Legalization is essentially the process of authen-ticating a legal document.
Apostille - If the document emanates from a country that is party to the Hague Convention on Legalization of 1961, an apostille is attached to the document, usually by a government official. The attachment of the apostille is what legalizes the document. Formal legalization - If the country from which the document emanates is not a party to the Hague Convention on Legalization, then a more formal process of legalization is usually required. Generally in these cases the document will first be notarized by a notary public and then will be presented to the destination country's embassy or consulate located in the country from which the document emanates. That embassy or consulate will then legalize the document internally, usually by affixing a special stamp or seal.