What are Apostille services?
Our Apostille Service authenticate the seals and signatures of officials on public documents such as birth certificates, court orders, or any other document issued by a federal agency or certified by an American or foreign consul.
An apostille certifies the document(s), so the document can be recognized anywhere here in the USA and in foreign countries that are members of the 1961 Hague Convention Treaty.
Before you submit any documents requiring apostille authentication, you must:
1) Notarize each document:
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For services commissioned through the local county: Documents must first be certified by the local clerk of court, and then certified by the secretary of state in the state where the document was notarized.
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For services public commissioned through the state: Documents must only be certified by the secretary of state in the state where the document was notarized.
2) Your documents must follow this order for notarizing and certifying:
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Your document is issued into your name
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Get your document notarized
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If it applies, get your document certified by the clerk of court
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Get your document certified by the secretary of state.
If you do not have the correct notarization(s) before you submit your documents, we will not be able to process your request.
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3) All seals and signatures must be originals
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Officials cannot accept copies unless they are “true certified copies” from a notary public. Please note that birth certificates, marriage certificates, death certificates, divorce decrees, court documents, and federally-issued documents cannot be certified by a notary public as “true copies.” These documents must be certified by the secretary of state.
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4) All documents in a foreign language must be translated into English by a certified translator and notarized as a true translation.
