Apostille & Document Authentication
Get your Florida documents accepted overseas
Marrying abroad, moving overseas, enrolling in a foreign university, adopting, or selling property in another country? Those documents need an apostille — and the most common reason they come back rejected is an error in the notarization.
We notarize to the standard the state requires, and can handle the submission to Tallahassee for you.
- Notarized to Florida apostille standards
- Submission and courier handling to Tallahassee
- Bilingual — English and Spanish
- Mobile, in-office or online notarization
The essentials
Issued only by the Secretary of State
No notary can issue an apostille. Florida’s Division of Corporations in Tallahassee is the sole authority
$10 per document
State fee. $20 for documents certified by a Florida Clerk of the Court
Originals only
Photocopies are rejected. The original notary signature, stamp and seal must be on the document
Destination country required
The state needs to know where it is going to certify it correctly
Get the notarization wrong and the whole package comes back. That is the part we handle.
Hundreds of Clients Served•Thousands of Services Completed•10+ Years Experience•Bilingual English & Spanish
What is an apostille?
A seal that makes your document valid in another country
A foreign government has no way of knowing whether a Florida notary stamp is genuine. An apostille solves that. It is a certificate attached to your document by the Florida Secretary of State, confirming the notary or official who signed it really holds that office.
It comes from the 1961 Hague Convention and is recognised by more than 125 member countries. For countries outside the Convention, Florida issues a notarial certificate instead, which does the same job by a different route.
Being straight about our role
A notary cannot issue an apostille. Only the Florida Secretary of State can. Anyone telling you otherwise is misrepresenting what they do.
What we handle is the part that actually goes wrong: notarizing your document to the exact standard the state requires, and managing the submission so you are not guessing at forms, fees and mailing rules.
What we handle is the part that actually goes wrong: notarizing your document to the exact standard the state requires, and managing the submission so you are not guessing at forms, fees and mailing rules.
Apostille or certificate?
Apostille
For the 125+ Hague Convention countries — Spain, Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Panama, most of Europe and Latin America.
Notarial certificate
For countries outside the Convention. The state issues it automatically based on the destination you declare.
You do not need to work out which applies. Tell us the destination and the state issues the right one.
When you need one
The situations that bring people here
Almost always with a deadline attached — a wedding date, a school term, a closing, a hearing.
Marriage abroad
Single-status affidavits, birth certificates and divorce decrees for a wedding in another country.
Moving or working overseas
Employment contracts, background checks, degrees and professional licences for a visa or work permit.
Dual citizenship
Birth, marriage and death certificates for citizenship claims — common for Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Irish descent.
Studying abroad
Diplomas and transcripts for a foreign university. The registrar’s signature must be notarized at the time of issue.
Property overseas
Powers of attorney and deeds so someone can act for you at a closing in another country.
Adoption & family law
Home studies, affidavits and court orders for an international adoption or custody matter.
How it works
Four steps to an authenticated document
Tell us the destination country first. Everything else follows from that.
1
Tell us the country
Where it is going determines the certification type and occasionally whether extra steps apply. First question, not the last.
2
We notarize it properly
Full notarial wording, original signature, stamp and seal, current commission. This is where most rejections happen.
3
Submitted to Tallahassee
Request form completed, destination declared, $10 state fee per document, prepaid return envelope enclosed.
4
Returned to you
The apostille comes back stapled to your document, signed by the Secretary of State and bearing the Great Seal of Florida.
Prefer to file it yourself? Completely fine, and we will still notarize it to the right standard. The state’s request form and filing instructions are public — we will point you at them and answer questions at no charge.
Documents
What Florida can and cannot apostille
This catches people out more than anything else. Florida can only authenticate Florida documents.
Florida can apostille
- Documents notarized by a Florida notary
- Florida birth and death certificates
- Florida marriage and divorce certificates
- Florida circuit court documents
- Clerk of the County documents
- Florida school transcripts
- Florida vehicle titles
- FDLE criminal background checks
- Certified copies and certificates of status from the Secretary of State
Florida cannot apostille
These are not refusals on our part — the state has no authority over them.
- Federal documents — FBI background checks, passport records, federal court documents. These go to the U.S. Department of State in Washington.
- Documents issued in another state — a New York birth certificate goes to New York.
- Documents notarized in another state — same rule.
- Photocopies of anything — originals only, without exception.
Federal document? Start with the U.S. Department of State Office of Authentications. Out of state? We will tell you which authority to contact, at no charge.
Why it matters who notarizes it
Most rejected apostilles are rejected for the notarization
Not the document. Not the form. The stamp. An expired commission, incomplete notarial wording, the wrong certificate type, a missing seal — any one of those and the whole package comes back.
A current, correct commission
Commissioned by the Governor of Florida, bonded and insured, with full notarial wording on every document that leaves us.
Native Spanish speaker
Most apostilles leaving Jacksonville head to Latin America or Spain. Alcides is from Panama, so the whole appointment can run in Spanish.
We come to you, or meet online
Mobile appointments across Jacksonville, our Forsyth Street office, or a remote online session if you are already overseas.
Timing and cost
What to expect, honestly
There are three separate costs here, and it helps to see them apart — some services quote one number and leave you to discover the rest.
State apostille fee
Paid to the Florida Department of State. $20 for Clerk of Court certified documents.
Ask
Notarization
Our fee for notarizing each signature to apostille standard.
Ask
Handling & courier
Optional — form preparation, submission and tracked return.
Ask
Call and describe what you have and where it is going. You will get the full figure before you commit to anything.
How long it takes
Notarization
Same day or next day in most cases
State processing
Processed in the order received. The state does not publish or guarantee a turnaround time
Mail both ways
Several days each direction, or shorter with a prepaid courier air bill
Working to a deadline? Say so when you call. Timelines can often be shortened, but only if we know from the start.
Questions
Before you send anything
Can you issue the apostille yourself?
No, and neither can any other notary. The Florida Secretary of State is the only competent authority permitted to issue apostilles in Florida, through the Division of Corporations in Tallahassee. What we do is notarize your document correctly and, if you want, handle the submission for you.
What does it cost?
The state charges $10 per document, or $20 for documents certified by a Florida Clerk of the Court. Our notarization and optional handling are separate. Call and describe what you need for a full figure up front.
How long does it take?
The state processes requests in the order received and does not publish a guaranteed turnaround. Add mailing time each way. If you have a hard deadline, say so at the start rather than the end — there are usually ways to shorten it.
Can I use a photocopy?
No. The state requires original certified copies, or notarized documents carrying the original notary signature, stamp and seal. Photocopies are rejected without exception.
My document is from another state. Can you help?
Not for the apostille itself — that must go to the competent authority in the state that issued it, and the same applies if it was notarized in another state. Call anyway and we will point you to the right office at no charge.
What about an FBI background check?
Federal documents cannot be apostilled by Florida. Those go to the U.S. Department of State Office of Authentications in Washington, DC. This one trips up a lot of visa applicants.
Do you need to know the destination country?
Yes, and it genuinely matters. Hague Convention countries receive an apostille; non-member countries receive a notarial certificate. The state needs the country declared on the request form to issue the correct one.
Can this be done with online notarization?
Yes. Florida permits remotely notarized documents to be apostilled. That said, some consulates still insist on a wet-ink original — if you have any doubt, ask the receiving party before we start.
Can we do the appointment in Spanish?
Yes. Alcides is a native Spanish speaker from Panama, so the entire appointment can be conducted in Spanish.
Get started
Tell us where it’s going and we’ll take it from there
Bring the original, tell us the destination country, and we will notarize it to the standard the state requires. If Florida is not the right authority for your document, we will tell you that too — before you spend anything.
(904) 701-7154 · andradenotaryonline@gmail.com
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