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Legalisation of documents from Eswatini for use in the Netherlands

To use a document from Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) in the Netherlands, you must have it legalised by the Swati Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This is done with an apostille. This is a simplified form of legalisation which allows you to use your documents in the Netherlands.

Attention: If you want to use a Dutch document in Eswatini, see Legalisation of Dutch documents for use abroad.

Good to know

  • Documents in Eswatini must be translated for use in the Netherlands. Documents in English do not have to be translated.
  • Your document must be original and complete. If it refers to other documents or annexes, these must be included.

Legalisation of documents in Eswatini is a two-step process.

Step 1: Having your document translated

If your document is in siSwati, you must have it translated into Dutch, English, French or German by a sworn translator.

  1. Have the document translated by a sworn translator.
  2. Have the original and the translation legalised with an apostille.

Go to step 2.

  1. Have the original document legalised with an apostille in Eswatini.
  2. Have the legalised document translated by a sworn translator in the Netherlands. You do not need to have the translation legalised. You can find a sworn translator on the Legal Aid Council website.

Go to step 2.

Step 2: Legalisation of your document

Have your document and, if applicable, the translation legalised with an apostille.

You can get an apostille from the Swati Ministry of Foreign Affairs. See the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) website for contact details.

Once your document has been legalised it is fit for use in the Netherlands.

It is then also fit for use in Aruba, Curaçao, St Maarten, Bonaire, Saba and St Eustatius.

Don’t have the document you need?

Find out below where to obtain a document that you need but do not yet have.

You can get civil status records from the registrar general’s office, P.O. Box 460, Mbabane.

You can request official copies of:

  • birth certificates
  • marriage certificates
  • death certificates

You can get an official copy of a divorce certificate from the district court that granted the divorce.

  • Hhohho District, P.O. Box 542, Mbabane
  • Piggs Peak District, P.O. Box 98, Piggs Peak
  • Manzini District, P.O. Box 13, Manzini
  • Nhlangano District, P.O. Box 99, Nhlangano

You can get a certificate of unmarried status from the Ministry of Home Affairs, P.O. Box 432, Mbabane.

If you need another type of document, ask the local authorities where you can get this document.

Help with obtaining documents and having them legalised

The Consular Service Centre can assist Dutch nationals with obtaining documents and having them legalised in Eswatini.

After legalisation

Verification of your document in the Netherlands

Legalisation does not prove the authenticity of a document or the truthfulness of its content. A municipality in the Netherlands, the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) or another authority may decide to verify these things. Legalisation of your document simply means that your document bears the correct signature.

How recently must your document have been issued or legalised

Organisations have different requirements for how recently your document must have been issued and legalised. For more information, contact the organisation in the Netherlands requesting the document.

Contact

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

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