As defined in Government Decree No. 111/2011/ND-CP of December 5, which will take effect on February 1, 2012, a consular certification is the verification by overseas Vietnamese consular offices of a seal, signature or title on documents prepared in
Meanwhile, consular legalization is the verification of a seal, signature or title on documents prepared overseas so that they can be recognized and validly used in
Consular certification and legalization may be conducted by overseas offices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and overseas Vietnamese representative missions.
The languages used in consular certification and legalization are Vietnamese and the official language of the country where documents are to be used, or English or French.
Consular certification or legalization must be completed right on the date of receipt of valid dossiers. For documents consisting of more than 10 pages, the processing period may be longer but must not exceed five working days.-