# What is the difference between the physical and the electronic Apostille?
Source: https://www.lafit-trans.com/en/faq/document-legalization/what-is-the-difference-between-the-physical-and-the-electronic-apostille/
Paper and electronic Apostilles: one function, different media
Paper and electronic Apostilles certify the same facts under the Hague Convention but exist in different forms. A paper Apostille is a physical certificate attached to the document, while an e-Apostille is an official digital file with a digital signature and verifiable integrity.
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## What do the two forms of Apostille have in common?
Both paper and electronic Apostilles are issued by a Competent Authority under the Hague Apostille Convention. Each certifies the authenticity of the signature on a public document, the capacity in which the signer acted and, where applicable, the identity of the seal or stamp. Neither Apostille certifies the document’s content or replaces a receiving authority’s substantive decision.
The [official HCCH guidance](https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/sections-specialisees/apostille/) states that the same issuance rules apply and that an e-Apostille cannot be refused solely because it is electronic. Equal legal function does not make the two media operationally identical: they are submitted, checked and preserved in different ways.
## How do the format and attachment to the document differ?
A paper Apostille is a printed certificate placed on or durably attached to the public document. Its signature and seal form part of the physical set, so integrity is assessed together with the method of attachment and the visible particulars of the issuing authority.
An e-Apostille is created and signed as a digital document and securely associated with an electronic version or original of the public act. Many systems combine them in one signed PDF. A scan or photograph of a paper Apostille is not an e-Apostille because it lacks the issuing authority’s digital signature and protected electronic link.
## How is authenticity verified?
A paper Apostille is checked by its number, date, Competent Authority and visible particulars. Where the authority operates an e-Register, the online record provides an additional comparison with the certificate that was issued; that lookup does not convert a paper Apostille into an electronic one.
For an e-Apostille, verification covers the authority’s digital certificate, its status when the file was signed and the integrity of the file after issuance. The [HCCH verification guidance](https://www.hcch.net/en/publications-and-studies/details4/?pid=5578) distinguishes signature validation from an e-Register search. The original digital file carries this machine-verifiable evidence; a printout or screenshot does not.
## Is an e-Register the same as an e-Apostille?
An e-Apostille is the official certificate itself in digital form. An e-Register is a separate information system in which a Competent Authority records issued Apostilles and offers a way to check their number, date, origin, signature or file integrity, depending on the system’s capabilities.
The same register may contain both paper and electronic Apostilles. Bulgaria’s [NACID Apostille register](https://apostille.bg/) supports verification of both forms. An online record therefore confirms issuance, but it does not by itself determine whether the certificate received by the holder is paper or electronic.
## Which forms are issued in Bulgaria?
The form depends on the type of public document and the Competent Authority responsible for it. Bulgaria’s current [official HCCH authority profile](https://www.hcch.net/index.cfm?act=authorities.details&aid=312&oldlang=en) states that NACID issues paper and electronic Apostilles for educational documents within its remit. The Ministry of Justice issues paper Apostilles for court and notarial acts and provides online verification.
Regional administrations and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also operate verification registers but, under the same current profile, do not issue e-Apostilles. Electronic form is therefore not a universal option for every Bulgarian document; the issuer and the competent authority determine the available route.
## How is the electronic file used by the recipient?
An e-Apostille retains its evidential properties as the original digital file. It can be sent through the receiving authority’s electronic channel, where the signature and register entry can be verified. A printed copy may help with reading, but it is not a substitute for the verifiable electronic original.
The Convention does not allow refusal solely because of electronic form, while an individual institution may maintain a separate technical process for files, translations and attachments. Practical use combines the Apostille’s legal validity with the format that the receiving procedure can accept and authenticate.
## Do Apostilles expire and how can La Fit Trans assist?
An Apostille has no expiry date of its own, and later expiry of the signing certificate does not automatically invalidate an e-Apostille that was validly signed. Use may nevertheless depend on the underlying document’s validity, authenticity and currency or on a recipient’s requirement for a recently issued record. The [Bulgarian Ministry of Justice](https://justice.government.bg/home/index/7fafeee0-4d6d-445e-8353-b18bd1c796d2) expressly links the effect of its certification to the public act’s validity and authenticity.
La Fit Trans identifies the Competent Authority, available format and any translation or further authentication needed for the particular country and recipient. Its [Apostille service](https://www.lafit-trans.com/en/apostille/) keeps the verifiable digital original distinct from paper copies without promising a decision on behalf of a foreign institution.
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