Texas Apostilles

An Apostille is a form of certification set out in the 1961 Hague Convention, to which the United States became a subscriber in 1981. It is a form of numbered fields, which allows the data to be understood by the receiving country regardless of the official language of the issuing country.

What is an Apostille and when do I need one?

An Apostille is a certificate that authenticates the origin of a public document (e.g., a birth, marriage or death certificate, a judgment, an extract of a register or a notarial attestation).  

Apostilles can only be issued for documents issued in one country party to the Apostille Convention and that are to be used in another country which is also a party to the Convention. 

You will need an Apostille if all of the following apply:

• the country where the document was issued is party to the Apostille Convention; and

• the country in which the document is to be used is party to the Apostille Convention; and

• the law of the country where the document was issued considers it to be a public document; and 

• the country in which the document is to be used requires an Apostille in order to recognise it as a foreign public document.

An Apostille may never be used for the recognition of a document in the country where that  document was issued – Apostilles are strictly for the use of public documents abroad! 

An Apostille may not be required if the laws, regulations, or practice in force in the country where

the public document is to be used have abolished or simplified the requirement of an Apostille, or

have exempted the document from any legalisation requirement. Such simplification or exemption may also result from a treaty or other agreement that is in force between the country where the public document is to be used and the country that issued it (e.g., some other Hague Conventions exempt documents from, legalisation or any analogous formality, including an Apostille). 

If you have any doubts, you should ask the intended recipient of your document whether an  Apostille is necessary in your particular case.

The object of the Apostille is to "abolish the requirement of diplomatic or consular legalization for foreign public documents". The completed Apostille certifies the authenticity of the signature, the capacity in which the person signing the document has acted, and identifies the seal/stamp which the document bears answer to this item.

Each subscribing nation may designate those authorities which may issue Apostilles for their jurisdiction. The United States has appointed the Secretary of State (or their counterpart) of the various states as said authority. The Secretary of State of Texas has expanded this authorization to include the Deputy Secretary of State and the division directors.

The Secretary of State of Texas may issue an Apostille on documents issued by persons on file with this agency, including county clerks, notaries public, statewide officials. Recently issued birth/death certificates issued by locals registrars must have been issued within the past three (3) years in order for the Secretary of State to issue an Apostille.

The competent authority for issuance of Apostilles on documents issued by the federal government are the clerks of the federal courts.

 The Apostille may be obtained to transmit public documents executed in one subscribing country to another subscribing country wherein the documents need to be produced. The Hague Convention defines 'public documents' as:

1. those originating in a court, clerk of a court, public prosecutor or process server,
2. administrative documents,
3. notarial acts,
4. official certificates placed on documents

These types of 'public documents' would include birth/death certificates, marriage licenses, divorce decrees, school transcripts and diplomas/degrees, among others.

Fill out the form above to get started with your request.

Requests for Apostille on documents executed before a Texas notary public, documents issued by statewide officials (such as the State Registrar of Vital Statistics, district judges, motor vehicle custodian of records, etc.), and certified copies issued within the past five years by county officials and local registrars should be submitted to the Authentications Unit. 

 Along with the document(s), please provide us with the name of the country to which the document(s) will be transmitted. 

 If a document needs to be translated then a notary would witness the translator's signature on the translation and the document being translated would be submitted along with the notarized translation for authentication. 

 The “Apostille Section” of the Hague Conference website includes the electronic version of the “ABCs of Apostilles” – a brochure that provides basic information about the Apostille Convention and its operation. Click here to access the Apostille Section and the “ABCs of Apostilles”. Brochure prepared by the Permanent Bureau (Secretariat) of the Hague Conference on Private International Law and reproduced with its permission.