Apostille and legalization for Czech university diplomas, how to

First, an apostille for a diploma from a Czech higher education institution can only be obtained within the Czech Republic. Unfortunately, there are no offices abroad that handle this matter (embassies and consulates do not provide this service). The document must be physically brought into the country, and someone must complete the certification process with all the relevant government authorities.

The good news is that this does not have to be done by the diploma holder personally – any third party can handle the process on their behalf, even without a power of attorney. If needed, we can arrange the entire procedure for you – just get in touch.

Second, only diplomas issued by universities that are officially recognized as accredited higher education institutions in the Czech Republic can be apostilled. These institutions are legally authorized to operate as universities and are included in the official register maintained by the Czech Ministry of Education ("Ministerstvo školství, mládeže a tělovýchovy České republiky").

Third, a diploma typically consists of several documents. In most cases, these include the diploma itself ("diplom") and a diploma supplement ("dodatek k diplomu"), which lists all completed courses and corresponding grades. They are treated as two separate documents, and each requires its own apostille. Although the procedure is identical for both documents, they must be apostilled separately.

The apostille process involves two steps:

1. First, the Czech Ministry of Education ("Ministerstvo školství, mládeže a tělovýchovy České republiky") verifies the diploma and affixes its official stamp. This is not yet the apostille, but it is a mandatory preliminary step. The Ministry’s office is located at Karmelitská 529/5, 118 12 Praha 1 – Malá Strana, and accepts documents on Mondays and Wednesdays. Although documents can theoretically be submitted by mail, even from outside the country, we have no practical experience or feedback regarding this option. Therefore, we strongly recommend having someone submit the documents in person at the Ministry’s office.
2. The final apostille is issued by the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs, located at Hradčanské nám. 5, Praha 1. Again, although documents can theoretically be submitted by mail, we believe it is better to apply in person. Please note that without the official stamp from the Ministry of Education (see Step 1), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will not issue the final apostille.

The apostille can be placed:

• Directly on the original diploma and its supplement, exactly as they are.
• On a certified copy of the diploma – but the copy must be certified by Czech authorities, local notaries, or Czech consulates abroad.

We often receive requests concerning the certification of Czech diplomas. As a third-party organization, we fully understand that these documents are extremely important to people – often throughout their lives. Many people prefer not to send us the original, and we respect that. In such cases, we would like to clarify that a certified copy of the document can be obtained and the apostille placed on that copy. In addition, adding extra stamps to the original document is not always advisable.

IMPORTANT! In both cases – whether the original document or a certified copy is apostilled – the apostille directly confirms the content of the diploma.

Let us clarify: an apostille is essentially an additional certification that validates a document for use abroad. In other words, it confirms certain prior certifications – the important point is to understand exactly what it confirms:

• For example, if you had a copy of your diploma notarized in your home country, there is another option: the Notarial Chamber of the Czech Republic can affix an apostille. However, in this case, the Notarial Chamber does not confirm the content of the diploma itself – it only certifies the notary’s verification that the "copy matches the original". This is NOT the correct method, as it does not validate the diploma itself.

• The correct way to apostille a certified copy of a diploma is through the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, following the two steps mentioned above – just as with the original. This results in an apostille being placed on the certified copy rather than the original, while still confirming the content of the diploma itself. This is the CORRECT and VALID method for obtaining an apostille for a certified copy of a Czech higher education diploma. The country’s authorities specifically created this option so that you do not have to damage the original document with additional stamps, while still ensuring that the document’s content is verified – not just the notarized copy.

If anything is unclear, feel free to contact us – we will be happy to explain it in more detail at no additional cost (but please contact us by email or through a messaging app).

Diploma Certification through Consular Legalization

In most countries, Czech university diplomas are recognized with just an apostille or sometimes even without any additional certification. However, there are some countries that require what is called "consular legalization" (also known as "superlegalization"). This is a similar process but slightly more complex than an apostille.

The procedure follows the same steps as an apostille, but at the final stage, the document must also be certified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the destination country. Most often, this is done by that country’s consulate – specifically, its consulate in the Czech Republic. If the destination country does not have a consulate in the Czech Republic, the document must be sent there after certification in the Czech Republic and legalized by its Ministry of Foreign Affairs within that country. Our website contains detailed information about the process and purpose of consular legalization.