Apostille for Japanese Documents Used in Indonesia (and Embassy Legalization When Required)

When you go to Indonesia and apply for a visa or similar, you may be asked to submit Japanese documents such as your family register (koseki). Japanese official documents are not accepted by Indonesian authorities as they are; you will be asked to obtain an apostille in Japan or, in some cases, to "obtain consular legalization at the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Japan". Indonesia joined the Hague Apostille Convention in 2022, so legalization by the Embassy of Indonesia is basically no longer needed.

Indonesia is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention

For countries that are party to the Hague Apostille Convention (the Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents), an apostille alone is enough to submit documents. Indonesia became a Contracting State in 2022.

• Public documents (koseki, certificate of residence, company registration certificate, etc.): apostille at Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA)
• Private documents (powers of attorney, company-prepared documents, translations, etc.): certification by a notary at a notary office → certification of the notary's seal by the Legal Affairs Bureau → apostille at MOFA (completed at once at notary offices offering the one-stop service)

In some cases, however, the receiving authority may say "obtain consular legalization at the Embassy of Indonesia in Japan, not just an apostille". The Embassy of Indonesia generally does not legalize documents unless you have a letter from the receiving authority in Indonesia stating that legalization at the Embassy of Indonesia in Japan is required.

In that case, documents must be certified as follows.

• Public documents: certificate of official seal at MOFA → consular legalization at the Embassy of Indonesia in Japan
• Private documents: certification by a notary → certification of the notary's seal by the Legal Affairs Bureau → certificate of official seal at MOFA → consular legalization at the Embassy of Indonesia in Japan

MOFA's certification can be applied for by mail or at the counter, and in both cases certified documents are sent by mail 3 business days after acceptance. Since 5 October 2026, applications at the counter of MOFA headquarters in Tokyo require an online appointment (you cannot apply without one; mail applications and the Osaka branch do not require an appointment). Some websites say that applying at the counter lets you collect documents the next day, but this was the practice before the COVID-19 pandemic and is out of date.

If legalization is required: apply at the Embassy of Indonesia

Once you have the certificate of official seal, apply for consular legalization at the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Japan.

Address: 5-2-9 Higashi-Gotanda, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 141-0022

The nearest stations include Meguro, Gotanda and Shirokanedai.

Japanese-to-Indonesian translation is also available

Notarization, apostille and translation of agreements between supervising organizations and sending organizations (Technical Intern Training and Specified Skilled Worker)

We translate not only from Japanese into English but also into Indonesian. Japanese-to-Indonesian translation is outsourced by our office to a translation company.

Our service fees for Indonesia

For the apostille-only service, see Fees. Because the total cost can be hard to work out, contact us first and we will give you a free quote for the total cost and turnaround. Credit card payment is available.

Our office is close to the Embassy of Indonesia, notary offices and MOFA, so we can obtain certifications for documents going to Indonesia quickly. Indonesian visa applications also require a translation of the koseki. Going to the embassy yourself to apply and then collect the documents takes time and travel costs, and once you include preparing documents and translations, it usually cannot be finished in one day. If the documents are not properly certified, you may be unable to complete your procedure after arriving in Indonesia.

• Email inquiries are accepted 24 hours a day, 365 days a year
• Payment by credit card, bank transfer or PayPal
• We do not make pushy sales calls, and you are under no obligation to request our service after receiving a quote
• Administrative scriveners are bound by a legal duty of confidentiality

Royal Partners Administrative Scrivener Office, 2-19-4-506 Azabu-juban, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0045, Japan