Some documents submitted for translation may involve additional steps or requirements depending on the travel destination country or foreign government entity where they will be filed. In some instances, these entities’ requirements differ from one another, and thus it is crucial that these steps be carefully followed to avoid unnecessary delays. The Language Pros can assist you throughout this process to ensure that you satisfy all requirements indicated by the filing entity or destination country.
Depending on the origin of the document in question, the Apostille will be issued by the competent authority. Federal Executive Branch documents (such as FBI background checks) are authenticated by the U.S. Department of State Authentications Office, while documents issued at the state level (such as vital records documents) are authenticated by the California Secretary of State.
Our handling rates are fair and reasonable, and any Government processing or document filing fee is kept the same. Additionally, it is important to know where the document will ultimately be used, as there are two different authentications that are issued by the Secretary of State and the US Department of State to either certify or apostille the document.
Vital Records Certificates
Criminal Background Checks
Powers of Attorney
Financial Documents
Real Estate Documents
Affidavits
Court Orders
Academic Transcripts
Diploma & Degrees
California Secretary of State Apostilles or Authentications
An Apostille is essentially an additional level of authentication of a public document that is intended to be used in or transferred to any foreign country that is party to The Hague Convention of October 5, 1961. The Apostille consists of a single page document that is attached to your original, notarized document.
The countries that are part of the Hague Convention treaty are:
Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, China (and Hong Kong), Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Côte d’Ivoire, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Eswatini, Fiji, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Madagascar, Mali, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of the Congo, Romania, Rwanda, San Marino, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Togo, Turkey, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Venezuela, Vietnam, Zambia.
Moreover, if you require your original document to be translated, the Apostille will be attached to our notarized “Declaration & Certification of Translation” as it is meant to authenticate the seal and the signature of the Notary Public. Please review our turnaround times in the section below for obtaining a California Apostille. Translation turnaround times can be found on the Translations page.
The purpose of the Apostille is to prove the authenticity of a document. The foreign country or entity does not know all the types of seals and signatures of officials on public documents such as birth certificates, death certificates, court orders, and others that have been issued by a public authority in the U.S. This is a way to prove the validity of such documents. Additionally, it is important to know where the document will ultimately be used, as there are two different authentications that are issued by the Secretary of State to either certify or apostille the document.
US Department of State Apostille / Authentication
An Authentication Certificate is used for countries that are not part of The Hague Convention. Authentication Certificates consist of several certificates, including those from the U.S. Department of State, your commissioning agency, the Consulate of the destination country, and in some instances a separate government official in the destination country. The turnaround time to obtain Authentication Certificates varies by country.
Apostille / Authentication Fee: $165
Pricing includes all government fees. Clients can come in and pick up their document once ready or documents can be mailed to them at prevailing mailing rates, at client’s expense.
California Secretary of State Apostille / Authentication Fees
Our rates and regular turnaround times, once services at any of these government agencies resume to normal business activities, are as follows:
