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Apostille Services New Zealand
We Do the DIA Part for You.

Sending a New Zealand document overseas? Most countries will not accept it until an apostille is attached — and getting the steps in the wrong order is what costs people the most. We have been preparing documents for overseas use from Auckland since 2013, so we have seen where these applications go wrong. Our apostille services New Zealand wide cover the whole chain: we read your document, tell you whether it needs an apostille or an authentication, translate it if the other country asks for that, arrange a Notary Public where one is needed, and lodge it with the Department of Internal Affairs. DIA then couriers the finished document straight to you, wherever in the world you are. You see the full price in writing before you pay anything. This page covers New Zealand documents going out to other countries. For overseas documents being used here, see the relevant service page instead.

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✓ Auckland-based since 2013
✓ Free document check before you pay
✓ DIA certificate fee included
✓ Paper or e-apostille, your choice
✓ Free fix if DIA queries our work
✓ Sent to any address worldwide
✓ 160+ languages in house
Free Document Check — 30 min STEP 1 OF 3
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✅ INZ Accepted 🔒 Confidential 🔁 Free Revision
12+
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160+
Languages
30min
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1
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Start Here

Do You Need an Apostille or an Authentication
for Your New Zealand Document?

The country your document is going to decides this, not you, and it is the first thing we check on every apostille NZ order. If that country signed the Hague Convention, you get an apostille. If it did not, you get an authentication instead, which takes more steps. Same office, two different certificates.

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What an apostille actually is

A cover page that DIA ties to your document with ribbon and an embossed seal. It proves the signature or stamp on your document is real. It does not say the facts inside are true — only that the person who signed it was who they claimed to be.

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Why the apostille route is easier

New Zealand joined the Hague Convention in 2001, and well over a hundred countries are in it. For those countries the apostille is the last step. It does not go to any ministry afterwards, and no embassy has to see it.

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If your country is not in it

Then no amount of asking will get you an apostille — it simply does not exist for that country. You need an authentication, which adds the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and sometimes an embassy. We handle that route too.

The mistake this causes. People search the word apostille, assume that is what they need, and wait for something that was never going to arrive. Tell us the destination country first and we will tell you which one applies to you, free. If it turns out you need the longer route, our DIA authentication page explains how that works.

Order Of Steps

Should You Translate Your Document
Before or After the Apostille?

Before, in almost every case. Once the apostille is on, the document is sealed and nothing can be added to it. Get the order wrong and you pay for the whole thing twice.

One question that saves people hundreds of dollars

Ask whoever is receiving your document this, word for word:

“Do you need the translation apostilled as well, or only the original document?”

Some countries want the apostille on the original only. Others want it on the translation too. You cannot tell by guessing, and you cannot fix it later — a sealed document has to be started again from scratch. Send us their answer and we build the job around it.

The timing trick most people never hear about

DIA runs a faster service that finishes in five working days. But it comes with a condition buried in their own rules: your application must not need translating. Hand DIA a document and ask them to translate it, and that faster option closes.

Bring the translation already done, and the door stays open. That is one of the main reasons people come to us rather than sending everything to DIA in one go.

And it costs less this way

DIA charges ninety five dollars to translate a standard New Zealand certificate. We charge forty nine for the same certificate. On a two document job that difference alone is close to a hundred dollars, before you count the faster turnaround.

Do you even need a translation?

Not always. If your document is already in English and the receiving country works in English, you may need nothing more than the apostille. Plenty of people pay for a translation they were never asked for. We check that first and tell you if you can skip it.

Timing

How Long Does a New Zealand Apostille Take,
and Can You Make It Faster?

Yes, it can be made faster. DIA runs an urgent service that finishes in five working days. Standard applications take longer, and how much longer depends on how busy the unit is that week.

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Urgent service does exist

Plenty of websites still say New Zealand has no urgent apostille service. That is out of date. It exists, it runs to five working days, and it covers apostilles, e-apostilles and Category A authentications.

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An e-apostille can buy you time

DIA can issue the apostille electronically, for the same fee as paper. If your deadline is tight, the electronic one can go to the receiving office while the paper copy is still in the post. Ask them first whether they accept it.

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What slows an application down

A form with a blank box. A photocopy where an original was needed. A missing notary step. DIA sends these back rather than fixing them, and you go to the end of the queue. Checking your file before it is lodged is most of what we do.

In a hurry?

An urgent service is available. Send your document as early as you can and tell us your deadline — we will confirm what is possible for your document and include it in your written quotation.

Clear Pricing

How Much Do Apostille Services
Cost in New Zealand?

From $99, and the DIA certificate fee is already inside that. What changes the price is whether your document needs translating, and whether a notary has to sign it before DIA will look at it.

Apostille Only
From $99
per document · GST inclusive
📜 Already in English, government issued
  • ✓DIA certificate fee included
  • ✓We check and lodge the application
  • ✓Paper or e-apostille, your choice
  • ✓DIA couriers it straight to you
Most Chosen
Apostille + Translation
From $149
per document · GST inclusive
🌐 The other country wants it in their language
  • ✓Everything in Apostille Only
  • ✓Full certified translation, 160+ languages
  • ✓Signed Certificate of Accuracy
  • ✓Keeps the faster DIA option open
Notarised + Apostille
From $199
per document · GST inclusive
📝 Private papers DIA cannot accept directly
  • ✓We arrange the Notary Public
  • ✓Powers of attorney, company papers, degrees
  • ✓Translation added if you need it
  • ✓Whole chain on one order

The prices above are starting prices. Every apostille job is a little different — the country it is going to, whether a notary is involved, how many documents you have, and where it needs to be sent. Upload your document and we send you a written quotation with the exact final price and the date it will be ready. Nothing is charged until you approve it, so there is never a surprise.

Not sure which one you need?

You do not have to work it out. Upload your document, tell us the country, and we will say whether it needs an apostille or an authentication, whether a notary is involved, and what it will cost. Free, inside 30 minutes, with no obligation to order.

Overseas courier is charged at DIA’s own rate and shown in your quotation. Prices last reviewed: 18 September 2026. All prices include GST.

What We Handle

Which New Zealand Documents
Can Be Apostilled?

Almost any official New Zealand document can be apostilled, as long as DIA recognises the signature on it. Government issued papers go through easily. Anything a person or a company wrote themselves needs one extra step first.

Certificates from Births, Deaths and Marriages

Birth, marriage, civil union and death certificates. These are the easiest of all, because DIA already holds the signatures on file. One point to watch: they want the real certificate, not a photocopy, so order a fresh one if yours has gone missing.

Police and Ministry of Justice records

Criminal record checks, which most overseas employers and visa offices ask for. Order the police certificate first, because it takes its own time to arrive, then the apostille goes on top of it.

Degrees, diplomas and transcripts

New Zealand qualifications going to an overseas employer or university. Whether these go straight through depends on whose signature is on them, which is covered in the next section.

Powers of attorney and legal papers

Documents for property, inheritance or a court matter overseas. These are written by you or your lawyer, so a Notary Public signs them before DIA will touch them. Our legal translation service covers the wording side of the same job.

Company and trade documents

Certificates of incorporation, company extracts, board resolutions and contracts for an overseas tender or a new branch. Companies usually send several at once, and one combined order is far cheaper than separate ones.

Statutory declarations and affidavits

Single status letters, proof of life forms for an overseas pension, and sworn statements. Small documents, but they hold up big processes when they are missing, so they are worth sorting early.

One thing to check with the other country. Some offices will only accept a certificate issued in the last three or six months. The apostille itself never runs out, but their rule about the underlying document still applies. If yours is an old copy, order a new one before you start — our birth certificate translation page explains how those are usually handled.

The Extra Step

Why Do Some Documents Need a Notary Public
Before DIA Will Accept Them?

Because DIA only recognises signatures it already holds on file. A registrar’s signature is in that file. Yours is not. A Notary Public bridges that gap, because their signature is on file too.

Think of it as a chain of people who know each other

DIA cannot possibly know every signature in the country. What it keeps is a file of specimen signatures from officials it has already checked. When your document arrives, staff compare the signature on it against that file.

A birth certificate passes because the registrar is in the file. A letter you typed and signed does not. A Notary Public signs your document, and because their signature is in the file, DIA can now follow the chain back to you.

The surprise that catches graduates

People assume a university degree is official enough on its own. Sometimes it is. But if the person who signed your degree is not in DIA’s file, it gets sent back. A notary fixes it, and we check this before lodging rather than after.

Your translation is a private document too

Here is the part that surprises almost everyone. A certified translation is written by a translator, not a government office, so DIA treats it exactly like any other private paper. If the other country wants the apostille on the translation as well, that translation has to be notarised first.

Companies hit this most often, because their board papers and contracts are private documents from the start. If that is your situation, our business translation page covers how company paperwork is usually put together.

Already Left NZ

Can You Get a New Zealand Apostille
While You Are Living Overseas?

Yes. Our apostille services New Zealand wide work just as well from abroad — you do not have to be here, and you do not have to come back. Courier your document to us, we lodge it, and DIA sends the finished document to your address abroad.

1

Send a photo first

Before anything moves, upload a picture of the document and tell us the country. We confirm the steps and the price in writing, so you are not posting anything on a guess.

2

Courier the original to us

Use a tracked service. DIA needs the real certificate for most document types, and a tracking number means you can see where it is at every stage.

3

We check, then lodge

Translation done, notary arranged if needed, form filled correctly, fee paid. This checking stage is what keeps your file out of the returned pile.

4

DIA posts it to you

Not back to us — straight to the address you gave, in any country. One less leg, one less delay. Give us the right address at the start, because it is hard to change later.

Who this usually helps. Kiwis who have already moved for work and left a certificate behind. Families registering a New Zealand born child with the country they came from. People sorting out a property or inheritance matter from a different time zone.

If your paperwork is tied to a visa application rather than a move, the documents usually travel as a set. Our police certificate translation page covers the one that almost every overseas office asks for.

Getting Started

What Do You Need to Send Us
to Start an Apostille Application?

To start an apostille NZ application, all we need to quote is a photo and the name of the country. Nothing else. The original only needs to be posted once you have seen the quotation and said yes.

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A clear photo of the document

Laid flat, in daylight, no flash. We need to read the signature and the seal to tell you whether DIA will recognise them. A blurry corner is usually the part that matters most.

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The country it is going to

This single word decides everything — apostille or authentication, one step or several, cheap or expensive. Tell us the country and half the questions answer themselves.

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Anything they told you

If the office overseas sent you an email or a checklist, forward it. Their exact wording often answers the translation question and the deadline question in one go, and saves us both a round of guessing.

Send it through the form on this page or on WhatsApp. You get a written quotation back within 30 minutes, seven days a week. Nothing is charged, and you are not committed to anything by asking.

Still Wondering

What Else Do People Ask
About Apostille Services in New Zealand?

Does an apostille ever expire?

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No. Once it is attached it stays valid forever. What can catch you out is the receiving office, not the apostille — many will only look at a certificate issued in the last few months. So an apostille from last year is still fine, but the certificate underneath it might not be.

Can I send a photocopy instead of the original?

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For certificates from Births, Deaths and Marriages, no — the real one is needed. For some other papers a copy certified by a Notary Public is accepted, and a few overseas offices actually prefer that so you keep your original safe. Ask them which they want, then tell us.

Can I apostille several documents at once?

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Yes, and it works out cheaper. Each document still gets its own certificate, but they travel together on one application with one courier, so you are not paying postage and handling several times over. Families moving abroad and companies opening a branch nearly always send a batch.

What if the other country rejects my document?

▾
Send us whatever they told you and we will work out what went wrong. If the problem is something we did, we fix it at no charge. The decision itself always belongs to them, and nobody can promise you an outcome — but a question about our work never costs you a second fee.

Is my document safe while it is with you?

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It is tracked from the moment it reaches us. We tell you when it arrives, when it goes to DIA, and when DIA sends it on. Your original stays in our hands for the shortest time possible, and because DIA posts the finished document directly to you, it never has to come back to us at all.

Can I just do it myself and save the fee?

▾
Of course. A New Zealand apostille on a simple English certificate going to a Hague country is not hard to arrange yourself. Where people lose money is the guessing — wrong route, missing notary, translation in the wrong order, a form sent back. Ask us for the free check either way. If you can do it yourself, we will tell you that.
Going With It

Which Other Documents
Usually Travel in the Same Envelope?

Apostilles rarely come alone. These are the pages people open next.

🏛
DIA Authentication
Non-Hague countries
 💍
Marriage Certificate
From $49 · Overseas registration
 🎓
Academic Transcript
From $99 · Degrees & records
 ✈
Immigration Documents
Full document sets

Upload Your Document.
We Will Tell You Exactly What It Needs.

A photo and the name of the country is all it takes. A real person here in Auckland reads it, works out whether you need an apostille or an authentication, checks whether a Notary Public has to sign it first, and sends you a written quotation with the final price and the ready date. Free, inside 30 minutes, and you are not committed to anything by asking. We have been doing this since 2013, and if something on our side goes wrong we put it right at our cost. From $99, with the DIA certificate fee already included.

Get Your Free Check → WhatsApp Us

Auckland-based since 2013 · Open 7 days · No obligation to order · Sent to any address worldwide