General information on the procedure

The Hague Convention abolishing the requirement of legalization is not applicable between Germany and The Gambia. Legalization of Gambian public documents such as birth or marriage certificates is not possible either. Therefore, German authorities including the Embassy in Dakar can ask for the verification of all public documents issued by Gambian authorities prior to use in an official procedure.

The German Embassy entrusts experienced law firms to carry out the verification procedure. Your cooperation with the investigators is essential for a positive outcome of the procedure.

The German Embassy Dakar might stipulate the verification of documents in the following cases:

• German passport application
• Acknowledgement of paternity
• Family reunion visa

Documents to be presented and fee

The applicant will be contacted by the Liaison Office of the German Embassy Dakar in Kololi/The Gambia after starting one of the abovementioned procedures and will be asked to present the following documents and a fee:

• the filled out questionaire with a minimum of three reference persons including their addresses and contact details
• The presentation of older/expired documents is essential and of immense support for the verification process for you. Such documents may be (only those that are already in possession of applicant, not to be procured just for this process) :
  • copy of applicant´s passport, including expired ones,
  • ID card, including expired ones,
  • driver´s licence,
  • school certificates (primary and secondary school),
  • WAEC results, vaccination certificate, medical / hospital Card,
  • maternal record,
  • baptism certificate,
  • voters cards, including expired ones
  • work related documents
    • For the verification of marriage certificates:
  • Three photographs of the ceremony (specifically of the signature of the marriage certificate)
• data protection declaration signed by the document holder(s)
• fee of 230.000 FCFA; this fee is taken as a security deposit and has to be paid in cash in FCFA (no GMD or Euro). After the verification has been concluded and the applicable fee for the individual case was calculated, any amount that may have been overpaid will be refunded.

The documents may be handed in during the opening hours of the Liaison Office of the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany for The Gambia situated in Kololi Tuesday and Thursday 09:00 – 12:00 hrs.

Duration

The duration of the verification process is approximately one year from the time all necessary documents have been handed in. This is mainly due to the time the involved Gambian authorities take to respond to requests to verify the authenticity of documents issued by them. The Embassy has no influence in this regard and thus cannot accelerate the procedure.

Kindly refrain from status inquiries. The Embassy will contact you directly as soon as there is a status update.

For further enquiries please use the contact form.