Apr 12, 2015 | Blog
What is an Apostille
It is common for notarized documents which will be sent to other countries to also require an Apostille. Quite often in my line of work, I am asked “What is an apostille?”
Apostille is a French word, which means a certification. The word is commonly used in English referring to the legalization of a document for international use under the terms of the 1961 Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents.
Documents which have been notarized by a notary public, and then certified with a conformant Apostille are accepted for legal use in all the nations that have signed the Hague Convention. Other documents, such as marriage, birth and death certificates and academic diplomas from public institutions do not need to be notarized to get an Apostille. In the U.S., Apostilles are issued by the Secretary of State.
Apr 12, 2015 | Blog
PLEASE HAVE THESE THINGS READY:
VALID IDENTIFICATION:
Acceptable forms of identification are:
•State driver’s license or identification card
•U.S. Passport
•Foreign Passport, which has been stamped by U.S. Customs
•Canadian Province or Mexican License or Identification
(The Mexican Consular Matricula Card is not an acceptable identification in California for purposes of being notarized.)
•An identification that is expired can be used only if it was issued within the last 5 years.
IF YOU DON’T HAVE A VALID IDENTIFICATION:
You can bring 2 people with you, who can act as CREDIBLE WITNESSES. Each witness must have a valid identification (see acceptable forms of identification above). Also, each witness must NOT have a financial interest in the documents being signed. Additionally, each witness must NOT be named in the documents being signed.
