Apostille or Embassy Legalisation: What Czechia Requires

Last reviewed: 26 September 2026. Country requirements change. This page is re-checked periodically, and nothing on it replaces confirming the position with the Czech office that will receive your document.

Czechia takes an apostille, and the Czech Embassy in Canberra says so in as many words. Two details on its pages are what people miss: the Czech translation has to cover the apostille as well as the certificate, and a translation you make yourself will be refused, however good your Czech.

Check the current position before acting on this or any other page. Czechia has been a party to the Apostille Convention since 1999. Confirm its status, and any objections, against the HCCH status table on the day you start.

Czechia and the Apostille Convention

The HCCH status table records the Czech Republic's accession in June 1998, with the Convention in force from 16 March 1999.

The Czech Embassy in Canberra states that official documents issued in Australia for use in the Czech Republic must be verified by DFAT, as the apostille authority where the document was issued, and that a document does not have to be verified by the Czech embassy abroad.

The chain

1. Notarise in Australia, if the document is a private one or you are sending a copy
2. DFAT apostille
3. Official Czech translation of the document and its apostille

Australian registry certificates and other public documents may go to DFAT directly, without a notary. Confirm with DFAT for your document.

Translation into Czech

The embassy's pages on registering births and marriages say three things about translation:

• The translation must be an official Czech translation.
• It must include the apostille, not just the certificate. That means the apostille comes first and the translation second.
• Translations made by the applicant are not accepted. The embassy keeps a list of translators it points people to.

Its page on marrying in the Czech Republic adds that translations can be prepared by translators in Australia and New Zealand and verified by the Czech Embassy in Canberra. If your document is going to a Czech office rather than through the embassy, ask that office whether it accepts a translation verified this way or wants one by a Czech court translator.

Registering Australian life events in the Czech registers

Czech citizens who marry, have a child or divorce in Australia are expected to have the event recorded in the Czech registers. From Australia, the embassy accepts applications by appointment and passes them to the Special Registry Office in Brno.

Birth. The embassy's birth page asks for the Australian birth certificate with an apostille, an official Czech translation, and the parents' Czech identity documents and certificates. The applicant must be a Czech citizen. The embassy puts the process at several months and says applications are accepted only at pre-booked appointments.

Marriage. The marriage page asks for the Australian marriage certificate certified by apostille, and a translation of the certificate including the apostille. It says all documents must be submitted as originals. Use the standard certificate from the state or territory registry: DFAT excludes ceremonial and commemorative marriage certificates.

Divorce. The divorce page asks for the foreign divorce decree bearing an apostille, with an officially certified Czech translation, plus the Czech marriage certificate. For an Australian divorce, that is the court's divorce order.

For each of these, the Australian document is a public document: DFAT can generally apostille the original directly, without a notary. Where a notary may help is with copies you need to keep, or with a declaration the embassy asks for. Ask the embassy before paying for either.

Marrying in the Czech Republic

The embassy publishes a list for Australians marrying in the Czech Republic. The local Czech authorities expect, in broad terms:

• a birth certificate
• a passport or other proof of citizenship
• evidence that any earlier marriage has ended — a divorce order or death certificate
• a Certificate of No Impediment to Marriage, which the embassy notes is issued by DFAT
• a document showing legal residence, issued by the immigration police

All of them need an apostille and a Czech translation. The embassy says each Czech town hall may have its own requirements for foreign citizens and advises contacting it directly, and that documents should be submitted about two weeks before the wedding.

Notice that a notary is not the centre of this. The key documents are registry certificates, a court order and a DFAT-issued certificate, all of which go to DFAT as they are. The embassy's own wording also refers to a "Decree Absolute", which is not the name of an Australian divorce document; bring the divorce order.

Powers of attorney and property

A power of attorney signed in Australia for use in Czechia — to sell a flat, accept an inheritance or run a bank account — follows the usual chain: Australian notary, DFAT apostille, then an official Czech translation that includes the apostille. Before signing, ask the Czech lawyer or notary who will use it for the exact wording, and whether they want a bilingual document. If you are asked to sign a document in Czech that you do not read, tell the Australian notary in advance.

Frequently asked questions

Does the Czech Embassy need to legalise my Australian document? No. The embassy says Australian documents are verified by DFAT, not by the embassy.

Can I translate my own birth certificate into Czech? No. The embassy says translations made by the applicant cannot be accepted.

Can a Justice of the Peace certify my documents for Czechia? Not for use in Czechia generally. A JP certification cannot be apostilled.

How long does it take? It depends on DFAT processing, translation and the Czech authorities. Do not plan to a figure quoted on a blog, including this one.