Apostille for a Certificate of Origin Issued in Australia

A certificate of origin can sometimes be apostilled by DFAT, usually after a notary has dealt with it, but it is often the wrong candidate. The Apostille Convention excludes documents dealing directly with commercial or customs operations, so many importing countries want embassy legalisation instead, or no authentication at all. Ask the importer before paying for either.

Key takeaways

• The Convention says it does not apply to administrative documents dealing directly with commercial or customs operations. Countries read that exclusion differently.
• An importing country may refuse an apostille on a certificate of origin and want consular legalisation, even if it is a Convention member.
• DFAT's list names chamber of commerce documents among those it legalises after notarisation. Confirm the route with DFAT before lodging.
• An electronic certificate that customs can verify online may need no authentication at all.
• Where payment is by letter of credit, its wording decides which form of authentication counts. A mismatch can delay payment.

What a certificate of origin is, and who issues it

A certificate of origin states where goods were produced. Importing countries use it to apply tariffs, quotas and trade rules, and banks use it when a letter of credit calls for one. In Australia there are broadly two kinds.

• Preferential certificates are used to claim reduced tariffs under a free trade agreement. They are issued by bodies authorised for that purpose, and under some agreements the exporter or producer can declare origin themselves instead.
• Non-preferential certificates simply state origin. They are often required by an importing country's customs or by a letter of credit, and are commonly issued by chambers of commerce and industry associations.

Either way, the signature on the certificate is that of the issuing body's officer, or the exporter's own. Neither is a government official in the usual sense. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) legalises Australian public documents, and its list of documents it can legalise names chamber of commerce documents among those it accepts after notarisation. So in practice a notary usually deals with the certificate first, witnessing or attesting the signature, or certifying a copy, so that there is a notary's signature for DFAT to authenticate. Confirm the route for your certificate with DFAT.

The Convention's commercial documents exclusion

The Apostille Convention states that it does not apply to administrative documents dealing directly with commercial or customs operations. How far that exclusion reaches is not settled. Some countries read it narrowly and accept apostilles on certificates of origin routinely; others treat such documents as outside the Convention altogether.

The practical consequences for an Australian exporter:

• An importing country may refuse an apostille on a certificate of origin and insist on consular legalisation, even though it is a Convention member.
• An importing country may not require any authentication, accepting the certificate on the strength of the issuing body's own verification.
• DFAT's own approach to commercial documents determines what you can obtain in Australia. Ask DFAT whether it will issue an apostille or an authentication certificate for your document and destination.

So for this document, a country's membership of the Convention is not the deciding factor on its own. Check the destination on the HCCH status table on the day, but also ask the importing country's customs authority, its embassy in Australia, or the importer, in writing.

What does the importing country want?

Many issuing bodies now produce electronic certificates of origin with online verification. Where the importing customs authority can verify the certificate directly, it may need no apostille or legalisation at all. Ask the importer whether an electronic certificate will be accepted before arranging anything on paper. DFAT itself accepts only a limited range of electronic documents, and a scan or printout of an electronic certificate is not an electronic document in DFAT's sense.

Preferential certificates are usually a customs matter

A preferential certificate used to claim a lower tariff under a free trade agreement is mainly a matter between the exporter, the issuing body and the importing country's customs. The agreement itself usually sets out how origin is proven and verified, and customs authorities in partner countries often verify origin through their own channels rather than through legalisation. Where an agreement allows the exporter or producer to declare origin, there may be no certificate from a third party at all. So before arranging any notary or DFAT step for a preferential certificate, ask the importer or its customs broker whether authentication is actually required under that agreement. Questions about whether goods qualify for a preference are for a customs broker or trade adviser, not a notary.

The legalisation chain

For destinations that want legalisation, whether because they are outside the Convention or because they treat commercial documents as excluded from it, the usual chain is:

1. The certificate is issued by the chamber of commerce or other authorised body.
2. A notary deals with it, attesting the issuing officer's or exporter's signature, or certifying a copy, as DFAT requires.
3. DFAT authenticates the notary's signature and seal.
4. The importing country's embassy or consulate in Australia legalises it.

Embassies differ in what they require. Some want the chamber of commerce's certification present before they will look at the document. Some want the commercial invoice to accompany it. Some set their own rules for the order of stamps or the number of copies. Ask the specific embassy before starting, because a refusal at step 4 sends you back to step 1. Asking DFAT for the wrong certificate also means lodging again; see what happens with the wrong certificate type.

Commercial invoices follow the same logic

Commercial invoices are often requested alongside certificates of origin and legalised as a pair. An invoice is the exporter's own document, so it is always a private document. It normally needs certification by a chamber of commerce, notarisation of the exporter's signature, or both, before DFAT can act on it, and the same uncertainty about the commercial documents exclusion applies. When a notary attests an exporter's signature on an invoice, the notary will want to see who is signing and that they have authority to sign for the exporting company.

Keep the set consistent

A certificate of origin, commercial invoice and packing list are read together. An embassy or customs officer who finds a mismatch between them will refuse the set, however well each document is authenticated.

Detail	Where it appears	What to check
Description of goods	Certificate, invoice, packing list	Identical wording, not paraphrased
Quantities and weights	All three	Same units and totals
Consignee details	All three	Same name and address spelling
Invoice number and date	Certificate and invoice	Referenced correctly on the certificate
Exporter's name	All three, and the notarial certificate	Matches the company's registered name

Check the documents against each other before the notary sees them. The notary attests a signature or certifies a copy; the notary does not check that the goods, quantities or consignee are right.

Letters of credit and timing

Where payment is by letter of credit, its terms usually specify exactly which documents must be presented, in what form, and by when. If it calls for a legalised certificate of origin, a certificate that is only apostilled may be treated as a discrepancy, which can delay payment. Read the letter of credit wording closely, and if it is unclear, ask the bank before the goods ship. Build the notary, DFAT and embassy steps into the shipping timetable. We do not quote processing times; ask DFAT and the embassy for their current guidance.

Translation

Some importing countries require the certificate or the invoice in their own language, or bilingually. Confirm whether the translation must be authenticated along with the document, in which case DFAT will accept a translation by a NAATI certified or recognised translator with their details on every page, or supplied separately, and whether the importer can arrange it at the destination. See document translation.

Mistakes that cost time

• Apostilling a certificate of origin for a country that wanted consular legalisation.
• Arranging paper authentication when customs would have verified an electronic certificate online.
• Legalising the certificate but not the commercial invoice the embassy also wanted.
• Small differences in goods descriptions or weights between the certificate and the invoice.
• Starting the authentication chain after the goods have shipped, with the letter of credit's deadline running.

Here is an illustration, not a real case

A Victorian food exporter shipping to a Middle Eastern buyer is asked by the buyer's bank for an "apostilled certificate of origin and invoice". The exporter's freight forwarder asks the buyer to check with its customs authority, which replies that it wants both documents legalised by its embassy, not apostilled. The chamber of commerce issues the certificate, a notary attests the chamber officer's and the exporter's signatures, DFAT issues authentication certificates, and the embassy legalises both. Because the goods descriptions matched word for word, the set passed on the first attempt.

In short

A certificate of origin can be authenticated in Australia, usually after a notary has dealt with it, but the Convention's commercial documents exclusion means many importing countries want embassy legalisation instead, and some want nothing if an electronic certificate can be verified. Ask the importer and its customs authority in writing, match every detail across the set, and read the letter of credit closely. More on the service is at apostille and authentication.

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Exporting goods with origin documents? Send us what the importer or bank asked for, and we will explain each step before you book.