How can I have a foreign official document converted?

Which documents can I have converted?

The municipality of The Hague can convert the following documents:

• birth certificates
• marriage certificates or certificates of registered partnership
• death certificates

Documents required

In order to have a foreign official document converted, you must upload various documents as part of your application. The documents required depend on the type of document you wish to have converted.

See which documents you need

Submitting an application

If you have all of the necessary documents in your possession, you can apply to have your foreign official document converted by submitting a form online. If you wish to have several documents converted, you can use the same form. 

After you have submitted your application

Assessment

Once you have submitted your application you will receive a confirmation email containing a reference (LTK) number. The municipality of The Hague will then check to see whether you have provided everything required.

If a document is missing, the municipality will inform you by email and ask you to upload it. You will need to submit a new application to do this. If you have provided everything required, you will receive an email asking you to post the physical document (or documents) to be converted to the municipality. The municipality will check these documents to confirm they are authentic.

Approval

If the municipality approves the conversion, it will add your document to the Register of Births, Deaths, Marriages and Registered Partnerships. You will be informed of this by email. The physical documents will be returned to you by registered post.

How long does the process take?

Converting a foreign official document into a Dutch one takes 8 months maximum. It is not possible for documents to be processed more quickly. 

Costs

You will only have to pay the postage costs for posting your documents and receiving them back by registered post. When your documents are sent back to you, you will also receive a payment request for the return postage from the municipality of The Hague.

Requesting an official copy or extract

If you ever need an official copy or multilingual extract of a converted official document, you can request it online from the municipality of The Hague. This will save you requesting an official copy or an extract in the country where the official document originates.