First e-Apostille issued and registered in Spain

According to the official press release of the Hague Conference on Private International Law dated on 20 May 2011 (see here), Spain has already issued and registered its first e-Apostilles using state-of-the-art technology developed under the e-APP (electronic Apostille Pilot Program) for Europe project, thus becoming the second State worldwide (after New Zealand) to have completed a comprehensive implementation of both of the e-APP’s components

Full adoption of e-APP means that Spain has implemented a technologically advanced system to facilitate (1) the issuance of and use of electronic Apostilles (e-Apostilles), and (2) the electronic registration of Apostilles in an e-Register that is accessible online. Spain is also unique in that it has become the first State worldwide to develop a central e-Register to operate and record data across multiple domestic jurisdictions.

In practice, this means that the applicant can download e-Apostilles online from the website of the Spanish Ministry of Justice (“Sede electrónica”). The applicant will then obtain an electronic file consisting of a digitally signed e-Apostille and the underlying public document. These e-Apostilles are available for public documents issued in either paper or electronic form. The e-Apostille can be easily verified in other States via the central e-Register which will contain information regarding Apostilles issued by all Competent Authorities in Spain.

(To find more about the electronic Apostille Pilot Programme click here)

Many thanks to Edina Marton for the tip