Knowing your way around the legalisation of official documents is imperative for success if you want to move or travel abroad and submit approved visa and immigration applications. In most cases, you will need to have your documents apostillised or authenticated (group under the term legalisation) for official use abroad. And more often than not, this calls for the apostille process. But how long does it take to get an apostille from DIRCO?
Where can I get documents apostilled in South Africa?
This depends on what document is required to be apostilled. Only two places generally can apostille and authenticate documents:
- DIRCO (Department of International Relations and Communication) and
- a High Court (there are 14 High Courts in South Africa)
As a general rule, documents issued by a governmental department (SAPS, DHA, SANDF, etc.) must go to South Africa’s foreign office to be apostillised. The only place in the country where this can be done is at DIRCO in Pretoria.
If, however, it is a document issued elsewhere, no legalisation can be done on the document. You can pay for a notarised copy that contains the stamp and signature of a Notary. That document then goes to the High Court where that notary is registered. If the document contains the stamp and signature of a Sworn Translator, it must go to the High Court where that Sworn Translator is registered. The same rings true for a Decree of Divorce seeing that the Magistrate is registered with a specific High Court.
It has been widely seen that people apostille their documents at a High Court through a notarised copy instead of at DIRCO. But this is an incorrect approach and very risky. In addition, the foreign government official viewing the document will most likely reject both the document and your visa application, so don’t run the risk!
How long does it take to get an apostille from DIRCO?
Getting your documents apostillised is an easy route in theory, but not always that quick! The legalisations of official documents in South Africa (and other countries) can take more than a month due to long queues, backlogs and more.
At the current moment (April 2023), DIRCO takes around 3-4 weeks to apostille a document. Back in 2019, it took only 1-5 days. There are huge backlogs caused by the coronavirus pandemic, loadshedding and other delay factors.
At the High Court, apostilles are often much faster. Cape Town’s High Court often does it on the same day while you wait in a queue. That unfortunately doesn’t mean you can skip DIRCO and use the High Court if your document requires an apostille at DIRCO. Almost all authorities worldwide will notice that the stamp and signature of the document itself were not apostilled, but the notary’s stamp and signature instead, resulting in your application being rejected.
Planning a timeline for your documentation is always recommended, in order to meet interview or application deadlines.
Where can I apply for an expedited apostille from DIRCO?
Apostil.co.za can assist you with all your document apostillisation and legalisation needs. We can help you better understand these processes and obtain your apostille from DIRCO in the fastest time possible. Our services also extend to assistance with document packs for international travel or emigration purposes.
Get in touch with us today to learn more about our wide range of services and prices.
