What are Apostilles?

Apostilles 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 in foreign countries that are members of the Hague Treaty.

Countries that are participants of the Apostille Convention are approximately 121(Hague Treaty Convention 12) and can be found here: HCCH

In Florida we must send these documents in to the Secretary of State for such authentication. Also the following requirements need to be met:

Notarize each document in front of a notary public:

For notaries public commissioned through the state: Documents must only be certified by the secretary of state in the state where the document was notarized.

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.

All seals and signatures must be originals

Copies cannot be accepted 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.

All documents in a foreign language must be translated into English by a certified translator and notarized as a true translation.

Getting documents to the Secretary of State requires some turn-around time. It helps significantly to have a courier hand deliver them. This is where apostille services come in. They notarize, & express mail the forms to a courier who resides near the capital. This can significantly cut down the turnaround time from 3 weeks to 1 week. Or even a few days!

What are the most common forms needing Apostilles?

• Birth Certificates
• Death Certificates
• Marriage Certificates
• Divorce Decree
• Single Status Affidavit
• Background Checks (Local, State, FBI)
• Copy of Passport
• Copy of Driver License
• Power of Attorney
• Real Estate
• Corporate Power of Attorney
• Transcripts
• Diplomas
• Authorization Letter
• Travel Consent Letter
• Articles of Incorporation
• Certification of Origin

apostille services near me