US Documents for Use in Guatemala: Apostille, Not Legalization

Corrected October 2026. Guatemala has been a member of the Hague Apostille Convention since September 18, 2017. An earlier version of this page said otherwise, and that was wrong. US documents going to Guatemala need an apostille, which is a single certificate attached by the US authority that oversees the document. No embassy or consulate legalization is needed.

Which office issues the apostille?

It depends on who issued the document. State-issued documents, such as birth, marriage and death certificates, divorce decrees, court records and notarized documents like powers of attorney, are apostilled by the Secretary of State (or equivalent office) of the state that issued them. Federal documents, such as FBI background checks and documents signed by federal officials, are apostilled by the US Department of State in Washington, D.C.

What if I was told I need embassy legalization?

That instruction is out of date for US documents. Confirm with whoever is requesting the document that an apostille is what they need, then send it to us. We'll check that the document is eligible before filing and return it to you by FedEx Priority, with shipping included. You pay after the apostille is complete.

Email jared@apostillellc.com or call or WhatsApp +1-848-467-7740.

Related services: birth certificate apostilles, FBI background check apostilles and every document and state we handle.