Federal Decree Exempt Foreign Documents From Legalization

On February 1st, 2016, the Federal Decree nº 8,660/2016 was published in the Federal Official Gazette, promulgating the Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents, also known as the Hague Apostille Convention.

From August 14, 2016, public documents which have been executed in the territory of more than 100 countries will no longer need to be legalized by diplomatic or consular agents to be valid in Brazil. It also means that public documents produced in Brazil will be exempt from the legalization to certify the authenticity of the signature, the capacity in which the person signing the document has acted, or the identity of the seal or stamp which it bears.