Apostille or Legalisation for Nepal From Australia

Australian documents for Nepal do not take an apostille. As of our last check, Nepal is not a party to the Apostille Convention, so DFAT authenticates the document and the Embassy of Nepal in Canberra attests it. Check the HCCH status table on the day. For a Nepali power of attorney, the embassy's guidance points away from an Australian notary.

Key takeaways

• Ask DFAT for an authentication, not an apostille, then send the document to the Embassy of Nepal for attestation.
• Registry certificates, such as birth, marriage and divorce documents, usually go to DFAT directly, with no notary.
• A Nepali citizen who needs someone in Nepal to sell land or register a divorce signs the power of attorney at the embassy. It must follow the format Nepali law prescribes.
• The embassy says foreign nationals cannot grant a power of attorney through it. If you are now an Australian citizen, ask a Nepali lawyer what Nepal will accept before signing anything.
• For an Australian visa, a Nepali document usually needs a certified copy and a NAATI translation, not a notary or the embassy.

Is Nepal part of the Apostille Convention?

When we last checked the HCCH status table on 29 September 2026, Nepal was not listed as a contracting party. Its neighbours differ: India has been a party since 2005, China since 2023 and Bangladesh since 2025, so advice written for those countries does not carry over. Membership changes, so check the table the day you start. If Nepal has joined, most of this page no longer applies.

An apostille is a single certificate accepted by Convention countries. Authentication is DFAT's certificate for other countries, confirming the signature and seal on an Australian public document or a notary's certificate. The Nepali embassy's attestation then confirms DFAT's certificate. None of these vouches for the contents, and only DFAT issues apostilles and authentications in Australia; a notary cannot.

Australian documents: DFAT, then the embassy

The Embassy of Nepal in Canberra's attestation page, checked on 29 September 2026, says that an Australian document such as a birth or divorce certificate must first be authenticated by DFAT. It then asks for the original DFAT-authenticated document and a short request letter to the embassy, in no particular format. It also wants photo identification, such as a passport or visa. If you post it, include a trackable self-addressed return envelope.

1. Notarise in Australia, only if the document is private, such as a consent letter, affidavit or notarised copy.
2. DFAT authentication. Tell DFAT the document is for Nepal so it issues an authentication, not an apostille.
3. Attestation by the Embassy of Nepal in Canberra, in person or by post as its page describes.

Registry-issued certificates, such as birth, marriage and death certificates, and court documents such as divorce orders, are public documents that can usually go to DFAT directly. DFAT's page on documents it can legalise lists them, and it refuses laminated and ceremonial certificates. For a New Zealand document, the embassy says authentication is by New Zealand's Department of Internal Affairs instead. If you already hold an apostille by mistake, see what to do with the wrong certificate.

Where is a Nepali power of attorney signed?

This is the point most specific to Nepal, and the one where people most often pay for the wrong thing. The embassy's power of attorney page, checked on 29 September 2026, says the document must follow the format prescribed by Nepali law. The person granting it must attend the embassy and sign in the presence of the head of mission. The embassy describes this as the route for a Nepali citizen who needs someone in Nepal to sell a house, land or a vehicle. It is also the route for registering a divorce with the Nepali authorities.

For both a property sale and a divorce, the embassy asked for the power of attorney in the prescribed format and a joint formal application. It suggested consulting a Nepali lawyer for both. It also asked for copies of both parties' Nepali citizenship certificates. The grantor brings their original Nepali passport, a copy of their valid Australian visa, and photographs. It said an appointment is required.

For a sale of land or property, it added a copy of the land ownership certificate (dhani purja) and a recent land revenue receipt. For a divorce, it added a copy of the marriage certificate. So if you hold Nepali citizenship, an Australian notary is usually not the route for a Nepali property or divorce power of attorney. Start with a Nepali lawyer and the embassy, and save the notary's fee.

If you are no longer a Nepali citizen

The embassy states that foreign nationals cannot grant a power of attorney through it, and links a circular on the point. That affects many readers: people of Nepali origin who have become Australian citizens and, because Nepal does not generally allow dual citizenship, no longer hold Nepali citizenship. Non-resident Nepali citizenship is a separate, more limited status; ask a Nepali lawyer whether it changes anything for you. If you hold only foreign citizenship, do not assume an Australian notary and DFAT authentication will be accepted in its place. Ask a Nepali lawyer to find out what the receiving body, such as the land revenue office or court, will accept from a foreign national. Ask too how it must be authenticated. Get that answer in writing before you sign anything. If they do accept a notarised document, the chain is the one above: notary, DFAT authentication, embassy attestation. See power of attorney and declarations.

Other things the embassy attests

The embassy's attestation page also covers documents that come up often for Nepali students and workers in Australia. It verifies Nepali driving licences, which many people need when converting to an Australian licence. Its page sets out a form and copies of the licence, citizenship and passport. It also says what to do if the licence details differ from the passport. It attests bank guarantee letters, with the guarantor attending in person, and general documents such as consent letters. Each has its own list on the embassy's page, and none of them starts with an Australian notary.

Names and dates across two systems

Two practical problems catch Nepali families more than any rule. The first is spelling: a name written in Devanagari on a citizenship certificate can be romanised several ways, and the Australian passport, visa and registry certificate may each use a different one. The second is dates. Nepali documents use the Bikram Sambat calendar, which runs about 56 to 57 years ahead of the Gregorian one. A date of birth on a Nepali certificate will not match an Australian record at a glance. A translator converts the date, but check that the conversion matches your other documents before anything is lodged. See name mismatches.

Documents commonly needed

Document	Typical use	Route
Australian birth or divorce certificate	Registering the event in Nepal	DFAT authentication, then embassy attestation
Power of attorney (Nepali citizen)	Selling land, a house or vehicle; registering a divorce	Signed at the embassy, in the prescribed format
Power of attorney (foreign national)	The same purposes	Ask a Nepali lawyer first; not through the embassy
Nepali driving licence	Converting to an Australian licence	Embassy verification, per its list
Nepali academic or civil documents	Australian visas and study	Certified copy and NAATI translation, usually

What about Nepali documents for use in Australia?

Many readers need the reverse: a Nepali document accepted in Australia. The general rule is that a document is authenticated in the country that issued it, and the embassy's guidance fits that. It attests seals and signatures on Nepali government documents once Nepal's Department of Consular Services in Kathmandu has certified them.

An Australian notary cannot vouch for what a Nepali registry or university issued. For Australian immigration, check first whether a certified copy and a translation are all the Department of Home Affairs needs. Often they are, and no notary or embassy is involved. A translation made in Australia should be by a NAATI-credentialled translator; one made in Nepal needs the translator's full name, address, telephone number and qualifications. For certified copies of Nepali documents you hold here, see notarising Nepali documents in Australia, and for translations, NAATI translation with notary.

What happens when a Nepali national dies here?

If a Nepali national dies in Australia, the funeral company or family contacts the embassy or a Nepali honorary consulate. The embassy's guidance asks for a copy of the passport, the death certificate and a certificate that there is no public health risk. It then issues a no objection certificate for repatriation. No notary is needed for this step.

Here is an illustration, not a real case

A Nepali couple in Sydney, both still Nepali citizens, want his brother in Pokhara to sell a small plot of family land. A lawyer in Pokhara prepares the power of attorney in the prescribed format and the joint application. They gather their citizenship certificate copies, his original Nepali passport and visa copy, the dhani purja copy and the latest revenue receipt. Then they book an appointment and sign at the embassy in Canberra. They never see an Australian notary, and DFAT is not involved.

In short

Nepal is not an apostille country, on our last check. Australian certificates go to DFAT for authentication, then to the Embassy of Nepal. A Nepali citizen's power of attorney for land or divorce is signed at the embassy, not before an Australian notary, and foreign nationals need a Nepali lawyer's advice first. More on the Australian steps is at apostille and authentication.

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