Apostilles for Canadian documents since 2024

Since January 2024 Canada issues apostilles, from Global Affairs Canada or from the province that issued the document when that province is designated.

Canada acceded to the Convention in May 2023 and it took effect for Canada on 11 January 2024. Before that date, Canadians ran the two-step chain: Global Affairs authentication plus consular legalization. Since that date, one apostille serves every Convention destination.

The split follows the document, not the applicant. Five provinces issue their own apostilles for documents issued or notarized within them: Ontario through Official Documents Services in Toronto with extra ServiceOntario counters, British Columbia through its Authentication Program in Victoria, Alberta through the Deputy Provincial Secretary's Office in Edmonton, Saskatchewan through its Authentication Services Office in Regina, and Quebec through the Ministry of Justice in Montreal. Everything else goes to Global Affairs Canada in Ottawa: federal papers and documents from Manitoba, the Atlantic provinces, the North and the territories.

Check who holds your document before you post anything. A Toronto notarization goes to Ontario even if you now live in Vancouver. A federal clearance goes to Ottawa even if you live in Toronto. Sending to the wrong office wastes weeks.

Fees and channels differ by office. Headquarters service in Ottawa is free, missions abroad charge CAD 50 per document, and the provinces state their own fees from CAD 10 to CAD 65. Global Affairs runs an online register that verifies apostilles from Ottawa, Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia in real time. Confirm the current fee and address on the office page on the day you apply.

One habit protects every Canadian file. Read the destination rule first, then the provincial rule, then the office page, in that order. The destination tells you apostille or legalization. The province tells you Ottawa or the provincial office. The office page tells you the form, the payment and the address. Skipping any of the three is how files stall: the right document at the wrong office, or the right office with the wrong payment. When two offices could plausibly serve you, phone both before posting anything, and keep the name of whoever answered.