Washington Consular Services

Authenticating a document verifies the document’s source so foreign countries can be sure the document is legitimate. The traditional method for authenticating documents is called legalization.

Legalization makes documents suitable for use in another country. The process often involves several different steps.

The modern, streamlined process, now used and accepted by more than 100 signatory countries, was created at the Hague Conference in 1961 and is called apostille.

The steps you must take to have a document legalized vary by country. It depends on the agreements made between the country where you want to use the document and the country that issued it. We will let you know if you need to send an original hard copy or can use a digital transmission. WCS provides secure digital-transmission technology, assuring speed and security.

Because of the slow and costly nature of traditional legalizations, dozens of countries have signed the Apostille Treaty, created at the 1961 Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents. Under the treaty, the authentication process becomes reduced to a single seal (this is the apostille), applied by a designated authority of the country where the document was issued.

If your document both originates and is intended for use in an apostille country, you can complete its authentication with a single apostille. This is a greatly simplified form of document authentication.

After this, no more steps are necessary. You can use the document in any country that is party to the Hague Apostille Convention.

If one or both countries involved in your legalization is not a party to the Apostille Convention, then legalization often involves numerous steps:

Step 1: Document is notarized by a notary public. Notary public certifies the person that has signed the document.

Step 2: Document is certified by a State or Regional authority. In certain States, a county-clerk stamp may be additionally required.

Step 3: Document is authenticated by U.S Department of State, to certify the Secretary of State’s signature.

Step 4: Document will be legalized by the embassy or consulate of the destination country. Upon approval, a certificate, stamp or sticker is placed on the document. This shows the destination country where the document will be used, that the document has been issued by a competent authority. Once stamped by the embassy, the document in the destination country.

There are three primary types of ducoments that require authentication: private documents (individual or corporate), state/country-issued documents, and federally issued documents. Learn more about authentication requirements on the www.wcss.com

Private documents can be personal (example: Power of Attorney) or corporate (example: Articles of Incorporation) and may be issued an authentication or apostille by a designated authority.

Examples of commonly authenticated private documents include:

State/county-issued documents may be issued a certification or apostille by a designated governmental authority.

Examples of commonly apostilled and authenticated state/county-issued documents include:

These documents are issued by Federal Government Agencies.