Apostille, Certification and Embassy Legalization Services

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• APOSTILLE (a-pos-TEE, is French for certification)  

PLEASE NOTE: Apostilles are only issued by the Secretary of State where the document originated and is NOT issued by a Notary.

Apostilles and Certificates of Authentication

Apostilles and Authentication Certificates validate the   

seal and signature of a Public Official on a document so that it can be accepted and used in a foreign country.

Apostilles

An apostille is a certificate issued by a government agency that verifies the authenticity of a signature or seal of a public official.  In other words, an apostille confirms that the seal and signature of the Notary on a document is valid, and the notarization can be accepted by the receiving agency in the foreign country.

Apostilles are used when public documents are being transferred between countries that are a party to the Hague Apostille Convention of 1961. This international treaty streamlined the cumbersome, traditional procedure for authenticating documents.

An apostille is issued by your Secretary of State's office or Notary commissioning agency. The single apostille is the only certification needed. Once prepared and verified, the apostille is attached to and sent along with the notarized documents. Notaries cannot issue apostilles this process takes place after the notarization.

Certificates of Authentication are used for destination nations that are not part of the Hague Convention. Instead of a single apostille, the document needs several authentication certificates, including those from your: 

- Commissioning agency (Certificate of Good Standing for Notaries Public)

- The U.S. Department of State

- The consul of the destination country and potentially another government official in the destination country.

The requirements and processing time for authentication certificates will vary from country to country.

Documents intended for use in countries which are not signatories of the Hague Convention, the U.S. Department of State attaches a certification.  Note that unlike apostilles, which require no further legalization, Certificates of Authentication may require further diplomatic or consular legalization before being sent overseas.  This may require further authentication by the U.S. Department of State and the Foreign Embassy of the country of intended use.

A certification performs the same duty as an apostille; however, its appearance and places of use are different.

Although apostilles and certification serve the same purpose, substituting one for the other will delay the use of your documents.  It is essential that you inform the Department of State as to where the documents are to be used.

It is the signer's (your) responsibility to request an apostille or certificates of authentication. As a notary, our responsibility is to notarize the document itself.

HRG Mobile Notary Services, LLC offers support services to assist you in the Apostille, Authentication and Legalization process.  We DO NOT issue them.

Support Services Offered:

-  Notary Services

-  Courier Services

-  Shipping Carrier Services (FedEx & DHL)

-  Document Translation Services

Feel free to call us with any questions you may have prior to the start of services. A "FREE" 30-minute consultation is available by appointment only.

As a reminder, a Notary by any means CAN NOT and DO NOT issue Apostilles or Authentication Certificates. Apostilles are certificates that authenticate that a Notary’s commission is valid.

                            ~ The Initial Process ~

To request an Apostille, you can:

1.  Once the document(s) are notarized you can mail them to the Department of State along with a cover letter that includes your name and full mailing address or...

2.  You may use our Request for Legalization of Documents form. 

Identify in the cover letter the country where the documents will be used.

3.  Enclose a personal check, money order or cashier's check made payable to "Commonwealth of Pennsylvania" in the amount of $15 per document. Checks and money orders must be issued by a U.S. institution or, if issued by a foreign bank, must be in U.S. dollars and contain a routing number. Cash cannot be accepted by mail. 

4. For Certificates of Authentication (also known as Certificates of Good Standing for Notaries Public), write a letter requesting a Certificate of Good Standing and provide the Notary’s full name and commission ID, if known, along with your name and full mailing address and payment in the amount of $20 per certificate. 

HRG Mobile Notary Services, LLC can walk you through the initial process to ensure you have all preliminary documents, signatures, etc. to obtain an Apostille or Certificates of Authentication.

• Birth Certificates
• Death Certificates
• Divorce Decrees
• Marriage Certificates
• Power of Attorneys
• Single Status Affidavits
• Transcripts
• Diplomas
• W-9s
• Contracts to Sell
• FBI Background Checks
• Social Security Cards
• Passports
• Articles of Incorporation
• Certificate of Good Standing
• Commercial Invoices
• And More!

How long does it take to obtain an Apostille? What is the process and timeline?

The Secretary of State processing time varies for each state.  For Pennsylvania Apostille requests:

• For documents that are submitted by mail, typically, allow about two (2) to three (3) weeks to process this does not include mailing time. 

To mail requests, submit the following to:

Pennsylvania Department of State
Apostilles & Certifications
North Office Building, Room 201
401 North Street
Harrisburg, PA 17120-0029

• Walk-in requests are accepted from 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, Monday through Friday (except State holidays).  For walk-in requests, they are processed while the requestor waits and documents are processed before the end of the business day. 

What is HRG Mobile Notary Services process?

Basically, it depends upon the country of destination (where the document will be used) that will determine which process we must follow.  Please refer below:

                                 Apostilles

For all personal and business public documents going to countries that are members of the Hague convention, excluding FBI Background Checks will require for us to go to the Secretary of State where the document originated from to obtain the apostille. You can learn more here on what Hague Convention is and the current countries that are partied to the convention. 

                  Authentications & Legalizations

Is like the Apostille process, in most cases where the country of intent is NOT members of the Hague convention, may require notarization from a notary public, followed by certification from the Secretary of State, then Authentication from Washington, D.C finally rounding out the process with the Embassy or Consulate legalizing the document to be used in their country. You can learn more here.

Documents Eligible for Apostille & Authentication

Corporate Documents

• Power of Attorney
• Affidavits
• Secretary Certificates
• Certificate of Incorporation
• Certificate of Formation
• Certificate of Good Standing
• Certificates of Origin
• Hiring Documents
• Company Invoices
• Identity Documents of Corporate Executives (Passport, Driver License)
• ISO Certificate (International Organization for Standardization.
• Other Business Documents

Personal Documents

• Social Security Benefit Verification Letters
• Final Judgements
• Passport Copies
• Driver License Copies
• FDLE Criminal History Background Checks
• Divorce Decrees
• Affidavit of Single Status
• Adoption Documents
• Marriage Certificate/License
• Florida Birth Certificates
• Florida Death Certificates
• Wills
• Naturalization Certificate
• Car Titles
• Authorization Letter
• Statements – Bank/Utilities
• Consent to Travel
• Official Records
• Other Personal Documents

Academic Documents

• School Transcripts and Diplomas for Florida Public Schools
• School Transcripts and Diplomas for Florida Private Schools
• College Diplomas and Certificates
• GED
• High School Records
• Report Cards
• Teaching Certificates
• Other School Records