just a TRANSLATION from SWORN TRANSLATOR Licensed to an agency.
An exemplary legalization proceeds as follows:
1. The document shall be prepared in an appropriate format, verifying that the relevant stamps, signatures of officials, whether duplicate or notarially certified copy are present. Apart from the municipal ones, almost all other official documents are pre-consular certified in the respective ministry or civil service.
2. It is then translated by a sworn translator.
3. Finally, the document together with the translation attached to it will be certified by the Consular Relations Directorate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Only then can this document be used in the respective country.
This document legalization procedure is seemingly easier and quicker, because only the signature of the translator is certified. Very often, however, due to ignorance, the process of legalization for citizens becomes very slow and expensive. Some of the most common mistakes are:
No apostille of the document has been placed;
Confused names in birth acts;
For most Middle Eastern countries, it is necessary to have a seal of the relevant foreign ministry, as well as to seal off the Bulgarian embassy. If this is not done, the document shall be validated at the embassy of the respective country in the Republic of Bulgaria;
In Bulgaria the apostille is issued by the Ministry of Justice (for all court and notary certified documents) and by the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (for all other documents).
Official translation of a corporate letterhead with the signature and signature of a sworn translator;
Legalization and certification of translation at the Consular Section of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
Documents vary according to the institution issuing them. It depends on where they will be certified, on what terms and at what price.
Qualified translators;
Experiences in the relevant terminology field;
Optimal quality
Transparent pricing;
Fast task execution