Apostille or Authentication Certificate – United States

In the United States, apostilles are usually issued by the Secretary of State of the state the document comes from, whether it is a vital record, a court judgment or a notarised document. Federal documents, such as an FBI background check, are apostilled by the US Department of State. For countries outside the Hague Convention, states issue a certificate of authentication instead.

When do you need it translated?

• A residence permit or naturalisation file at the préfecture

• Marriage at your town hall (mairie), when the birth certificate you provide is apostilled

• An inheritance, property purchase or power of attorney handled by a notaire

• University enrolment or recognition of a US degree

Our translation

Every field of the apostille is translated, with seals, signatures and reference numbers, together with the certificates some states attach: the county clerk certificate and exemplification in New York, the Baltimore court certificate in Maryland, the certification statement in Pennsylvania. Each state uses its own layout, and some have changed over the years: choose the state, and the period where one is shown, that matches your apostille, or Other states if yours is not listed.