Apostille, Authentication & Certification
An apostille is the authentication required for documents you intend to use or serve in countries party to the Hague Convention. Judicial Process offers apostille, authentication, and certification services.
What an apostille is — and when you need one
Under the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents, a single certificate — the apostille — replaces the chain of consular legalization that foreign public documents once required. A document bearing an apostille is entitled to recognition in every other contracting state without further authentication.
You will typically need an apostille for court documents transmitted abroad, corporate records, powers of attorney, notarized instruments, vital records, and educational credentials destined for use in a Convention country. Documents bound for non-Convention countries require full authentication and consular legalization instead — a service we also provide.
Apostille in support of foreign service
Documents transmitted by letters rogatory must be authenticated in compliance with the rules governing that channel. Because we handle foreign service of process daily, our apostille practice is built around litigation timelines, with the certificate conforming to the destination country's expectations.
Our process
- Document review We confirm the document type, the destination country, and whether an apostille or consular legalization applies.
- Preparation Where notarization or certified copies are prerequisites, we prepare the document for submission.
- Issuance The apostille or authentication certificate is obtained; turnaround is subject to Secretary of State processing times.
- Delivery Certified documents are returned to you or transmitted directly into your service-of-process workflow.