Rwandans living in the country and abroad can, from June 5, access Apostille services of different foreign public documents on Irembo, an e-government services platform, the government has announced. The October 5, 1961 Apostille Convention was established to facilitate the use of public documents abroad by abolishing the requirement of legalisation for foreign public documents. Rwanda acceded to the Apostille convention in October 2023, and has become the first country to issue the documents electronically by e-mail. ALSO READ: Irembo leads charge to protect personal data in digital age Alain Mukuralinda, the Deputy Government Spokesperson, told journalists that this move replaces the often long and costly legalisation process with the issuance of a single Apostille certificate provided on Irembo. Going forward, the process will only involve a notary and an application on Irembo, which will take a maximum of three days, instead of going through various institutions such as ministries and embassies, as it was previously, he said. ALSO READ: Notary services to go digital “It used to take many days and lengthy queues in ministries’ offices for simple documents such as validating one’s school transcripts, birth certificates, and others, to be taken and used in foreign countries. This is going to change,” Mukuralinda said. The Apostille Convention is an international treaty drafted by the Hague Conference on Private International Law that facilitates the use of public documents abroad. An electronic Apostille Programme (e-APP) was launched in 2006 to support the electronic issuance and verification of Apostilles around the world. Enhance ease of doing business According to Mukuralinda, the new development will also enhance the ease of doing business in the country for foreign investors and business actors given that they will acquire some of the necessary documents faster and online. The government has in the past introduced numerous reforms, in various sectors, to augment the ease of doing business in the country. ALSO READ: Ease of Doing Business: Time to reflect? However, Mukuralinda noted, this does not include documents that involve the transfer of movable and immovable properties, which will continue to be acquired through the existing process because of the complexities often surrounding them. “When acceding to this convention, a country has an option to abstain from certain sections due to various reasons. Rwanda did not include providing those services [movable and immovable properties] due to the many challenges we continue to see during such process,” he explained. Noella Dushime Kajeneri, the Director of Business Development and Partnerships at Irembo, emphasized that the new services will be monitored for three months to assess whether the delivery period of within three days is convenient or can be adjusted. The service fee for any apostille document will be Rwf10,000, according to Mukuralinda. Sandrine Maziyateke Uwimbabazi, the Director of Rwanda Community Abroad at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, said that the two letters of recommendation that were previously provided by the ministry for the diaspora community will also, henceforth, be acquired through Irembo. The documents include a recommendation letter of tax exemption on properties for a Rwandan living abroad who decides to move back to the country permanently and a letter of recommendation for transfer of properties bought in the country such as land. The Apostille Convention has over 127 contracting parties. It has become one of the most widely applied multilateral treaties in the area of legal cooperation, with several million Apostilles issued each year.
