Apostille or Legalisation for Bangladesh From Australia

Australian documents for Bangladesh now usually need a DFAT apostille rather than High Commission legalisation. As of our last check, the Apostille Convention has been in force for Bangladesh since 30 March 2025, and Australia is not among the countries that objected. Check the HCCH status table on the day. Land powers of attorney still need a step in Bangladesh.

Key takeaways

• Much of what is written about sending Australian documents to Bangladesh still describes the older route through the Bangladesh High Commission. For Convention documents, that step has been replaced by a DFAT apostille.
• Private documents, such as powers of attorney and declarations, are notarised in Australia first. Registry certificates may go to DFAT directly.
• Several countries objected to Bangladesh's accession, so the Convention does not apply between Bangladesh and them. At our last check Australia was not one of them.
• A power of attorney over land in Bangladesh has to go through a further step before a Bangladeshi authority after it arrives, within a time limit. Ask your Bangladeshi lawyer before you sign.
• Some Bangladeshi offices may still ask for High Commission legalisation out of habit. Ask them to confirm in writing before paying for a second route.

What changed, and when

Until 2025, an Australian document for Bangladesh went to DFAT for authentication and then to the Bangladesh High Commission for legalisation. That changed when Bangladesh joined the Hague Apostille Convention. The HCCH status table records its accession on 29 July 2024, with the Convention in force for Bangladesh from 30 March 2025.

Bangladesh's accession drew objections from a number of countries, which means the Convention does not operate between Bangladesh and those countries. At our last check, Australia was not among them, so an Australian apostille should be accepted in Bangladesh under the Convention. That is exactly the kind of fact that can change, so check the table, and its notes on objections, on the day you start.

An apostille is a certificate DFAT attaches to an Australian public document to confirm the signature and seal on it. It says nothing about whether the contents are true. Only the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade issues apostilles in Australia; a notary cannot. For the wider picture, see the Hague Apostille Convention explained.

The chain from Australia

1. Notarise in Australia, if the document is private (a power of attorney, a declaration, a company resolution) or you are sending a certified copy.
2. DFAT apostille, on the notary's signature or on the original public document.
3. Any step in Bangladesh that the receiving body or Bangladeshi law requires after the document arrives.

Registry certificates, court documents and national police checks are on DFAT's list of originals it can legalise directly, so step 1 may not apply to them. DFAT refuses laminated or altered certificates. Confirm with DFAT for your document before lodging.

If an office still asks for High Commission legalisation

The Convention removes the embassy legalisation step between member countries, but receiving bodies can take time to adjust, and some staff will still describe the old process. If a bank, court or land office in Bangladesh tells you it wants High Commission legalisation, do not simply pay for both routes.

Instead:

1. Ask the office to confirm in writing that it wants High Commission legalisation rather than an apostille.
2. Check the High Commission's own current guidance on whether it still legalises Australian documents.
3. Only then choose which certificate to ask DFAT for.

An apostille and a DFAT authentication certificate are different certificates, and one does not convert into the other. Asking for the wrong one means lodging again; see what happens with the wrong certificate type.

Powers of attorney over land

Diaspora families often need someone in Bangladesh to sell, buy, transfer or manage land, deal with a bank, or pursue an inheritance. This is where people most often get caught. The document is correctly notarised and apostilled in Australia, and is then refused in Bangladesh because a required step there was missed or left too late.

Bangladesh has specific rules for powers of attorney executed abroad, particularly those dealing with land. In broad terms, such a document must go through a further step before a Bangladeshi authority after it arrives, and that step has a time limit. The required form, what must be attached, any stamp duty, and the deadline are matters for your lawyer in Bangladesh, and they are not something we set out here, because the detail matters and can change.

Before you sign in Australia, ask your Bangladeshi lawyer:

• for the exact wording, and use it. A general power of attorney drafted in Australia may lack powers the Bangladeshi side needs, or may not be in a form Bangladeshi law recognises for land;
• what must be attached: photographs, copies of identity documents, details of the property, and whether any of it must be signed or certified at the same appointment;
• about stamp duty, and when and where it is paid;
• what the deadline is after the document arrives, so you can plan courier time around it.

An Australian notary witnesses your signature, checks your identity and that you understand and are signing freely, and certifies the act. The notary does not advise on Bangladeshi land law or on whether the powers are sufficient; that is for your lawyer there. If the power of attorney affects property you jointly own with others in Australia, speak to a solicitor here too. For the Australian side of the signing, see power of attorney and legal declarations.

Language and translation

English is widely used in Bangladeshi legal and official settings, and many bodies accept documents in English. Some may want a Bangla translation, or particular documents prepared in Bangla. Ask the receiving body:

• Will you accept the document in English?
• If a translation is needed, whose translation do you accept: one made in Australia, or one made in Bangladesh?
• Should the translation be made before the Australian steps, so it can be notarised and apostilled together with the original?

The last question matters. If the translation must itself be apostilled, it has to be done before DFAT, and DFAT will only accept one by a NAATI certified or recognised translator, with name, signature, NAATI seal and date on every page. If it is done in Bangladesh, it comes last. See NAATI-certified translation with a notary.

Documents commonly needed

Purpose	Typical documents	Australian route
Property	Power of attorney	Notary, then DFAT apostille; then the step in Bangladesh
Inheritance	Death certificate, probate or letters of administration, proof of relationship	Registry and court originals to DFAT; declarations via a notary
Civil status	Birth, marriage or divorce documents	Originals to DFAT directly, not laminated
Study or employment	Degree and transcript	University-verified original, or a notarised copy stating verification
Company matters	ASIC extract, board resolution	ASIC documents to DFAT; resolutions via a notary

For university documents, DFAT apostilles an original once the university has verified it, or a notarised copy only if the notary's certificate states that the original was verified with the institution.

The other direction

Documents issued in Bangladesh for use in Australia are a different process. They are generally authenticated in Bangladesh, and an Australian notary cannot vouch for a Bangladeshi registry's document. For Home Affairs, a certified copy by an authorised person is usually enough. See notarising Bangladeshi documents in Australia.

Inheritance documents

When a relative dies in Australia leaving land or bank accounts in Bangladesh, the family usually needs a set of Australian documents to prove the death and who is entitled. The death certificate is a registry document and can generally go to DFAT as an original. A grant of probate or letters of administration is a court document, also on DFAT's list. What usually needs a notary is the rest: a declaration by a family member about the relationship to the deceased, a power of attorney letting one relative act for the others, or certified copies of passports. Ask the Bangladeshi lawyer handling the estate which documents it needs, in what form, and whether the heirs must each sign separately. Questions about who inherits, and how Bangladeshi and Australian law interact, are for lawyers in each country.

Mistakes that cost time

• Following an older online guide and paying for High Commission legalisation that is no longer part of the route.
• Asking DFAT for authentication when the receiving body wanted an apostille, or the reverse.
• Signing a power of attorney drafted in Australia instead of the wording your Bangladeshi lawyer sent.
• Posting a land power of attorney by slow mail and missing the deadline for the step in Bangladesh.
• Translating after the apostille when the receiving body wanted the translation apostilled with it.

Here is an illustration, not a real case

A Melbourne couple want a relative in Sylhet to sell a plot of family land. A cousin tells them to get the power of attorney "attested at the High Commission". They ask their lawyer in Bangladesh instead, who sends the required wording and a list of attachments, confirms an Australian notarisation with a DFAT apostille is what the land office will expect, and explains the step before the local authority and its deadline. They sign before a notary with the photographs and ID copies attached, DFAT apostilles it, and they courier it the same week so the deadline is not at risk.

In short

At our last check, Bangladesh has taken apostilles since 30 March 2025, and Australia is not among the objecting countries, so the Australian chain is a notary where needed, then DFAT. Check the HCCH table on the day. For a land power of attorney, get the wording, attachments and deadline from your Bangladeshi lawyer before you sign. More on the service is at apostille and authentication.

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Sending a power of attorney to Bangladesh? Send us your lawyer's wording, and we will explain each step before you book.