The website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs now offers the chance to verify, through the e-Register, the authenticity of legalisation of public documents issued in Latvia and abroad and legalised at the Consular Department. Thereby physical persons and legal entities can better avoid and steer clear of documents which are phoney or fraudulent.
The e-Register enables you to verify documents legalised at the Consular Department since 1 July 2019. The system also makes it possible to verify the authenticity of public documents that have been certified with an apostille by the Consular Department prior to 30 June 2019.
For verification, the number and date of the legalisation stamp of the Consular Department must be entered in the e-Register. If the document has been legalised, the system will display the name, surname, and position of the signatory of the public document, and the name and surname of the consular officer who has certified the document.
The legalisation of documents involves authentication of a signature and stamp of a Latvian or foreign official in such a manner that public documents issued in one country will have legal effect in another country. Legalisation confirms the legal status and authority of the document’s signatory and the seal of the issuing authority. Legalisation does not, however, certify the content of the document.
For detailed information on the process of legalisation and its importance, go to the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at https://www.mfa.gov.lv/en/consular-information/authentication-and-legalisation-of-documents