Apostille Act 2020 · 2020 Revised Edition · Part 2 · Proof of Origin of Foreign Public Documents
12. Use of Convention certificate generally not mandatory
Feedback & supportSubject to subsection (2), a person seeking to prove the origin of a foreign public document —
is not required to do so by means of a Convention certificate; and
is not required to comply with any more rigorous formality.
A person seeking to prove the origin of a specified foreign public document —
may be required to do so by means of a Convention certificate; but(b)is not required to comply with any more rigorous formality.
This section applies despite any written law or rule of law to the contrary.
In this section —
“more rigorous formality” means a formality that is more rigorous than placing a Convention certificate on, or attaching a Convention certificate to, a foreign public document;
Convention certificate
“Convention certificate”, in relation to a foreign public document or a document purporting to be a foreign public document, means a certificate issued —(a)to certify the document for the purposes of the Convention; and(b)by an authority that, at the time of issuing the certificate, is designated by the State in which territory the document was executed, or from which the document emanates, as competent to issue the certificate in respect of the document.
“specified foreign public document” means a foreign public document falling within any of the following classes:
any class of documents for which legalisation is or may be required by or under any written law or any practice before the date of Singapore’s accession to the Convention;
legalisation
“legalisation”, in relation to a foreign public document, means the formality by which the diplomatic or consular agents of Singapore certify the origin of a foreign public document.
any class of documents that did not exist before the date of Singapore’s accession to the Convention.
Convention
“Convention” means the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents, done at the Hague on 5 October 1961, the English text of which is set out in the First Schedule;