Transparent apostille pricing, with nothing hidden at checkout

Return shipping is inside every price, and the shipping method matches the speed of the package you choose. There is no reason to authenticate a document quickly and then let it sit in slow mail on the way home.

Economy returns by First Class Mail

Economy service returns your document by First Class Mail. This is reliable and economical, and it suits clients who chose Economy because their timeline is open. If your deadline is more than a month away, First Class return keeps your total cost down without putting your document at risk.

Express returns by Priority Mail

Express service returns your document by Priority Mail. Priority Mail moves faster than First Class and includes tracking, which fits the tighter window Express clients usually work within. You can watch the package travel and plan around its arrival.

Rush returns by FedEx

Rush service returns your document by FedEx. FedEx gives you the fastest transit and detailed tracking, so a document that was authenticated quickly does not lose days on the way back. When you pay for speed, the return leg keeps that speed.

International delivery

If you need your finished document sent to an address outside the United States, tell us during the consultation. Overseas delivery is available, and we confirm any difference in cost before you order. For clients living abroad who need a Massachusetts or federal document, the entire process works by mail, so you never have to travel back to the United States to handle it.

Search for apostille cost and you will find services that advertise a low base rate, then stack on a government fee, a handling fee, a per-page fee and a shipping fee. The advertised number and the final number are not close. We rejected that model because it works against the client.

When you are authenticating a document for a visa or a residency file, you are usually managing a budget and a deadline at the same time. A price that changes at checkout breaks both. So our pricing follows three rules.

One price per document

The figure on the card is the figure you pay for that document at that service level. The government fee and return shipping are already inside it. You do not need a calculator to work out your real cost. You read the card, and that is the number.

No charge for the things that protect you

Document review, the phone consultation and online tracking are part of the service, not upgrades. We will not charge you to check your own document before we risk sending it to a government office. The review is what keeps your document from being rejected, so it belongs in every package at no extra cost.

Anything variable is quoted in writing first

Additional documents, notarization and translation depend on your specific order, so we give you an exact written total during the consultation. You approve that total before you pay. There is no point in the process where a new fee appears after you have committed.

This approach costs us the occasional sale to a service with a lower headline price. We accept that. A client who understands the full cost on day one is a client who is not frustrated on day ten. Clear pricing is part of doing this work properly, and it is one reason individuals, law firms and companies across Massachusetts come back to us. If you want to know more about the team behind the service, read about our agency.

They are two different government processes, and we price each for the work it actually takes.

A Massachusetts state apostille goes to the Secretary of the Commonwealth

That office is in Boston, close to our Tewksbury location, and its processing is relatively predictable. We present documents efficiently, and for Rush orders we move quickly because the office is nearby. The shorter distance and steadier queue keep state pricing lower.

A federal apostille goes to the U.S. Department of State

The Office of Authentications in Washington, D.C. handles documents from every state in the country, so the queue is longer and the standard government timeline runs several weeks. Reaching it also means shipping documents to Washington and back, which adds transit time and cost. Our federal Rush option exists to compress that. On a federal Rush order, we hand deliver the application to the government office rather than mailing it, which removes days of transit at each end.

The price gap is work, not markup

The difference between state and federal pricing reflects a longer government queue, a document that has to physically travel to and from Washington and, on Rush orders, the cost of delivering the application in person. When your order includes both a state and a federal document, which is common for visa files that pair a diploma with an FBI background report, we run the two tracks at the same time and give you one combined quote. You deal with one team and one invoice, not two government systems.

Not the date you would like the document back, but the date the receiving office, embassy or employer actually needs it. Work backward from that date, then pick the package that lands your document in time with a little room to spare.

Choose Economy if your timeline is open

If your visa interview, school enrollment or closing date is more than a month away, Economy gives you the same careful service at the lowest price. Most clients who plan ahead use it. There is no benefit to paying for speed you do not need.

Choose Express if you have a firm deadline a few weeks out

Express is our most popular package for a reason. It moves your document faster, returns it by tracked mail and still costs far less than Rush. For the majority of clients with a normal amount of lead time, Express is the sensible middle. It is the package most people should start with.

Choose Rush if your deadline is days away

Rush exists for the visa appointment next week or the contract that has to be signed abroad. It is the fastest option we offer, and on federal orders it includes hand delivery to the government office. Rush carries the highest price because it takes the most direct effort, but for a true emergency it is the difference between making your deadline and missing it.

If you are not sure, that is what the free consultation is for. Tell us the document and the date, and we will tell you honestly which package fits. We would rather put you in Economy and save you money than sell you a Rush order you did not need.