How to Verify an Apostille Is Real
A foreign registry questions your apostille. An employer wants proof it was issued by the Commonwealth. Or you paid an online service and the certificate looks wrong. Here is what a genuine Massachusetts apostille contains, how any office in the world checks it and how to tell a real one from a fake.
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The ten fields every genuine apostille must contain
The 1961 Hague Convention fixed the form of the apostille so that an official in any member country can read it without knowing the issuing country’s language or bureaucracy. It is a square certificate, titled “Apostille” with the French subtitle “(Convention de La Haye du 5 octobre 1961),” and it carries ten numbered fields in a fixed order. Massachusetts prints its apostille on a separate sheet, attaches it to the document and embosses the state seal through both.
The fields are: 1, the country of issue, which for us is the United States of America. 2, the name of the person who signed the public document, for example the notary or the city clerk. 3, the capacity in which that person signed, such as Notary Public or Assistant City Clerk. 4, the seal or stamp of the authority whose signature is being certified. 5, the place of certification, Boston. 6, the date. 7, the certifying authority, the Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. 8, the certificate number. 9, the seal or stamp of the Secretary of the Commonwealth. And 10, the signature of the Secretary or an authorized deputy.
Two of these fields do most of the work when someone checks authenticity. Field 8, the certificate number, identifies the apostille in the Commonwealth’s records. Field 2, the name of the signer, must match the signature on the underlying document exactly. If the apostille names a notary who did not sign the document, or the number cannot be matched, the foreign office has grounds to refuse.
An apostille certifies a signature, a capacity and a seal. It does not certify that the document is true. Foreign offices know the difference, and so should you.
How a foreign registry verifies a Massachusetts apostille
A clerk in Lisbon or Bogotá has three tools, and they use them in this order.
Reading the certificate
The clerk checks that all ten fields are filled, that the title and French subtitle are present, that the date is plausible and that the name in field 2 matches the signature on the attached document. Most fakes fail here because the forger does not know the form.
Checking the physical attachment
Massachusetts attaches the apostille to the document and embosses the seal through both pages. A loose apostille, a stapled photocopy or an apostille that refers to a different document than the one behind it is a red flag.
Contacting the issuing authority
The Convention requires each issuing authority to keep a register of the apostilles it issues, by number and date, so any interested party can confirm one. For Massachusetts, that means contacting the Commissions Section with the certificate number and date. The office confirms whether the record matches.
Some countries and several U.S. states publish online registers where anyone can enter a certificate number and see the result immediately. Massachusetts has not published a public online lookup as of this writing. Verification of a Massachusetts apostille is done by contacting the Commissions Section directly. Foreign offices are familiar with this, and a request usually takes a few business days. If a receiving office insists on an online check, the practical answer is to give them the Commissions Section’s contact details and the certificate number.
What a fake or defective apostille looks like
Outright forgeries are rare. What we see far more often are documents that were never apostilled at all but were sold as if they were, and documents apostilled by the wrong authority. Both get refused, and the person holding them usually does not find out until the appointment abroad.
“Apostille” from a private company
No private company can issue an apostille. Only the Secretary of the Commonwealth issues them for Massachusetts documents, and only the U.S. Department of State issues them for federal documents. A certificate on a company’s letterhead that says “apostille,” “authentication” or “certification” is a piece of paper. Some online sellers attach a notary’s certificate and call it an apostille. It is not.
Apostille from the wrong state
A Massachusetts birth certificate apostilled in New Hampshire is invalid, because New Hampshire cannot verify a Massachusetts registrar’s signature. This happens when a client uses a notary across the state line. Our out of state documents guide explains which state authenticates which document.
Apostille on a photocopy
The Commonwealth refuses photocopied signatures, so a genuine Massachusetts apostille is never attached to a plain photocopy. If the underlying document is a photocopy without a notarial copy certification, something is wrong with the certificate on top of it.
Mismatched names and dates
Field 2 names the signer, field 3 the capacity, field 6 the date. A notary named in field 2 whose signature does not appear on the document, or a date before the notarization date, means the certificate was moved from another document or fabricated. Foreign clerks check this first.
Missing seal impression
The Commonwealth embosses its seal so that it can be felt. A flat printed seal with no relief, on an apostille that claims to be an original, deserves a call to the Commissions Section.
Apostille used in a non Hague country
Not a fake, but treated like one. A genuine apostille presented in the United Arab Emirates, Vietnam or Egypt is simply the wrong instrument. Those countries require legalization through their embassies. Our apostille versus legalization guide explains the difference.
Five things to look at before you fly
- Title reads “Apostille (Convention de La Haye du 5 octobre 1961).”
- All ten fields filled, certificate number present.
- Field 2 name matches the signature on your document.
- Embossed seal passes through the apostille and the document.
- Issuer is the Secretary of the Commonwealth or the U.S. Department of State, never a company.
How to get a Massachusetts apostille confirmed
If you hold the document
Note the certificate number in field 8 and the date in field 6. Contact the Commissions Section at 617-727-2836 or comm@sec.state.ma.us with both, and the name of the signer in field 2. The office confirms whether an apostille with that number was issued on that date for that signer. Keep a photo of the apostille and the document together in case the foreign office asks for it later.
If a foreign office is asking
Give them the same three details and the Commissions Section’s contact information. Many registries send the request themselves. If they want a written confirmation, the Commissions Section can respond to the office directly. We help clients draft that request when the office abroad is slow to act.
If you bought the apostille online
Ask the seller which authority issued it and for the certificate number. A legitimate provider can answer in one sentence: the Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, number so and so, dated so and so. If the answer is vague, send us a photo and we will tell you what you have. We review apostilles from other providers at no charge.
Federal apostilles
Apostilles on FBI reports, naturalization copies and other federal documents come from the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Authentications in Washington. They follow the same ten field form, signed by an authentication officer. Verification requests go to that office rather than to Boston. Our state versus federal guide explains which documents take that route.
Digital apostilles and what Massachusetts does today
The Hague Conference runs an electronic apostille program, the e-APP, under which issuing authorities may issue apostilles as digitally signed PDFs and maintain online registers. A growing number of countries and a handful of U.S. states have adopted one or both parts. When an e-apostille exists, the receiving office verifies it by checking the digital signature and, where available, the online register.
Massachusetts issues paper apostilles with an embossed seal. If a foreign office asks you for an electronic apostille on a Massachusetts document, the answer is that the Commonwealth issues paper, that the paper certificate is fully valid under the Convention and that the office may verify it with the Commissions Section. Some offices then ask for a scan plus the original by courier, which we arrange.
Documents that exist only as PDFs, such as an electronically signed transcript, raise a different question: whether they can be apostilled at all. Our digital documents guide covers that.
Paper versus electronic
- Massachusetts
- Paper apostille, embossed seal, verification by phone or email with the Commissions Section
- U.S. Department of State
- Paper apostille from the Office of Authentications
- e-APP states and countries
- Digitally signed PDF apostilles, often with an online register
- Receiving offices
- Must accept a paper apostille from any Hague member
Three verification calls and what each one turned up
Names changed. These are the kinds of questions foreign offices and clients bring to us about whether an apostille is real.
The registrar was unable to find the number
A Portuguese university emailed a client in Somerville saying the apostille on her diploma did not appear in the Massachusetts register. The client had ordered the apostille through an online vendor. We checked the certificate: the number format did not match the Commonwealth’s sequence and the signature block named an official who does not sign apostilles. The document had been apostilled in another state after a notary there certified a copy, then relabeled. We had the diploma re-certified by the college registrar in front of a Massachusetts notary and apostilled in Boston. The university verified the new number the same day.
A real apostille on the wrong document
A Mexican bank questioned a corporate resolution from a Boston company. The apostille was genuine and verified in the Commonwealth’s register. The problem was the document behind it: the notarial certificate referenced a different signer than the resolution named. The notary had attached the wrong loose certificate. The company re-executed the resolution before a notary, a new apostille was attached, and the bank opened the account. Verification of the apostille is only half the check. The other half is whether the apostille belongs to the document it is stapled to.
The apostille was fine, the staple was not
A Colombian court rejected an apostilled power of attorney because the apostille had been removed and reattached, visible from the second set of staple holes. A client had separated the pages to scan them. The Commonwealth will not reattach an apostille. A new power of attorney was signed, notarized and apostilled, and we scanned it for the client before shipping so the original stayed intact. Never remove an apostille from its document, even for a moment.
How we verify before shipping
Every apostille that leaves our office is checked against the Commonwealth’s register by number and date, the signer’s name is matched to the current list, the document behind it is read against the notarial certificate, and the staple is inspected. A photo of the front and back goes into your order file so that a foreign office can compare what it received to what left Tewksbury.
What a foreign office should do
Look up the apostille number in the issuing authority’s online register, or email the authority with the number and date. Compare the ten fields on the certificate to the register entry. Then read the document under it and confirm the notary or official named in field two signed that document, not another one. An apostille that verifies but sits on the wrong document is as useless as a forged one. Our translation guide explains why the translation must cover the apostille so the registrar can complete this check. Fingerprints for the FBI check are taken at our sister office, Fingerprint Boston, in the same building.
Frequently asked questions
How do I verify a Massachusetts apostille?
Contact the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s Commissions Section at 617-727-2836 or comm@sec.state.ma.us with the certificate number, the date and the name of the signer shown on the apostille. The office confirms whether it issued that apostille. Massachusetts does not offer a public online lookup as of this writing.
Can I verify an apostille online?
For some countries and some U.S. states, yes, through their e-registers. Massachusetts verifies by phone or email. The paper apostille is fully valid under the Hague Convention either way.
What does an apostille certify?
The authenticity of the signature, the capacity of the person who signed and the identity of the seal on a public document. It does not certify that the contents of the document are true or that the document is valid for a particular purpose.
Can a notary issue an apostille?
No. A notary’s certificate is what the apostille authenticates. Only the Secretary of the Commonwealth issues apostilles for Massachusetts documents, and only the U.S. Department of State for federal documents.
A foreign office says my apostille is invalid. What now?
Ask which of the ten fields they object to. The common reasons are a name mismatch, a document that is too old for their rules, an apostille from the wrong state, or a country that requires legalization instead. Send us a photo and we will tell you which one applies and how to fix it.
Does an apostille prove the document is genuine?
It proves the official’s signature is genuine. For a certified vital record, that is effectively the same thing, because the registrar signed a true copy. For a notarized private document, the apostille proves the notary is real, not that the contents are accurate.
Can you check an apostille I got from another company?
Yes, at no charge. Send photos of the apostille and the document it is attached to. We check the fields, the issuer and the attachment and tell you whether a foreign office is likely to accept it.
Is a scanned apostille acceptable abroad?
Usually as a preview only. Most offices want the original paper apostille by courier, or an apostilled notarized copy. A scan cannot be verified for the embossed seal.
Related services and guides
Apostille service near you
Not sure what you are holding? Ask us.
Send a photo of the apostille and the document. We check it field by field and tell you whether it will be accepted, at no charge.
