Hague Apostille Convention Countries: The Full 2026 List by Region

130 contracting parties, two not yet in force

As of the HCCH status table, there are 130 contracting parties to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention. Of those, 128 are fully in force today. Two — Thailand and Viet Nam — are contracting parties but the Convention has not yet entered into force for them, so documents bound for those two destinations still need full consular legalisation until their respective dates below. Membership keeps changing, so treat this list as a snapshot and confirm with us before a time-sensitive matter.

Hague Apostille Convention member countries (130)

Europe (47)

Albania, Andorra, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye, Ukraine, United Kingdom.

Americas (33)

Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela.

Asia-Pacific (27)

Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, China, Cook Islands, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Marshall Islands, Mongolia, New Zealand, Niue, Pakistan, Palau, Philippines, Samoa, Singapore, South Korea, Tajikistan, Thailand (contracting party since 30 June 2026, but not in force until 28 February 2027 — full legalisation still applies until that date), Tonga, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, and Viet Nam (contracting party since 31 December 2025, in force from 11 September 2026 — full legalisation still applies until that date).

Middle East & Caucasus (6)

Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Israel, Oman, Saudi Arabia.

Africa (17)

Algeria (in force since 9 July 2026), Botswana, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Eswatini, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritius, Morocco, Namibia, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Seychelles, South Africa, Tunisia.

Countries that require full legalisation instead of an apostille

Some of the world's most populous countries have not joined the Hague Apostille Convention and instead require the traditional embassy legalisation chain. Notable examples:

• Africa: Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, The Gambia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Egypt, Uganda, Tanzania, Angola, and most of West and Central Africa.
• Middle East: United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Yemen.
• Asia: Afghanistan, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka.
• Americas: Cuba, Haiti.

For any of these, NotaryDirect still coordinates the full process for you — notarisation, Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs (UD) authentication, and embassy legalisation — as a single point of contact from start to finish.

How do I know which route my document needs?

Send us your destination country and document type, and we'll confirm within minutes whether it's a same-day apostille or a legalisation-chain matter, along with pricing and turnaround time. For the underlying legal detail — what happens when a country is a "contracting party" but not yet "in force," and how bilateral objections between two specific countries can override an apostille even when both are members — read our companion article, Hague Apostille Convention 2026: 130 Contracting Parties.