6 December 2022

FCDO opening times over Christmas 2022

The FCDO will adopt a Christmas timetable from 23 December 2022.

Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

The run-up to Christmas is often a busy period for the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, with many people wanting to legalise their documents before the Christmas break.

Members of the public are unable to go to the FCDO directly, and must use the services of a notary public, so the Christmas timetable directly affects our processing times and availability.

If you want to get a document legalised, we recommend that you submit the document as soon as you can. This is because the FCDO will transfer to a different timetable, with reduced hours and closures over the close for the festive period.

The final day for completing apostilles will be Monday 19 December 2022. Documents submitted after this date will likely not be returned to you until the new year.

Below you will find more information on FCDO opening times from Monday 19 December 2022:

Monday 19th December	Normal business hours. 09:00 to 12:30 document drop-off. 13:30 to 16:30 collection.
Tuesday 20th December	Normal business hours.
Wednesday 21st December	Normal business hours.
Thursday 22nd December	Normal business hours.
Friday 23rd December	Amended hours – 8:30-14:00 Drop off only until 12:00 Collection only between 12:00-14:00 Consignments not collected on the day will not be available for collection until Wednesday 28th December
Monday 26th December	Closed
Tuesday 27th December	Closed
Wednesday 28th December	Normal business hours.
Thursday 29th December	Normal business hours.
Friday 30th December	Amended hours – 8:30-14:00 Drop off only until 12:00 Collection only between 12:00-14:00 Consignments not collected on the day will not be available for collection until Tuesday 3rd January
Monday 2nd January	Closed
Tuesday 3rd January	Normal business hours.