Countries that do not follow the Hague Convention: 2026 list

A UK apostille settles nothing in a country that is not a party to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention. That is why the question of which countries do not follow the Hague Convention should be settled before a single document leaves the United Kingdom. Destinations outside the apostille system require a three-stage legalisation route instead, with its own costs and timescales, and the child abduction Convention has to be checked separately.

Countries outside the Hague Apostille Convention

For document purposes, "Hague" means one specific treaty: the Convention of 5 October 1961 abolishing the requirement of legalisation. Whether a destination participates in that treaty decides which route your document takes. Older published lists often get this wrong, so every name on them needs checking.

What non-Hague means for documents

A destination counts as non-Hague when it is not a Contracting Party to the 1961 Apostille Convention in its relationship with the country that issued the document. Where the destination sits outside the operational system, a UK apostille on its own is not enough. This is the practical consequence for countries that do not follow the Hague Convention: another route is needed.

Even where an apostille is accepted, you should understand what it does. It authenticates the signature, stamp or seal and the capacity of the person who signed. It does not certify that the contents of the document are true or legally valid.

2026 Status and changing membership

As at 25 September 2026, the confirmed non-Hague countries include the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the United Arab Emirates, Burkina Faso, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Iraq. Thailand stays outside the operational system until 28 February 2027. Saudi Arabia has applied the Convention since 7 December 2022 and Bangladesh since 30 March 2025. Algeria joined on 9 July 2026 and Viet Nam on 11 September 2026.

India, Japan, Bahrain, Peru and Andorra are all parties. China is also listed as a participant, including Hong Kong and Macao, so these countries should not be copied over from old lists. Angola appears in an HCCH authority database only for the separate 1993 Adoption Convention. Afghanistan, Benin, Bolivia, the Dominican Republic, Egypt, Jamaica and Morocco have appeared on lists of countries not party to the Hague Convention, and each entry still needs verifying.

How to verify a destination

The HCCH status table for the 1961 Apostille Convention is the authoritative source, and it records 130 Contracting Parties. It gives two dates for each country: accession or ratification, and entry into force. The apostille route is open only once the Convention is in force between the United Kingdom and the destination, and depositing an instrument does not achieve that by itself.

Some names need extra care. "Congo" could mean either of two states, the Republic of the Congo or the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Before relying on any list of Hague members, identify which of the two your document is going to.

Legalising UK documents for non-member countries

When the destination is outside the Apostille Convention, legalisation replaces the single certificate. It is a sequence of authentications, each carried out by a different authority, and the order cannot be changed.

The three-stage route

For a UK public document going to a non-member country, the FCDO sets out three stages. An FCDO apostille here is only the United Kingdom authentication stage, and the foreign authority still has to attest the document.

• FCDO legalisation: the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office checks the UK signature, stamp or seal.

• Destination embassy in London: that country's mission legalises the document in turn.

• Foreign ministry approval: the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the destination country gives final approval.

• No British mission stage: British embassies, high commissions and consulates cannot legalise documents.

In practice, a document that skips the first stage will be refused at the second. You cannot use a British consulate abroad to make up for a stage that was missed in London.

Prepare the correct document

The FCDO handles many UK official documents, including birth, marriage and death certificates, educational documents, ACRO or DBS checks, company and court documents, notarised documents and HMRC certificates. Some can be sent directly. Others need certifying first by a UK solicitor or notary, because the FCDO must be able to verify the signature, stamp or seal. Documents issued outside the UK go to the competent authority in their country of issue, whatever your nationality.

Before you submit anything, ask the receiving authority four things: whether it wants an original or a certified copy, whether a particular person must sign, whether it accepts a paper apostille or an e-Apostille, and whether it needs a translation. An apostille does not expire, but the underlying document may have its own period of validity.

Destination mission requirements

The Royal Thai Embassy requires UK and Irish documents to be legalised first by the FCDO or the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. The Sri Lanka High Commission requires FCDO authentication and original UK-issued documents. The High Commission of Malaysia may require certification by a UK notary before FCDO legalisation. The Embassy of Iraq still legalises documents, subject to its consular exceptions and allocation rules.

For Qatar, the UK Legalisation Office acts first, then the Qatar Embassy in London stamps the document before it is sent to Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The embassy's Legalisation Department works by post only. For the UAE, FCDO attestation comes first and documents go to the embassy by post with the required enclosures. Apostilled documents must not be bundled together, and powers of attorney must be signed before a UK notary or solicitor.

Legalisation costs and timescales

The FCDO fee is only the first cost of legalisation for a non-member destination, and the FCDO stage is only the first delay. Budget for each stage separately.

FCDO and additional charges

Standard FCDO paper legalisation costs £45 per document, plus postage or courier. The fee is not refunded if the document cannot be legalised. For a non-member destination you should also expect consular, notary, translation, courier and destination-country charges on top.

An FCDO e-Apostille costs £35, but it does not replace the foreign legalisation stages. The Restricted Urgent service costs £100 and is open only to registered businesses that meet the stated conditions.

FCDO service	Fee	Processing time
Standard paper	£45 per document	Up to 25 working days, plus delivery
e-Apostille	£35	Up to 2 working days
Next-day paper (registered businesses)	—	Next working day
Restricted Urgent (registered businesses, pre-approved)	£100	Same day

FCDO processing windows

The e-Apostille takes up to 2 working days, but it is not available for every type of document.

Embassy stage timings

The Royal Thai Embassy in London states a processing period of 3 working days, excluding delivery.

The Sri Lanka High Commission in London states that its normal legalisation service is completed within 10 working days.

The UAE Embassy in London states up to 5 working days once the documents have been submitted. Add this to the FCDO window, not in place of it.

Child abduction uses a separate Convention

The word "Hague" covers several different treaties. Where a document is needed for a child abduction dispute, the status that decides the outcome is the country's position under the 1980 Convention, not under the 1961 Apostille Convention.

Two treaties with different purposes

The 1961 Convention deals with authenticating public documents. The 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction provides a mechanism for returning children who have been wrongfully removed or retained abroad. Being outside one treaty says nothing about the other, in either direction.

• Outside the 1980 framework: the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt and Afghanistan.

• Also outside: mainland China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Viet Nam.

• Partial participation: China takes part only through Hong Kong and Macau.

This list does not match the apostille list. Saudi Arabia, for example, now accepts apostilles but remains outside the child abduction Convention. The Hague Convention countries for child abduction have to be checked in their own status table.

When the return mechanism applies

The return mechanism operates only where the child's state of habitual residence and the destination state are both Contracting States bound to one another. Accession alone may not create that relationship. The rules on which states are bound to the United Kingdom therefore come before any application.

The Convention applies only to children under 16. A removal or retention is wrongful when it breaches custody rights under the law of the state of habitual residence and those rights were being exercised, or would have been exercised but for the removal. The conditions for a wrongful removal therefore need close examination.

Effect on cross-border proceedings

Habitual residence is a question of fact. It depends on the child's settled routine, schooling, social integration and daily life immediately before the removal. Nationality and passport status do not decide it.

A return order decides which court has jurisdiction over custody. It does not decide where the child will live permanently. Under Article 16, once the destination state's court has notice of a wrongful removal or retention, it cannot decide custody on the merits until the return question has been resolved.

Where the destination is outside the 1980 Convention, there is no standard return process and no automatic enforcement of custody decisions. The outcome can depend on local law, recognition proceedings, specialist advice in that state or, in suitable cases, the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court in England and Wales, a risk studied in work on parental child abductions to third countries. Cabinet Georges Parastatis acts on both sides of this boundary, coordinating the civil and criminal lines from the outset.