If your business is going to send or receive a document in another country, it may be necessary to authenticate the document. This process verifies the signature and capacity in which a person signs a document as well as the identity of any stamps, seals or other marks used on the document. There are different ways to authenticate a document for international use depending on the type of document and the country in which it is to be used. This article discusses the apostille and full legalization processes for documents issued by U.S. federal agencies.
What You Need for U.S. Federal Apostille Certification
Federal apostille documentation is an internationally recognized form of authentication that reduces the process of legalizing public documents for use in foreign countries to a simple certification of the document with an attached certificate known as an apostille. The apostille is an alternative to a full legalization, which requires many steps including having the document notarized, reviewed by state or county officials and certified at a foreign country’s embassy or consulate in the United States.
To determine the appropriate process, first find out which federal department issued your document. For documents issued by the federal government, you must submit the original document to the U.S. Department of State Authentication Office for an apostille. The cost, requirements and address are available on the U.S. Department of State website. For state/county-issued documents, such as birth and death certificates or marriage licenses, the NDNY will only authenticate the signed document. If the document was filed on the docket of a civil, criminal or miscellaneous case at the NDNY, you must submit a letter request for an apostille to the judicial officer assigned to that case.