Texas Apostille
Texas apostilles are issued by the Texas Secretary of State in Austin, the only agency in Texas that can authenticate Texas public records. An apostille certifies the signature and seal of the official who signed your document, so a foreign government will accept it.
Watch: Texas Apostille
Common Texas legal document Apostilles:
Texas Birth Certificate Apostille
Texas Marriage Certificate Apostille
Texas Power of Attorney Apostille
Texas Death Certificate Apostille
Which Texas documents can be apostilled
Texas splits documents into two groups, and each is handled differently.
Official records, issued and certified by a state or county office. These can't be notarized and must have been certified within the last five years:
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Birth and death certificates (order a certified copy and give "Apostille" as the reason)
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Marriage licenses and divorce decrees from the county or district clerk
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Court judgments and probated wills
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Texas background checks
Other documents, notarized by a Texas notary:
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Powers of attorney, affidavits and consent letters
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Copies of passports and driver's licenses, transcripts and diplomas
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Translations, with the translator's signed and notarized statement
What gets Texas documents rejected
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Certified copies five years old or older. Texas will not apostille an official record certified more than five years ago. Order a fresh certified copy.
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"Notario Publico" anywhere on the document. Texas rejects it outright.
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A notary statement beyond the notary's authority, or a notarized copy of an official record.
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Missing attachments. If your document has attachments, the signed statement must list every one, and all of them must be included.
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Online notarizations without the required wording. A remotely notarized document needs the ledger and the certificate language Texas requires.
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Federal documents or documents from other states. FBI checks go to the US Department of State. See our FBI background check apostille page.
How it works with us
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Send us your document, or tell us what you have and we'll tell you what to order.
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We check the certification date, signatures and notarization before filing.
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We file with the Texas Secretary of State.
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You pay after the apostille is complete.
Texas apostille FAQ
My Texas birth certificate is old. Can it still be apostilled?
Only if the certified copy was issued in the last five years. If it's older, order a new certified copy first.
Can a notary certify a copy of my birth certificate instead?
No. Birth certificates are official records in Texas, so they need a certified copy from the issuing office.
My country isn't in the Hague Convention. What then?
You need authentication and embassy legalization instead. See our embassy legalization page.
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