American Notary & Signing Services offers full, end-to-end facilitation of the document Apostille, Authentication, and Embassy Legalization process. Our expertly trained staff will save you time, stress, wasted expenses and guesswork of knowing the confusing requirements of various government agencies. Please contact us for details.

What is an Apostille?

An Apostille is a document that verifies the authenticity of the signature on a document; the capacity in which the person signing the document acted; and the identity of any stamp or seal affixed to the document. The Apostille is a specific form of authentication for countries that participate in the Hague Convention of 1961.

An Apostille does not certify the contents of the document to which it relates. It is issued by a country that is a party to the Hague Convention of 1961 to be used in another country which is also a party to the Convention.

NOTE: If the destination of the document is to a Non-Hague country, a more complex process for legalization at the federal level involving Department of State, consulates and/or embassies is required. 

American Notary stands ready to serve as your trusted Apostille agent. 

Before submitting documents requiring authentication, you must:

Notarize each document in front of a notary public:

• For notaries public commissioned through the county: Documents must first be certified by the clerk of court in the county where the notary is commissioned, and then certified by the secretary of state in the state where the document was notarized.

• 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.

If you do not have the correct notarization(s) before you submit your documents your request will be rejected by the respective governmental entity.

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All seals and signatures must be originals

Document copies are not acceptable 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.”

Requirements also vary based on the type of document you submit. Select the type of document below to learn more.

If you do not have the correct notarization(s) before you submit your documents your request will be rejected by the respective governmental entity.

All seals and signatures must be originals

Document copies are not acceptable 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.”