Apostille for American Expats: The US-Side Checklist
You live abroad and a foreign office wants your US documents apostilled. The apostille is issued in the United States, by the state that issued the document or by the US Department of State for federal papers. This guide shows how to pick the right office, order the right copy and get originals to and from another time zone.
Three questions decide almost every expat file
Most delays start with one of three wrong turns: a state record sent to Washington, the wrong state asked for the apostille, or a copy the foreign office will not accept.
Who issued the document?
A state, county or school office means a state apostille. A federal agency such as the FBI means the US Department of State. The apostille always follows the issuer, never your current address.
Which copy does the foreign office want?
Usually a recent, certified long-form copy with a raised seal and a signature the state has on file. Photocopies, souvenir certificates and online abstracts are the common failures.
How will the originals travel?
Paper goes out and paper comes back. Plan an international courier both ways, a prepaid return label and a person in the US who can act for you.
State office details below are dated as researched on 26 October 2026. Confirm with the office before you mail anything irreplaceable.
State or federal apostille: follow the issuer
The United States has no single apostille office. The Hague Conference lists the competent authorities for the US on its United States authorities page. In plain terms, it says federal agency documents are apostilled by the US Department of State, state documents by the issuing state, and federal court documents by the clerk of the federal court. Here is the decision tree built from that page and from each state office.
- 1
Did a federal agency issue it?
An FBI Identity History Summary is the typical expat example. It goes to the US Department of State, Office of Authentications, and no state office touches it. Read our FBI report apostille guide for the fingerprint step.
- 2
Did a state, county or city vital records office issue it?
Birth, marriage, death and divorce records are apostilled by the state where the event was recorded. A Texas birth needs Texas, even if you grew up in Oregon and now live in Lisbon. Some states add a county clerk step first. New York is the best-known case.
- 3
Is it a school record?
A school is not a state agency in most places. The registrar certifies the record, usually before a notary, and the state where the notary is commissioned issues the apostille. Our diploma and transcript guide covers the chain.
- 4
Is it a statement you sign, such as an affidavit or power of attorney?
A notary signs it, and the state that commissioned the notary apostilles the notary. Signing from abroad adds a step, so read the section on acting from overseas below.
- 5
Is it a court document?
State court papers follow state rules, often with a clerk certification first. Federal court papers go to the federal court clerk. Ask the court which certification the apostille office expects.
Four states use unusual offices: Georgia (the Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority), New Jersey (its Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services), Wisconsin (also the Department of Financial Institutions) and Pennsylvania and Virginia (listed under the Secretary of the Commonwealth). Our apostille cost by state guide lists the office for every state, and the vital records guide goes office by office.
Order the right copy before you pay for an apostille
An apostille certifies a signature and a seal. It does not make an old or incomplete record newer or fuller. If the foreign office wants a long-form certified copy issued recently, the apostille cannot repair a copy that falls short.
Start with the long form. A long-form birth record shows the parents and the place of birth, which foreign registries often check. Indiana, Missouri, Louisiana and Texas point applicants to it. Minnesota issues no separate long form. Ohio’s online copies are abstracts and are not meant for use abroad.
Next, check recency. The United States has no national age limit for a vital record. A few states publish one, and some consulates add their own. We state only the windows that official pages state.
| State or program | Published recency rule | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Connecticut | Document certified or notarized within the last 10 years. | Connecticut Secretary of the State, as researched 26 October 2026. |
| Virginia | Copy issued within the past 12 months. | Secretary of the Commonwealth, as researched 26 October 2026. |
| Tennessee | Copy certified within the past two years. | Tennessee Secretary of State, as researched 26 October 2026. |
| Texas | Long form issued within the last 5 years. | Texas Secretary of State, as researched 26 October 2026. |
| Hawaii | Copy issued on or after 1 January 2025. | Hawaii Lieutenant Governor, as researched 26 October 2026. |
| North Carolina | Copy certified on or after 1 April 2000. | North Carolina Secretary of State, as researched 26 October 2026. |
| Spain, non-lucrative visa | Family documents issued within the last 12 months, birth certificates excluded. | Consulate General of Spain in Boston. |
| Portugal, San Francisco consulate | Apostilled birth certificate issued within six months. | Undated consulate page that may predate the 2026 reform. |
Who can request records for you, and what about a power of attorney?
Most expats cannot walk into the issuing office. Three routes work in practice, and the right one depends on the state.
Order the certified copy yourself, online or by mail
Many states take mail or online orders from abroad, usually through the health department or a vendor the state names. Identity proof is required. Order early, because the copy is often the slowest step. Illinois is a warning: health department mail orders can take around 12 weeks, so the county clerk is faster there.
Ask a family member or agent in the US to request it
Eligibility rules differ. Alabama restricts death records for 25 years to listed relatives, legal representatives or someone with signed written permission. The District of Columbia does not let spouses order the copy, and Utah does not let third-party vendors order it. A relative on the state’s eligible list is the safest agent.
Give a power of attorney only when the office accepts it
A power of attorney is itself a document you sign before a notary. Some offices treat a legal representative as an eligible requester and some do not. Ask the office before you spend time on one. Our power of attorney guide and the explainer cover the document. US embassies and consulates generally offer notarial services by appointment, so check your post’s page and ask the apostille office whether it accepts that signature.
Alaska offers a useful option. Its vital records office can order the apostille for you, and the Lieutenant Governor’s authentications page gives a courier address for deliveries. We confirm shortcuts like this during the free review.
Shipping paper across oceans and time zones
An apostille is attached to the original document, so paper travels twice. Plan for both legs.
- Use a tracked international courier. DHL, FedEx and UPS all work. Ask each for its own transit estimate to the state office, because customs and remote addresses add days.
- Put a prepaid return label in the box. New Mexico asks for a prepaid, pre-addressed international air bill and envelope when the apostille goes abroad. Other offices expect a return envelope or label too.
- Check which delivery method the office accepts. Maryland has suspended walk-ins and prefers mail or courier. Oregon says FedEx and UPS mailings take two to three business days. Alaska lists a separate courier street address from its post office box.
Time zones matter for phone calls. Our office in Tewksbury, near Boston, keeps Monday to Friday hours from 10am to 5pm Eastern. In Europe that is the afternoon and evening, five or six hours ahead depending on the week, because US and European clocks change on different dates. In Seoul or Tokyo it falls late evening and overnight, so use email and the online order. State offices keep their own local hours.
The FBI check: the one expat document with its own rules
An FBI report is a federal document. Only the US Department of State can apostille it, and a state office cannot. Many applicants receive the report as an electronic PDF through an approved channeler. Whether the apostille office takes the paper or the electronic version is a detail we confirm during the free review.
Foreign consulates publish their own age limits for it. The Consulate General of Spain in Boston asks for an FBI check dated no more than six months before the application for the non-lucrative visa, with the federal apostille. The Portuguese Embassy sheet for the D7 visa, dated 10 November 2025, asks for a police certificate issued less than 90 days before the application. Chile’s migration service gives 60 days on its retiree and student pages, while one FAQ gives 90, so the page for your permit governs.
We could not read the US Department of State’s own authentications pages on 26 October 2026, so we do not print its processing time here. Ask for the current estimate during the free review. The fingerprint, channeler and apostille steps are in our FBI background apostille guide.
Six mistakes we see in expat files
- 1
The wrong copy type
A short-form, abstract or souvenir record. Order the certified long form and tell the vital records office the copy is for an apostille and a foreign authority.
- 2
The wrong state or level
Sending a Massachusetts record to Rhode Island because you live there, or sending an FBI report to a state office. Follow the issuer.
- 3
A signature that is not on file
Alabama and Kentucky want the current State Registrar’s signature on the copy. Alaska warns that older copies may carry signatures no longer on file. Order a fresh copy for an old record.
- 4
A copy that is too old for the program
Check both the state rule and the consulate rule. A copy can pass a state and still fail abroad.
- 5
Translating before the apostille
Some programs need the translation after the apostille. Others do not. Ask the receiving office, and see the translation section below.
- 6
Names that do not match
A maiden name, a missing middle name or a spelling difference between the birth certificate and the passport. Fix it before the apostille, not after.
Our guide to common apostille mistakes and the rejections page list more.
Translation, and what the host country adds
Many host countries want a translation into the local language. Some want a sworn or official translator registered there. Argentina’s migration pages name the traductor público nacional and a legalised translation. Spain’s Boston consulate and Miami consulate refer to a sworn translator for the FBI record, and they say the translation needs no apostille and the apostille needs no translation. Portugal’s agency AIMA asks for a certified translation, except for documents in English, French or Spanish.
We can provide ATA certified translations that are notarized. We are not a sworn translator and we do not arrange sworn translations. If your destination demands one, you hire the sworn translator there, and we ship the apostilled set to that person.
For country rules, read our guides for Spain, Portugal, Italian citizenship by descent, Italy visas, Germany, Croatia and the Latin American countries. The HCCH status table shows whether a country accepts apostilles at all. A country outside the convention needs legalization, which our apostille versus legalization page explains.
Two situations, labeled typical
Pennsylvania marriage, federal FBI check
A couple in Lisbon needs a Pennsylvania marriage certificate and an FBI report for a residence file. The marriage record goes through Pennsylvania’s Department of State. The FBI report goes to Washington, a different office with a different clock. We run them in parallel so the two timelines overlap.
Ohio birth record that looked official
A retiree in Mexico City ordered an Ohio birth record online and received an abstract. The abstract cannot go abroad. The fix was a certified copy from the right office and a few lost weeks.
Our service for expats, and honest pricing
Boston Apostille Service is a private document preparation and courier service in Tewksbury, Massachusetts. We obtain the certified copy where the state lets an authorized third party do it, send documents to the right state or federal office, track the case and ship the finished set abroad. Every order starts with a free document review. We confirm each state’s current fee and speed before you pay. Hablamos Español.
Our published prices are for Massachusetts documents and include the state government fee and return postage, per document. Economy is $149.95, Express is $199.95 and Rush is $385.95. Rush is the fastest, 1 to 2 days for Massachusetts and New Hampshire documents. For other states it depends on volume at the state office. Express takes 2 to 5 business days and Economy 1 to 2 weeks. Transit is extra. For any other state we send one flat-rate quote after the free review. See apostille pricing, how it works and the timing guide. When you are ready, use the application form or call (978) 424-4629 Monday to Friday, 10am to 5pm Eastern.
We are not affiliated with any state office, school or consulate. Our apostille while abroad and moving abroad checklist pages cover the packing side.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get a US apostille while living abroad?
Identify the issuer, order a recent certified copy, then send the originals to the right office. A US contact can ship for you, or we can handle the state or federal step after a free document review. Paper goes both ways, so plan for courier time.
Is an apostille from the state where I live or the state where the record was issued?
The state that issued the record, not where you live. A New Jersey birth certificate needs New Jersey even if you live in Spain. Notarized documents follow the notary’s state, and FBI reports go to the US Department of State.
Does an FBI background check need a state apostille?
No. The FBI report is a federal document, so the apostille comes from the US Department of State. A state office cannot issue it. Check the age limit your consulate publishes.
Do I need the long-form birth certificate?
Usually. Foreign registries often check parents and place of birth, which only the long form shows. Confirm with the receiving office, and with the state if it publishes a rule.
Who can request my records if I am abroad?
It depends on the state. Many allow the person named on the record, close relatives and sometimes a legal representative. Ask the vital records office who qualifies before you name an agent.
Do I translate before or after the apostille?
It depends on the destination. Spanish consulate pages say the translation needs no apostille and the apostille needs no translation, but the order still varies by office. We provide ATA certified translations that are notarized. We do not arrange sworn translations.
How long will the whole process take from abroad?
Add four clocks: the certified copy, the state office, the courier both ways and any translation. Published state times run from minutes at a counter to several weeks by mail. Our timing guide lists them.
Related guides
From a kitchen table abroad to an apostille in your hands
Tell us the document, the state and the country. We confirm the right office, the right copy and the real timeline before you pay.