The Secretary of State or Lieutenant Governor’s office provides authentication of public official signatures on documents to be used outside the United States of America. The country of destination determines whether the authentication is an Apostille or Certification.
The US Department of State – Office of Authentication authenticates signatures on all Federal Documents including documents which have received a certificate from their respective state.
List of Hague Apostille Member Countries.
Apostilles and Certifications only certify to the authenticity of the signature of the official who signed the document, the capacity in which that official acted, and when appropriate, the identity of the seal or stamp which the document bears. The Apostille or Certification does not validate the contents of the document.
The Secretary of State authenticates signatures only on documents signed by a notary public or the following public officials and their deputies (See below for federal documents and documents which require authentication by the US Department of State):
- County Clerks, Registrar-Recorder
- Court Administrators of the Superior Court
- Executive Clerks of the Superior Court
- Officers whose authority is not limited to any particular county
- Executive Officers of the Superior Court
- Judges of the Superior Court
- Notaries Public
- State Officials
Personal Documents:
- Marriage Licenses, Divorce agreements, Divorce Decree
- Birth Certificates, Marriage Certificates, Death Certificates
- Single Status to Marry, No record of a Marriage
- Criminal Record – Criminal Background Check
- FBI Criminal Background Check (Federal Document)
- Local Police, Sheriff’s Department, etc…
- Power of Attorney – General, Special, Finance, Real Estate etc.
- Notarized copies of Passport, Affidavits, and other documents
- Papers for Adoption purposes
- Transcripts (High School, College, University, or any other issuing agency)
- Diploma, Degree Certificates, Graduation Records
- Permission to Travel, Consent by Parent(s) to travel with Minor Children
- Certificate of Naturalization (Federal Document)
Business / Corporate Documents:
- Articles of Incorporation, Certificate of Incorporation
- Merger Agreements
- Authorization letter for Bank, Finance, Office, and related company matters
- Certificates of Amendment
- Certificate of Good Standing
- Power of Attorney
- Certificate of Incumbency
- Corporate Resolution
- Certification of Free Sale
- Certificate of Origin
- Certificate of Analysis
- Corporate Forms
- Joint Venture Agreements
- Stock Purchase Agreement in Foreign Companies
- Business Letter of Invitation
The US Department of State – Office of Authentication authenticates the following documents and all US State documents which have been certified by their respective Secretary of State or Lieutenant Governors office.
The most common types of documents submitted for authentication and legalization to the US Department of State include the following:
Personal Documents:
- Academic Credentials (diplomas, transcripts, letters, etc)
- Birth Certificate
- Certificate of Naturalization
- Consular Report of Birth Abroad
- Death Certificate
- Divorce Certificate
- FBI Fingerprint or Police Report
- Marriage License •Name Change
- Power of attorney
- References and Job Certification
- Single Status to Marry
- Teacher Credentials
- U.S. Department of Justice Document
- U.S. District Court Document
Business / Corporate Documents:
- Articles of Incorporation
- Certificate of Free Sale
- Certificate of Foreign Government
- Certificate of Origin
- Commercial Invoice
- Corporate Documents to be Used Overseas
- Department of Health and Human Services Documents
- Distributorship Agreements
- Food and Drug (FDA) Administration Documents
- United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
- Patents
- Power of Attorney
- Shipping Documents
