Apostille Service

An apostille is an official certification that verifies the authenticity of a notary public's or a public official's signature on a document for international use.  In other words, it verifies that a document has been properly certified by a public official or a notary public.  It is required under the Hague Apostille Convention to ensure that documents are recognized internationally.  An Apostille is like a VIP pass for your important documents, ensuring they get the red carpet treatment no matter where you travel to.  

If you need to use a document such as a birth, death, marriage, divorce certificate abroad,  you will need to prove to the requesting party in the country in which it will be used, that the document has been authenticated.  In order to have your document accepted in another country that is a member of the Hague Apostille Convention, you will need to get that document authenticated by the competent authority from the state in which the document originated.  Once your document is authenticated or apostilled, it ensures that your document will be recognized in the country where it will be used.

You may need an apostille of certain documents if you plan on adopting a child from a country outside the US.   When adopting a child from another county, the most common documents that you may need to get an apostille for are: FBI background checks, financial statements, medical records, birth certificates of adoptive parents, marriage/Divorce certificates, home study reports, court orders, and more.  An apostille on documents such as those mentioned ensures they are recognized abroad.

To study abroad, you'll more than likely need to authenticate your official school transcripts, your diploma, your birth certificate, and vaccination records and medical forms, an FBI background check, and more.  

Why would a business need an apostille you ask? A business might need an apostille for several reasons.  The main reason a business may need an apostille is when engaging in international trade, expanding their operations outside the US, and overseeing or handling international employment.  For international trade, documents such as invoices and contracts may need to be apostilled.  For businesses expanding internationally, an apostille of corporate documents like articles of incorporation and Certificate of Status is often required.  

Planning to tie the knot in a foreign country? An Apostille request for a single status affidavit, and/or a divorce decree, a Florida State marriage search certificate, and a birth certificate will likely be needed to be legally accepted in that country.  

Dealing with inheritance issues across borders? Legal documents such as a will, death certificate, and probate orders often require an apostille.  

If you're buying or selling property internationally, specific documents may need an apostille to be legally binding. 

Dual citizenship applications have increased significantly in recent years.  The most common countries that Americans are applying for dual citizenship are Italy, Greece, Spain, and Portugal.  There are a myriad of documents that will need to be apostilled such as your income document, bank statement, FBI background check, Social Security letter, Tax Return, birth certificate, and more. 

If you are planning on venturing internationally for employment, you will need certain documents apostilled.  Here are some documents that you may need apostilled by an employer in another country: FBI background check, birth certificate, school transcripts,  degree document, and your Diploma.