What is an Apostille? What is the Difference Between Apostille and Authentication?
What is an Apostille?
What is an Apostille
An Apostille is specialized certificate of authentication recognized by countries who belong to the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement for Legalization of Foreign Public Documents. It provides a uniform method of validating documents to be used in foreign countries. It only authenticates the origin of the underlying public document. An Apostille authenticates the seals and signatures of officials on public documents such as birth certificates, notarial acts, court orders, or any other document issued by a public authority, so that they can be recognized in foreign countries that are parties to the Convention.
We provide apostille services to handle the process for you, saving you valuable time. Need a Washington DC apostille, or an apostille in Maryland? We also provide Worldwide Service for the US Department of State Apostille. You may fill out the form on this page to contact us for a fast quote. Official papers or certificates that may require an apostille certificate to be attached are:
Diplomas
Marriage certificates
Birth certificates
Criminal background checks
Commercial documents
Business agreements
FDA, IRS, Certificate to Foreign Government or other Federal Government issued documents
Apostille DC | Apostille MD
Apostille Maryland — Maryland Secretary of State Apostille:
Personal and Commercial documents
Same Day Service available, Apostille Maryland & Apostille DC
Obtained in 2-3 business days (for apostille from DC Secretary of State)
Diplomas, Transcripts, Powers of Attorney, Company Agreements
Birth and Marriage certificates (only applicable for certain states, please contact us for more info)
Apostille DC — US Department of State & Secretary of State in Washington DC:
Documents issued by US Federal agencies
Obtained in 1-3 business days
FBI Background checks, IRS documents, Certificates to Foreign Government, Naturalization documents
What is the difference between an Apostille and Authentication?
Both are forms of authentication and both are given by the same government agencies. The difference lies in whether the country where you will use your documents belongs to the Hague Convention or not. If it does, your documents will receive an apostille, and if not, they will need an authentication and may need further notarization from a foreign consulate or embassy. Here is a list of the countries currently listed with the Hague Convention:
A document with an Apostille does not require additional certification by the U.S. Department of State or legalization by a U.S. embassy or consulate overseas to be recognized in a participating country.
All Apostille’s must be numbered consecutively, with individual numbers applied to each Apostille issued and contains 10 mandatory references: name of country from which the document emanates, name of person signing the document, the capacity in which the person signing the document has acted, in the case of unsigned documents, the name of the authority that has affixed the seal or stamp, place of certification date of certification, the authority issuing the certificate, number of certificate, seal/stamp of authority issuing certificate and signature of authority issuing certificate.
Difference Between Apostille and Authentication
Both the Apostille and Certificate of Authentication include the facsimile signature of the Washington DC Secretary of State or the US Department of State in DC.
Do you need someone to facilitate the Apostille Process for you? We provide Apostille DC Services and Maryland Apostille Services as well. Call us for a quote at 202-826-8179.
Apostille Services | Worldwide Apostille for US Department of State Documents
Washington DC Apostille | Maryland Apostille
Educational Documents *
Academic certificates
Diplomas/degrees
Transcripts
School Verification Letters
*All higher educational documents must be issued from regionally accredited US colleges or universities prior to the apostille.
Personal Documents
Birth/Death Certificates
Marriage/Divorce Certificates
Certificate of Single Status
Local/State Police Background Check
Personal Power of Attorney
Certified Translations
Copy of Passports (Identification Page)
Copy of Driver License
Business, Corporate & Legal Documents
Difference Between Apostille and Notary
General Power of Attorney
Resolution
Distribution/Agency Agreement
Articles of Incorporation/Registration
Appointment/Distributor
Authorization of Agent
Assignment
Board Resolution
Certificate of Incorporation
By Laws
US Patent Application
Trademark Application
Certificate of Good Standing
Free Sale Certificate/EP
Price List
Financial Statement
Need an Apostille DC, Apostille Maryland, or Worldwide Service for US Department of State Apostille? Contact us today!
Embassy Legalization and Authentication Services - We Facilitate Apostille, US Authentication, and Embassy Legalization for You with the US Department of State & Embassy
Embassy Legalization and Apostille Services Washington DC & Authentication Services
For clients who need to present their documents in countries which require the Authentication and Embassy legalization procedure, we can carry out the process on your behalf for personal or commercial documents from start to finish. if you intend to use your documents in a country that is not a party to The Hague Apostille Convention, authentication at the US Department of State in Washington DC is usually a required step in the chain legalization process prior legalization at a foreign Embassy/Consulate. The procedure consists of getting a document certified through the chain authentication process which consists of:
Notarization (if needed)
Secretary of State certification
US Department of State certification
Legalization of document from embassy
Documents submitted for authentication at the US Department of State and possibly subsequent legalization at a foreign embassy/consulate/mission can be either a certified original or notarized/certified copy. In most general cases they can be photocopies certified as true and accurate copy of the document but in certain cases requiring special handling they need to be originals or certificates ready for international use. This is due to requirements by individual States and foreign countries who in certain cases do not accept copies of particular document types.
Please note that all seals and signatures must be originals and all dates must follow in chronological order. All documents in a foreign language must be accompanied with a certified (notarized) English translation.
Upon receipt of your documents we will email you an invoice and estimated date of completion. Your document will be prepared by authenticating it by the next day from when it is received. Due to the fact that the US Department of State opens at 8:00 AM and closes at 9:00 AM (Monday-Friday excluding Federal holidays), your document will be dropped the day after receiving, and picked up after 3 business days after being authenticated by the US Department of State. It will then be dropped, the same day, at the designated embassy if required. The embassy will give us an estimated date for pick up. We will pick up the documents from the embassy on the given date. Within a few hours, your document will be hand carried to the FedEx or UPS and shipped. We are able to streamline this process for you with our extensive experience.
Embassy Legalization
International documents that are originated in one country, but are intended for use in another country require embassy legalization to be recognized by the legal system of the foreign country. Embassy legalization is the alternative method for authenticating a document that is utilized for countries that are Non-Hague Convention countries. These countries do not recognize the Apostille as a means to authenticating documents per the Hague Convention of 1961.
Embassy Legalization Services
DMV Notary Mobile specializes in handling both the Embassy Legalization and Apostille process for our customers with speed and efficiency.
The process for Embassy Legalization is very much dependent on the type of document and specific requirements of the destination country.
We can very broadly outline the process through the three categories of documents and the procedure required for authentication:
Government Documents – any documents or certificates issued by a Federal, State or Local government entity.
The Embassy Legalization process for these type of documents includes processing your documents with the US Department of State Authentication Office here in Washington D.C. and the Embassy of the destination country. Please note, for personal documents like birth, marriage, death and divorce certificates, you must legalize your document with the Secretary of State in the State that your document was issued. If it is in DC or Maryland, you may use our expedited services at an extra cost.
General Documents – are any document or certificate NOT issued by a Federal, State or Local government entity. This is the largest category.
The Embassy Legalization process for these type of documents includes processing your documents with a local Notary (we offer mobile notary services in DC Maryland Virginia), certification by the appropriate Secretary of State (we can travel for you in DC & Maryland), the US Department of State Authentications Office in Washington DC, and the Embassy of the destination country.
Commercial or Shipping Documents – are documents used for shipping product out.
The legalization/authentication process for Commercial/Shipping documents is variable based on destination country. This is primarily because some Apostille/Hague Convention countries require that you follow a separate legalization process with your shipping documents. On the other hand, for many countries, the legalization of documents is not required.