The facilities of the Office for Citizens' Affairs are only permitted to authenticate photocopies or duplicates of documents if

• the original was issued by a public authority or
• the authenticated copy of a public authority must be presented.

If this is not the case, please ask a notary.

Please bring the appropriate copies along with you. There is also a coin-operated copier in the central office in Stadthaus I.

A copy cannot be authenticated if the original context of a document that consists of several pages is not discernible.

Documents issued by a registry office cannot be authenticated by the Citizens' Office.

For Schools and Universities

Authentications necessary for enrolling at a university or a school are given by the City of Münster free of charge under certain conditions and on a reasonable scale.

In addition to the original and copy, please bring along proof of the necessity of the authentication (e.g. a request of the university). As a rule you can take individual authentications with you straight away, but be prepared for a processing time of up to 7 days for larger quantities.

The exemption from charges with a proof of necessity is only valid for Münster residents.

Fee

The fee is 15 to 35 euros per document.

On the topics of authentications, legalization, apostille, and obtaining documents for or from abroad please get information from the pages of the

Signatures

The facilities of the Office for Citizens' Affairs only authenticate signatures if the signed document is to be presented to a public authority.

This does not apply for signatures without an accompanying text or for those which require official proof of authenticity (according to par. 129 of the German Civil Code).

A signature can only be authenticated if you sign in the presence of the official in charge.

Fee

Fee: 10 euros