International Apostille – Blog

Apostille vs Notary

February 21, 2021 by admin

What is the different between an apostille and notary?

An apostille is a certificate issued by the state that authenticated the notary’s seal and signature. An apostille does not authenticate the content of the documents. Some documents will require notarization prior to receiving an apostille (see list below).

The most common documents which require notarization prior to receiving an apostille are listed below…

Single Status Affidavit (If notarized)
Local Police and Local Sheriff background checks
Power of Attorney
Copy of Passport
Copy of Driver’s License
School Transcripts
School Diplomas
GED Diploma and Transcripts
TEFL / TESOL Certificates
Authorization Letter
Travel Consent Letter
Driving Record (DMV)
Certification of Free Sale (Company issued)
Certification of Origin
Corporate Power of Attorney
Commercial Invoice

In order to apostille the documents listed above, they must be signed and notarized before we can obtain the state apostille.

Example of State Apostilles

Obtaining an apostille can be complicated. Don’t leave this process to untrained employees or non-professionals who do not fully understand the Apostille process and the unique requirements of certain countries. Your paperwork could be rejected costing you time and money. Don’t let this happen to you!

Our staff is available Monday-Saturday from 8am to 7pm to answer your questions and provide you easy to follow-step-by-step instructions. Please call us at 1-888-810-4054 or email: support@internationalapostille.com

Click the PDF download image to get started. Our apostille service is fast, convenient, and saves you time and money.

Utility Bill Apostille

February 14, 2021 by admin

Do you need to apostille your Utility Bill?

Typically, a Utility Bill is your water and power, telephone, waste or natural gas bill.

Do you need to prove that you are located and reside in the US? Have you also been asked to apostille your bank statements, driver’s license, and passport?

In order to apostille your utility bill, you will need to have it signed and notarized. You can meet with a local notary public near you. A local UPS store may have a notary available on staff. Be sure your original signature and the notary’s seal, signature, stamp, and notarial wording are added to the Utility Bill so it will be accepted at the Secretary of State’s office.

Please note that if are already in a foreign country, we do not accept digital notarization. We must receive the original signed and notarized documents. For example, If your residence is in California, please be sure your utility bill is also signed and notarized in California.

Click the PDF download image to get started. Our apostille service is fast, convenient, and saves you time and money.

Apostille for India

February 8, 2021 by admin

Do you need to apostille your documents for India?

Attestation of documents such as an affidavit, power of attorney, bank statements, salary statement, color copy of Indian/US passports, copy of documents issued by U.S. authorities (U.S. Passport, Driving License, corporate documents, etc…) requires to be notarized before an apostille can be issued by the Secretary of State’s office.

Note: Vital record documents (birth, marriage, death, etc…) are not notarized and must be a certified copy issued by the County Clerk or State Registrar.

We can apostille documents signed and notarized in all 50 States and the District of Columbia. Once you receive your documents back with the apostille, you will then need to contact the Consulate General of India for further instructions.

A power of attorney needs to be signed and witnessed by two individuals (with their names and addresses clearly mentioned). Please visit the Consulate General of India website for instructions on how to create this document or have one created professionally for you from India.

In many places in India, they would easily recognize the attestation by the Indian Embassy/Consulate office and hence may ask for attested copy despite the document receiving the apostille from the Secretary of State’s office. Hence, to avoid any inconvenience, please have your power of attorney apostilled and then attested by the Embassy or Consulate office.

The country of India has one Embassy in Washington DC and five Consulate General offices in the United States. The Consulate General offices of India are located in the following States:

California (San Francisco)
Texas (Houston)
New York (NYC)
Chicago (Illinois)
Georgia (Atlanta)

Please contact the Embassy or Consulate office for instructions before you begin to process your document. You may be asked to notarize additional documentation to show proof that you are currently a U.S. resident. Common documents they will ask are:

U.S Driving license
Water or landline telephone bill displaying applicant’s address
House Lease Agreement
Bank/credit card/mobile phone/utility bill statements

Click the PDF download image to get started. Our apostille service is fast, convenient, and saves you time and money.

FDA Apostille

February 7, 2021 by admin

Do you need to apostille a document from the FDA?

Documents issued from the FDA can be processed through our Washington DC office.

We can apostille the following documents issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS):

Certificate of Free Sale
Certificate of Origin
Certificate of Pharmaceutical Product
Certificate to Foreign Governments
Certificate of Export

Documents issued by the U.S. Federal Government are not processed through the Secretary of State. They are processed through the U.S. Department of State Apostille – Office of Authentications in Washington, D.C.

Office Hours: 8am – 7pm Monday – Saturday
Customer Support: 1-888-810-4054
Email: WashingtonDC@internationalapostille.com

Here is an example of a Certificate to Foreign Government (CFG) issued by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA):

Click the PDF download image to get started. Our apostille service is fast, convenient, and saves you time and money.

Passport Apostille

February 4, 2021 by admin

Do you need to apostille your passport?

Are you planning to open a bank account in another country? Have you been asked to apostille your passport to confirm your identity in a foreign country? Are you planning to purchase a home or deal with an inheritance?

We can apostille all international and US passports for countries who are members of the Hague Apostille Convention and for countries who are not (AKA: Legalization process).

How does my passport get an apostille?
The notary will confirm your identity and the state will confirm the notary’s seal and signature and attach the state apostille. Please note that we do not process online digital notarization. We must receive the original signed and notarized color copy.

Note: If you are in a foreign country, you will need to visit the local US Embassy or US Consulate office.

If you are physically in the U.S., please follow the three simple steps below. If you have any questions or concerns, please call or email us.

Step 1: Make a color copy of your passport. Typically, this is the page with your picture and information. Some countries may request that you color copy all of the pages.

Step 2: Meet with a local notary public. You can find a notary public near you by searching online “Notary Near Me”.

Step 3: Sign and notarize your document. You will be attesting to the color copy of your passport. You can write the following statement, “I certify this is a true copy of my passport #ABCD1234”. Please sign under your statement and date it. The notary will then sign, date, stamp and add the proper notarial wording. Please be sure your signature matches the signature on the passport.

Note: Some states allow notaries to certify a color copy of your passport but we recommend that you follow the steps outlined in #3.

Step 4: Mail in your original signed and notarized passport to our office with our order forms. Do NOT mail in your original passport.

You can download our order forms here: Apostille Order Forms

That’s it! Once we receive your notarized document with our order forms, we’ll obtain the state apostille and send it back to you by FedEx. It’s that simple.

Click the PDF download image to get started. Our apostille service is fast, convenient, and saves you time and money.