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Apostilles

Procedure for Document Authentication (Apostilles):

DOCUMENTS WHICH MAY BE CERTIFIED:

The Secretary of State will Certify or Apostille the following documents:

  • Documents notarized by a Florida Notary Public or certified as true copies (such as certified copies of student transcripts)
  • Birth and Death Certificates bearing the signature of the State Registrar obtained from the Bureau of Vital Statistics in Jacksonville Florida
  • Vehicle Titles certified by the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles
  • Corporation documents bearing the signature of the Secretary of State
  • Documents certified by a Clerk of the Court from a county within Florida

**NOTE: Documents must be submitted with original signatures; copies cannot be certified.

CERTIFICATION FEES:

The fee for certification by the Secretary of State is $10 per notarization. However, a certified copy of a document obtained from the Clerk of the Circuit Court (example, Marriage License) requires an additional $10 fee for a total of $20 per document. We accept either checks (drawn on a U.S. Bank) or money orders made payable to the Department of State. We do not accept cash.

PROCESSING TIME:

The processing time varies dependent upon the volume of work received and the resources available. We advise you to allow at least five (5) working days for processing. Requests are completed in the date order they are received. We do not offer expedited services.

PROCEDURES:

Please follow these procedures carefully to enable our staff to process your request without delay.

  1. Enclose a cover letter stating the name of the country in which the documents will be used. The country name is needed in order to authenticate the document correctly, whether by Certificate of Notarial Authority or Apostille.
  2. Enclose the required fee. (See "Certification Fees" above)
  3. Enclose a self addressed, stamped envelope for return of the documents. If you wish the order to be returned by a courier service, you must enclose a pre-paid air bill with your order.
  4. If you are using U.S. Mail please use this address:
    Department of State
    Division of Corporations
    Apostille Certification
    P.O. Box 6800
    Tallahassee, FL 32314-6800
  5. If you are using a courier services please use this address:
    Division of Corporations
    Clifton Building
    2661 Executive Center Circle
    Tallahassee, FL 32301
    Phone:850-245-6945