Legalisation of Commercial Documents in India
A complete guide to legalising Indian business documents for use abroad: who stamps what, in which order, and how the route changes between apostille and embassy countries.
- Embassy Chamber → MEA attestation → Embassy
- Apostille Notary → Chamber → MEA apostille
How it works
Legalisation is the process of making a document issued in one country acceptable to authorities in another. For commercial and company documents from India, it confirms that the company, its signatory and each stamping authority are genuine.
The first stage depends on the document. Trade documents such as invoices and certificates of origin go to a Chamber of Commerce. Legal and company documents such as powers of attorney, board resolutions and agreements are notarised, and often chamber-attested too. Documents issued by government regulators, such as COPPs and free sale certificates, are attested after issue.
The Ministry of External Affairs then verifies the first stage. For the roughly 128 countries that accept the apostille for Indian commercial documents, the MEA apostille is the final step. For around 60 others, including the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Egypt, Iraq, China, Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia, the destination embassy in New Delhi adds its legalisation.
First authority
Chamber of Commerce for trade documents; notary (and chamber where required) for legal and company documents.
Step by step
Identify the route
Check whether the destination accepts the apostille or needs embassy legalisation for commercial documents.
First authority
Chamber of Commerce or notary, depending on the document.
MEA
Apostille or attestation.
Embassy
Final legalisation by the destination embassy where required.
What to send us
- Original documents, signed and stamped
- Request letter on company letterhead
- Signatory ID and company registration copies
- Destination country and purpose
Tips
- Legalise related documents together so names, dates and values match.
- Always confirm the route for commercial documents specifically; it can differ from personal documents.
- Ask your buyer or authority for their checklist before you start.
Commercial Document Legalisation: FAQs
What is the difference between attestation, legalisation and apostille?
Attestation is a stamp verifying a signature, used at the chamber, notary or MEA stage. Legalisation is the final stamp of the destination embassy. An apostille is a single MEA certificate accepted by Hague Convention countries instead of embassy legalisation.
How long does commercial document legalisation take?
It depends on the documents, the chamber and the embassy. We confirm a timeline for your exact set before you send it.
Do China and Vietnam accept the apostille for commercial documents?
In our processing experience, commercial documents for China and Vietnam still go through embassy legalisation, so we route them that way.
Commercial documents we legalise
- COPP (Certificate of Pharmaceutical Product)Pharma
- Certificate of OriginExport & shipping
- Commercial InvoiceExport & shipping
- Packing ListExport & shipping
- Bill of LadingExport & shipping
- Shipping BillExport & shipping
- Health CertificateExport & shipping
- Halal CertificateExport & shipping
- COC (Certificate of Conformity)Export & shipping
- Import Export Documents (IEC)Export & shipping
- Certificate of Analysis (COA)Pharma
- GMP CertificatePharma
Send your document list
Send the document list and destination country on WhatsApp. We reply with the route, timeline and an all-inclusive quote.
Office: C-5 A/2, New Ashok Nagar, Delhi 110096, India. Drop off in Delhi NCR or courier from any city in India; documents return by Blue Dart or another tracked courier.