Legal Basis

German consular officers are empowered by statute to undertake such legal acts for the purposes of German law (section 2 of the Konsulargesetz (Consular Act)). Documents executed before a consular officer rank equally with those executed before a notary in Germany (section 10 (2) Konsulargesetz).

The fees are levied in accordance with Act on Fees and Expenses for Federal Services (Bundesgebührengesetz, BGebG) in conjunction with the General Fee Ordinance (Allgemeine Gebührenverordnung, AGebV) and the Special Fee Ordinance (Besondere Gebührenverordnung des AA, AABGebV).

Authentication of signatures / copies

In authenticating a signature, the consular officer confirms that the person concerned executed or confirmed their signature in the presence of the consular officer. The person whose signature is to be authenticated must therefore appear in person.

When certifying that transcripts or copies are true copies of originals or certified transcripts/copies, the original or certified transcript/copy must be presented to the consular officer. A transcript or copy of a non-authenticated transcript cannot be authenticated.

Certification of Documents

Consular officers only certify documents where this is necessary, i.e. where German law requires that a document be certified. They do not compete with German notaries. They merely offer a supplementary service which would not otherwise be available. Consular officers have a discretionary duty; unlike notaries in Germany, who may not refuse their services without sufficient reason, they are not obliged to execute certifications.

Please note that not every mission has a consular officer empowered to undertake all certifications. If you want to have a document certified by a German consular officer, you should ask when making the appointment whether the local staff can in fact help you.

Online procedure offered by notaries in Germany under company law

In the sphere of company law, you can contact a German notary from abroad and request them to carry out certification or authentication via an online procedure at https://online-verfahren.notar.de/ov/home

You can find the addresses of our missions abroad here.