An apostille is a special form of authentication that lets a U.S. document be legally recognized in another country. It was created by the Hague Convention of 1961, and every country that signed the convention agrees to accept apostilled documents from every other signing country — no additional consular legalization required. If your destination country is on the Hague list (most of Europe, much of Latin America, Japan, South Korea, India, and many others), you need an apostille. If it isn't, you need a different process called "authentication" through the U.S. State Department and the destination country's embassy.
Who needs one
We see the same handful of situations come up over and over:
- 01Dual citizenship applications — Italian, Irish, Polish, Mexican, and others all require apostilled birth, marriage, and naturalization records
- 02International adoption — home study, background checks, marriage certificate, financial statements
- 03Teaching English abroad — diploma, transcripts, TEFL certificate, background check
- 04International business — articles of incorporation, certificates of good standing, contracts
- 05Overseas property transactions — power of attorney for a sale or purchase abroad
- 06International marriage — single status affidavit, divorce decree if applicable
Step by step in California
The process is more predictable than it looks. There are essentially three steps.
Step 1 — Get the document in the right form. The California Secretary of State will apostille two kinds of documents: certified copies of public records (birth certificates, marriage certificates, court orders) and notarized private documents (affidavits, powers of attorney, copies of diplomas). Public records have to come directly from the issuing agency — for a California birth certificate, that's the County Recorder where you were born, or the California Department of Public Health. Private documents have to be notarized by a California notary public first.
Step 2 — Submit to the California Secretary of State. There are two SOS apostille offices: Sacramento (main office) and Los Angeles. Either accepts walk-ins, but appointments and mail submissions are faster these days. The state fee is $20 per document, payable to the California Secretary of State. The turnaround at the LA office is currently a few business days for walk-ins and a few weeks by mail; Sacramento timing varies by season.
Step 3 — Use the apostilled document in the destination country. Some countries also require the apostilled document to be translated into the local language by a certified translator. Confirm with whoever's accepting the document — usually a consulate, court, or government agency abroad.
Common mistakes
- 01Notarizing in the wrong state. Only California notarizations get California apostilles. If your document was notarized in Nevada, it has to go to the Nevada SOS.
- 02Using a photocopy instead of an original. The SOS apostilles the document attached to the notary certificate — so if it's a photocopy, that's what gets apostilled, and the receiving country may reject it.
- 03Wrong language on the notary certificate. California-specific certificate wording is required; a generic acknowledgment from an out-of-state form will be rejected.
- 04Missing translation. Many countries require certified translation in addition to the apostille. Don't assume English is enough.
- 05Old documents. Some countries require the underlying document to be issued within the last 3 or 6 months. A 2015 birth certificate may not be accepted for a 2026 dual citizenship application.
What we handle
We notarize your document correctly the first time using the California-specific certificate language, walk you through what kind of document the destination country expects, and offer two service tiers: standard (you handle the SOS submission with our guidance) or full-service (we handle the SOS courier run for you). See our fee schedule for current pricing.
If you're staring at a dual citizenship checklist and don't know where to start, send it over and we'll work through it together.