A Power of Attorney (POA) is a highly powerful instrument that contains all of the required legal information for one or more parties or owners about real estate.
Most individuals use power of attorney to avoid having to deal with all of the legalities by appointing someone to act as their attorney-in-fact and make all of the financial choices specified in the POA on their behalf. When you need to revise/change/implement any legal judgments under a POA in another nation, however, the going gets tricky. You'll need an Apostille for Power of Attorney in this case.
Getting an Apostille for a Power of Attorney (POA)
By obtaining an Apostille for a power of attorney, you will save the trouble of having to travel with your POA every time you require legalization or verification in a foreign nation. For example, if you're a Mexican national who has to give some of your real estate to your grandchild, you can opt to choose a trusted family member, close friend, colleague, or other person to act as your Power of Attorney to modify the deed while you're still in the United States.
To Apostille a Power of Attorney (POA), the document must first be notarized at a local notary office, a service that American Apostille & Notary Services can provide if you decide to outsource the Apostille process to us. The original notarized copy must then be mailed to an Apostille Office Near You for processing. Please keep in mind that not all notaries are deemed legal, so be sure the one you're going to is commissioned and using the correct notarial language for their state.
Another thing to keep in mind is that no Secretary of State can verify documents that have been notarized in other states. Only the state where the original papers were notarized has the authority to authenticate them. If your POA was assigned in California, for example, only the California Secretary of State may validate such documents. All other states are in the same boat. Maryland, New York, Kentucky, Hawaii, and Tennessee are among the states that may require a document to be verified by a County Clerk.
I suggest having your POA created by a professional from the country you're obtaining it in, preferably in all official languages. For example, if the country of Mexico has required a signed and notarized paperwork for Power of Attorney, ensure sure your form is prepared in both Spanish and English by a Mexican attorney or paralegal. This is crucial to remember since many states in the United States will not apostille a document produced in a foreign language. To avoid this, we recommend that your documents be printed in both English and Spanish.
You can then submit the document to our Apostille Office for processing after it has been notarized. Getting an Apostille on a single status affidavit can be a lengthy and difficult procedure. Taking matters into your own hands or putting your confidence in inexperienced, non-professionals might result in your papers being rejected, as well as a loss of money and time. Once the Apostille has been done, only the original signed and notarized POA will be able to obtain it from the state.
To obtain an Apostille for Power of Attorney near you, contact American Apostille & Notary Services. Feel free to email me at jared@apostillellc.com or call 848-467-7740 to request my services or learn more.
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