Document Translation and Legalisation in Egypt, Apostille and MFA

When you need legalisation

A document issued in one country has no legal force in another on its own. For Egyptian authorities to accept it, or for an Egyptian document to be recognised in your home country, you need a chain of certifications. Almost every expat and student runs into this, most often in these cases:

• A school certificate or diploma for university admission or a work permit.
• The birth certificate of a child born in Egypt, to arrange documents back home.
• Documents for a marriage in Egypt or for recognising an Egyptian marriage at home.
• A criminal record certificate, a power of attorney, property documents.

An apostille does not work in Egypt

Egypt is not a party to the Hague Apostille Convention. The status table on the website of the Hague Conference on Private International Law, updated on 30 June 2026, does not list Egypt. Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan are parties, so many people put an apostille on their documents out of habit and then find that Egypt does not accept it.

Egypt requires consular legalisation: the document is certified in turn by the authorities of the country that issued it, then by the consulate and the foreign ministry of the other country. If you are reading this later, check whether Egypt has joined the convention: the status table is published on hcch.net.

How to prepare a document from your country for Egypt

The chain depends on the country and the type of document, so check the exact procedure in advance with the Egyptian embassy in your country. In general terms it looks like this:

• A notarised copy or a translation certified by a notary, if the original cannot be legalised.
• Certification by the authorities of your country. In Russia, for example, notarial documents are certified first by the Ministry of Justice and then by the Consular Department of the Foreign Ministry.
• Legalisation at the Egyptian embassy or consulate in your country.
• The stamp of the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs once you are in Egypt.

How to legalise an Egyptian document for use at home

First the document is certified by the body that issued or oversees it. According to the rules published by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, birth, marriage and divorce certificates are certified by the civil status department (for example in Abbasiya, Giza, at City Stars or in New Cairo), court documents by the Ministry of Justice, and diplomas from state universities by the faculty, the university and the Ministry of Higher Education.

Next comes the stamp of the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and after it the consular section of your embassy in Cairo legalises the document. For Russian citizens living on the Red Sea, consular matters are handled by the Russian Consulate General in Hurghada. Back home the document is translated into your language and the translation is certified by a notary.

Egyptian documents can also be translated into Russian in Egypt, but ask in advance whether such a translation will be accepted where you plan to submit it. It is often easier to have the document translated at home by a notary.

Where to get the Egyptian MFA stamp

Legalisation is handled by the authentication offices of the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. According to the ministry, as of October 2026 there are 41 such offices in the country, and 14 of them have opened since the start of 2026. In Cairo they include the Merryland office in Heliopolis and the office on Hisham Barakat Square in Nasr City, in Giza there is an office on Ahmed Orabi Street, and there is also an office in Hurghada. They usually work from the morning until two or three in the afternoon.

The website of the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists the fees: 115 pounds for a standard certification and 410 pounds for commercial documents. The amounts change, so before your visit check the current list of offices, opening hours and fees on mfa.gov.eg. Bring the original document and your passport.

The same website says that before the MFA stamp a foreign document must be certified at an Egyptian embassy or consulate abroad or at the embassy in Egypt of the country that issued it. Check with your embassy and with the organisation that needs the document whether the second route works in your case.

A certified Arabic translation

Almost any document for Egyptian authorities has to be translated into Arabic. Under the rules of the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the original is certified first and then the translation by the same body, and both get a joint stamp. If the body has no translator of its own, the ministry accepts translations by the Ministry of Justice, the Armed Forces Language Institute, the civil status departments (for their own documents) and state universities.

For many other purposes, such as residence, university or a bank, a translation by an accredited office is usually enough. But requirements differ between bodies, so before ordering, ask whose translation they accept. The whole document is translated, including stamps and seals.

How to avoid mistakes with names and deadlines

• Write first names and surnames in the translation exactly as in your passport in Latin letters. Documents are often returned because of different spellings.
• Make several certified copies of important documents and keep the originals separately.
• Find out how long certificates stay valid. A criminal record or marital status certificate is often accepted only if it was issued recently.
• Start early. A chain of several offices in two countries can take weeks, and even longer during the admission season.
• Keep all receipts and acknowledgements for submitted documents.
• Do not give originals to random intermediaries and do not pay for «legalisation in one day» without a contract and a receipt.

When to turn to a professional

If the document is complicated, such as a court decision, inheritance papers or company documents, or you do not know Arabic, it is easier to give the job to a trusted office or lawyer. Ask in advance for the full price, the time frame and the list of offices involved, and split the payment into stages.

How school certificates and diplomas are legalised for admission to Al-Azhar is explained in our article how to enter Al-Azhar.

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