In order to validate papers for usage abroad, services like legalisation, notarisation, and medallion signature guarantee are utilised. The services that a notary can offer are not interchangeable with a Medallion Signature Guarantee and are not the same as notarisation or apostille services. Here we look at the different legalisation and legal document services.
Notorial Services
The regulations that apply to notaries are fairly similar to those that apply to lawyers. Notary publics can witness signatures and authenticate them on a variety of legal and business documents, certificates, and declarations.
Apostilles
Apostilles are certificates that the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office attaches to documents to attest that a notary or other public official has signed them and that they are a notarised in the UK.
The UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office authenticates a document’s legitimacy in the UK by signing and sealing the Certificate and attaching it to a notarial or public document. It adds another level of assurance. This is also known as legalisation. The UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office offers an Apostille in two different ways. The notarised document or public UK document is sent to the Foreign & Commonwealth Office together with payment documentation and an application form, and they affix the Apostille to the document before sending it to the designated destination.
Medallion Signature Guarantee Stamp
The only way to sell shares or change ownership into a different name for a stockholder who resides outside of the US is to submit a Medallion Guarantee stamped Transfer Request or Stock Power Form to the transfer agent along with the necessary paperwork.
The Transfer Request Form bears a stamp with the Medallion Guarantee. It serves as official authentication of the legitimacy and power of the transfer initiator. The stamp verifies the authenticity of the signature for the transfer agent, allowing them to carry out their instructions to transfer or sell the shares. Its purpose is to guard against fraud for both transfer agents and stockholders. The stamp providers must therefore ensure for themselves—in light of this—that the person initiating a transfer of securities is who they claim to be.
The Securities Transfer Agents Medallion Programme (STAMP), which offers the Medallion Guarantee Stamp in the UK, is a membership organisation. They comprise a small number of UK-based businesses that are permitted to issue the Medallion Guarantee Stamp—but only when they are completely convinced that all requirements have been properly followed.
Contact Medallion Guarantee on 0203 985 9551.