Apostille Services

In 1961 many nations joined together to create a simplified method of "legalizing" documents for universal recognition. Members of the conference, referred to as the Hague Convention, adopted a document referred to as an Apostille that would be recognized by all member nations. Since October 15, 1981, the United States has been part of the 1961 Hague Convention abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents (Only). The Convention provides for the simplified certification of public (including notarized) documents to be used in countries that have joined the convention. Documents destined for use in participating countries and their territories should be certified by one of the officials in the jurisdiction in which the document has been executed. Said official must have been designated as competent to issue certifications by "Apostille" (usually in the office of the State Secretary of State of his/her counterpart) as provided for by the 1961 Hague Convention.
 
An Apostille (pronounced "ah-po-steel") is simply the name for a specialized certificate, issued by the State Government. The Apostille is attached to your original document, to verify it is legitimate and authentic, and therefore it will be accepted internationally.The apostille consists of 10 elements. The Convention requires that all apostilles be numbered consecutively, with individual numbers applied to each apostille issued.The recognized standard Apostille contains a seal and 10 mandatory references: name of country from which the document emanates, name of person signing the document, the capacity in which the person signing the document has acted, in the case of unsigned documents, the name of the authority that has affixed the seal or stamp, place of certification date of certification, the authority issuing the certificate, number of certificate, seal or stamp of authority issuing certificate and signature of authority issuing certificate.
 
Under no circumstances should customers detach the Apostille to photocopy the documents.
 
Documents sent to member nations, completed with an Apostille at the state level, may be submitted directly to the member nation without further action. Documents sent to non-member nations requiring a Certification of the signature of the state's public official at state level, then must be tramitted to Authenication Office of the Departnment of State in Washington, D.C. for authenication of the State Official's Signature.
 
The California Secretary of State provides authenication of public official signatures on documents to be used outside the United States of America. The country of destination determines whether the authentication is an Apostille or Certification
 
An Apostille is a certificate issued by the California Secretary of State that proves the authenticity of a public official  signature and seal. The Apostille is typically attached to a notarized document as proof of authentication when that document is being sent to a country which abides by the Hague Convention.
 
The Apostille certification is from the office of the Secretary of State, after reviewing the document's signature and validating it's legitimacy. It is an official state government certification. It is a full 8 1/2" x 11" page certificate, not simply a seal. The Apostille is permanently attached, and you cannot remove the staples or separate it from your original document.
 
All Apostille certificates will look the same for all the countries you request an Apostille for. There is no difference between an Apostille which will be used for Mexico and an Apostille for Russia. Similarly, there is no difference between an Apostille for a Birth Certificate and an Apostille for a Marriage Certificate, or a Power of Attorney or a Court Divorce Decree. The Apostille verbage made change due to destination county for Apostille.The Apostille will look the same. However, a few countries have a different requirement other than an Apostille, and your document would receive a Legalization Certificate instead.
 
Documents notarize by Performance Mobile Notary or  need Orange County Public official authenicated will normaly take between 1 to 2 business days to get an Apostille attached to it. Documents notarize by notaries outside of Orange County  or Documents with Public Officials outside of Orange County  may take longer, depending on what Southern California County they are register with. 
 
Performance Mobile Notary Inc. offers you the convenience to obtain an Apostille on your documents without the need to travel to local and state government offices. We save you time, money, and headaches from potentially incorrect document presentation which could cause rejection. We go  to the local and state government offices on your behalf, stand in line, complete any applications, pay the Authenication and  Apostille fees and wait until the certification is completed. Our service is both cost-effective and time-saving.  

Apostille Fees
 
Fees for complete service for ONE Apostille, including Notarize letter,  Notary Authenication and Apostille, service fees both local and state, range from $175 -$250.  Second and Third document will be discounted up to 50%. 
 
Certified State or County Documents
If your documents are Certified Copies issued by the State of California or the County Clerk within the State of California, then those documents don't need to be notarize or authenication.  Fees range from $125-$200 per document and second and third documents will be discounted up to 50%.

Federal Documents
If your document was issued by a federal agency of the United States, then those documents must be sent to U.S. Department of State, Office of Authenications to obtain a Apostille 
 
Apostille Common Documents