If your documents have been issued or notarized by a US State, you’ll need to have those documents authenticated by the Secretary of State of the State that issued or notarized the documents before it’s eligible for authentication by the US Department of State in Washington DC.
For example, if you need your California Birth Certificate authenticated by the US Department of State for use in Brazil, you’ll need to first have the Birth Certificate authenticated by the California Secretary of State (State who issued the document). In this example, the birth certificate will receive a California Certification because Brazil is not a member of the Hague Apostille Convention. Once the document has received the certification from the State of California, you can then mail your document to our office in Washington, DC so we can authenticate it by the US Department of State. The US Department of State is only located in Washington, DC. If needed, we can also legalize your document at the consul or embassy office. We hand delivery documents directly to the US Department of State’s office. Once completed, your documents will be picked up 1-3 days.
Here is a list of document which will require authentication by the Secretary of State:
General Documents (Most require notarization):
Affidavits
Agreements
Articles of Incorporation
ByLaws
Commercial Invoices
Copy of US Passport (page with your picture and signature)
Deeds of Assignment
Diplomas
Home Studio
Income Verification
Power of Attorney
Single Status
School Transcripts
Other Business Documents
State & Local:
Birth Certificates
Death Certificates
Marriage Certificates
Divorce Decree
Probate Wills
Judgments
Federal Issued Documents:
Federal issued documents do not require State authentications because these documents have been issued by a U.S. Federal Agency. If you have the original, you can forward the documents to our office for processing.
U.S. Department of Agriculture
U.S. Department of Justice
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Environmental Protection Agency
Social Security Administration
Office of Personnel Management