How to get an apostille in California

What an apostille is

An apostille is a certificate from the California Secretary of State. It confirms that the signature and seal of a California public official, such as a notary, are genuine so the document is accepted in countries that use apostilles. It does not confirm that what the document says is true.

Documents that often need one

Powers of attorney, affidavits, school transcripts and diplomas, adoption papers, business documents, and birth, marriage or death certificates, when they will be used abroad.

The usual steps

1. Ask the receiving agency or country what they require, including whether they want an apostille, a translation, or a recent copy.
2. If the document must be notarized, sign it in front of a California notary with acceptable ID. A notarized original is needed. A photocopy is not accepted.
3. For certificates issued by a county or the state (birth, marriage, death), you generally start with a certified copy from the county recorder or clerk, or the state, rather than a notarization.
4. Send or bring the original to the California Secretary of State with a cover sheet naming the country where the document will be used, and pay the fee listed on the Secretary of State's website. Requests can be made by mail or in person at the Secretary of State's Sacramento or Los Angeles offices.
5. The apostilled document comes back to you to send overseas. Processing times change, so check the Secretary of State's current processing times page.

Where we fit in

We can notarize your document at your home, office, hospital or care facility, and tell you what the next step is. If you want help with the Secretary of State submission, see our apostille document help page. We cannot tell you what a foreign agency will accept, so confirm that with them first.

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