State Authentication Authorities Alabama
Office of the Secretary of State
Authentication Section
State Capitol, Room E-204
600 Dexter Ave.
Montgomery, AL 36104
334-242-7210
http://www.sos.state.al.us/authenticate/index.htm
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State Alaska
Notary Administrator
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
P.O. Box 110015
Juneau, AK 99811- 0015
907-465-3509
http://www.gov.state.ak.us/ltgov/notary/authentications.htm
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Lieutenant Governor; Attorney General; Clerk of the Supreme Court Arizona
Office of the Secretary of State
Business Services Division, Notary Section
1700 W. Washington, 7th Floor
Phoenix, AZ 85007-2888
602 542-4086/ 602 542-4758
http://www.sosaz.com/notary
Fee: $3.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State. Arkansas
Office of Secretary of State
Corporations Division
State Capitol
Little Rock, AR 72201-1094
501-682-3409
http://www.sosweb.state.ar.us/business.html
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Chief Deputy Secretary of State. California
Office of the Secretary of State
Business Programs Division
Notary Public Section
P.O. Box 942877
Sacramento, CA 94277-0001
916-653-3595
http://www.ss.ca.gov/business/notary/notary.htm
Fee: $20.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; any Assistant Secretary of State; any Deputy Secretary of State. Colorado
Office of Secretary of State
1560 Broadway, Suite 200
Denver, CO 80202
303-894-2680
http://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/info_center/2001fees.htm
Fee: By Mail: $2.00 While You Wait: $17.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State. Connecticut
Office of the Secretary of State
Authentication Unit
30 Trinity St.
Hartford, CT 06106
860-509-6135
http://www.sots.state.ct.us/recordslegislativeservices/authen.html#orders
Fee: $20.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State. Delaware
Office of Secretary of State
Notary Division
401 Federal St., Suite 3
Dover, DE 19901
302- 302/739-4111
http://www.state.de.us/sos/sos.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Acting Secretary of State. District of Columbia
Office of the Secretary, D.C.
Notary Commissions & Authentications Section
441 4th St. N.W. (One Judiciary Square)
Washington, D.C.
202-727-3117
http://os.dc.gov/info/notary/notary.shtm#document
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Executive Secretary; Assistant Executive Secretary; Mayor's Special Assistant and Assistant to the Executive Secretary; Secretary of the District of Columbia. Florida
Department of State
Office of International Affairs
Notary Certification/Apostille Section
The Capitol Building
Suite 1902
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0250
804-488-7521
http://notaries.dos.state.fl.us/notproc7.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State Georgia
Georgia Superior Court Clerks' Cooperative Authority
Notary Division
1875 Century Boulevard, Suite 100
Atlanta, GA 30345
404-327-6023
http://www2.gsccca.org/projects/apost.html or Office of Secretary of State
Administrative Procedures Unit
2 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive
Suite 820 - West Tower
Atlanta, Georgia 30334
404-656-2885
http://www.sos.state.ga.us/administration/notary.htm
Fee: $3.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Georgia Superior Court Clerks' Cooperative Authority. Hawaii
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
State Capitol, 5th Floor,
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813
808-586-0255
http://www.state.hi.us/ltgov/page8.html
Fee: $1.00
Designated Authority: Lieutenant Governor of the State of Hawaii. Idaho
Office of Secretary of State
Notary Department
Box 83720
Boise, ID 83720
208- 332-2810
http://www.idsos.state.id.us/notary/apostill.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Chief Deputy Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State; Notary Public Clerk. Illinois
Office of the Secretary of State
Index Department, Notaries Public Division
111 E. Monroe St.
Springfield, IL 62756
217- 217-782-7017
http://www.sos.state.il.us/departments/index/division.html
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State. Indiana
Office of Secretary of State
Statehouse
Suite 201
Indianapolis, IN 46204
317-232-6532
http://www.in.gov/sos/notary/seal.html
Fee: no charge
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State Iowa
Office of Secretary of State
Lucas Building
First Floor, Public Service
Des Moines, IA 50319
515-281-5204
http://www.sos.state.ia.us
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State Kansas
Office of Secretary of State
State Capitol
Second Floor
Topeka, KS 66612
913-296-2744
http://www.kssos.org
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State; any Deputy Assistant Secretary of State. Kentucky
Office of Secretary of State
Capitol Building
P.O. Box 718
Frankfort, KY 40602-0178
502-564-7330
Fee: $5.00
http://www.kysos.com
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State. Louisiana
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 94125
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9125
504-342-4981
Fee: $5.00
http://www.sec.state.la.us/comm/comm-index.htm
Designated Authority: Secretary of State. Maine
Office of Secretary of State
Bureau of Corporations
Elections and Commissions
101 State House Station
Augusta, ME 04333-0101
207-624-7650
http://www.state.me.us/sos/cec/rcn/notary/authapos.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State. Maryland
Office of Secretary of State
Statehouse
Annapolis, MD 21401
410-974-5520
http://www.sos.state.md.us/sos/certif/html/certif2c.html#apos
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State. Massachusetts
Secretary of the Commonwealth
Public Records Division
Commissions Section
McCormack Building, Room 1719
One Ashburton Place
Boston, MA 02108
617-727-2832
http://www.state.ma.us/sec/pre/precom/comidx.htm
Fee: $3.00 Michigan
Department of State
Office of the Great Seal
7064 Crowner Boulevard
Lansing, MI 48918
517-373-2531
http://www.michigan.gov/sos/1,1607,7-127-1638_8734---,00.html
Fee: $1.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State. Minnesota
Secretary of State's Office
180 State Office Bldg.
St. Paul, MN 55155
651-296-2803
http://www.sos.state.mn.us/uccd/authinfo.html
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State. Mississippi
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 136
Jackson, MS 39205-0136
601-359-1615
http://www.sos.state.ms.us/busserv/notaries/notaries.html
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; any Assistant Secretary of State. Missouri
Office of Secretary of State
Commission Division
600 West Main, Room 367
Jefferson City, MO 65102
573-751-2783
http://www.sos.state.mo.us/business/commissions/certify.asp
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State. Montana
Office of the Secretary of State
Notary/Certification Division
State Capitol Rm 260
PO Box 202801
Helena MT 59620-2801
UPS-FedEx-DHL- etc. address: 1236 E 6th Ave Helena MT 59620
406-444-1877 (Tuesdays - Thursdays only)
http://sos.state.mt.us/css/Notary/Certifications.asp
email: sosnotary@state.mt.us
Fee: $10.00 per document
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Any Deputy Secretary of State Nebraska
Office of Secretary of State
Notary Division
Box 95104
State Capitol
Lincoln, NE 68509
402-471-2558
http://www.sos.state.ne.us/Notary/notauth.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State. Nevada
Secretary of State
101 N. Carson Street, #3
Carson City, NV 89701-4786
775-684-5708
http://sos.state.nv.us/notary/apostille.htm
Fee: $20.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Chief Deputy Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State. New Hampshire
Office of Secretary of State
Statehouse
Room 204
Concord, NH 03301
603-271-3242
http://www.state.nh.us/sos/certific.htm
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State New Jersey
Department of State
Notary Public Unit
Division of Commercial Recording
PO Box 452
Trenton, NJ 08625
609-530-6421
http://www.state.nj.us/treasury/revenue/dcr/programs/notary.html
Fee: Regular Service: $25.00 Expedited Service: $35.00
Designated Authority: NJ Department of the Treasury, Division of Revenue New Mexico
Office of the Secretary of State
State Capitol North Annex, Suite 300
Santa Fe, NM 87503
505-827-3600
http://www.sos.state.nm.us/notary-cert.htm
Fee: $3.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State New York - Upstate Counties
Miscellaneous Records
162 Washington Ave.
Albany, NY 12231
518-474-4770
http://www.dos.state.ny.us
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Executive Deputy Secretary of State; any Deputy Secretary of State; any Special Deputy Secretary of State. - Down State Counties
New York authorities in Albany advise that documents issued in the nine down state counties are authenticated under the Convention by the New York City office. The nine down state counties are New York, Kings, Queens, Bronx, Westchester, Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland and Richmond. The address of the New York Department of State, Certification Unit is 6th Floor, 270 Broadway, New York, New York 10007, tel: 212-417-5684. Fee: $10.00 North Carolina
Office of Secretary of State
Authentication Division
PO Box 29622
Raleigh, NC 27626-0622
919-807-2140
http://www.secretary.state.nc.us/authen
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State North Dakota
Office of Secretary of State
Capitol Building
600 E Boulevard Ave., Dept 108
Bismarck, ND 58505
701-328-2900
http://www.state.nd.us/sec
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State. Ohio
Office of the Secretary of State
30 East Broad St.
15th Fl.
Columbus, OH 43266-0418
877-767-6446
http://www.state.oh.us/sos/authentication_of_documents_stat.htm
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State. Oklahoma
Office of Secretary of State
2300 N. Lincoln
Room 101
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
405-521-4211
http://www.sos.state.ok.us
Fee: $25.00 (cashiers check or money order)
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State; Budget Officer of the Secretary of State. Oregon
Office of Secretary of State
255 Capitol St.
Suite 151
Salem OR 97310
503-986-2200.
http://www.filinginoregon.com/notary/index.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State; Acting Secretary of State; Assistant to the Secretary of State. Pennsylvania
Department of State
Bureau of Commissions
Elections and Legislation
North Office Building
Room 210
Harrisburg, PA 17120
717-787-5280
http://www.dos.state.pa.us/bcel/certifications/certifications.html
Fee: $15.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of the Commonwealth; Executive Deputy Secretary of the Commonwealth. Rhode Island
Office of Secretary of State
Notary Division
100 N. Main St.
Providence, RI 02903
401-277-1487
http://www.corps.state.ri.us/notaries/notaries.htm
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; First Deputy Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State South Carolina
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 11350
Columbia, SC 29211
803-734-2119
http://www.scsos.com/notariesbc.htm
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State South Dakota
Office of Secretary of State
500 East Capitol
Pierre, SD 57501-5077
605-773-5004
http://www.state.sd.us/sos/Notaries/apostilles_and_authentications.htm
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State Tennessee
Office of Secretary of State
James K. Polk Building
Division of Business Services
312 Eighth Avenue North
6th Floor, William R. Snodgrass Tower
Nashville, TN 37243
615-741-3699
http://www.state.tn.us/sos/service.htm#apostilles
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State. Texas
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 12079
Austin, TX 78711
512-463-5705
http://txsos-7.sos.state.tx.us/authfaqs.shtml
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State Utah
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
210 State Capitol
Salt Lake City, UT 84145-8414
801-538-1040
http://governor.state.ut.us/lt_gover/internationaltemplate.html
Fee: Certifying Notary's Seal: $10.00 Apostille: $5.00
Designated Authority: Lieutenant Governor; Deputy Lieutenant Governor; Administrative Assistant. Vermont
Office of Secretary of State
109 State St.
Montpelier, VT 05609-1103
802-828-2308
http://www.sec.state.vt.us
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State. Virginia
Office of Secretary of Commonwealth
Authentications Division
830 East Main Street, 14th Floor
Richmond, VA 23219
804-786-2441
http://www.soc.state.va.us
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of the Commonwealth; Chief Clerk, Office of the Secretary of Commonwealth. Washington
Office of the Secretary of State
Corporations Division
Apostille and Certificate Program
PO Box 40228
Olympia, WA 98504-0228
360-586-2268
http://www.secstate.wa.gov/apostilles
Fee: $15.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State; Director, Department of Licensing. West Virginia
Office of Secretary of State
Capitol Building
1900 Kanawha Blvd. East
No. 157-K
Charleston, WV 25305-0770
304-558-6000
http://www.wvsos.com/execrecords/other/authentication.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Under Secretary of State; any Deputy Secretary of State. Wisconsin
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 7848
Madison, WI 53707-7848
608-266-3159
http://badger.state.wi.us/agencies/sos/authen.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State. Wyoming
Office of Secretary of State
The Capitol
Cheyenne, WY 82002-0020
307-777-5342
http://soswy.state.wy.us/authenti/authenti.htm
Fee: $3.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State. American Samoa
Office of the Governor
Pago Pago, AS 96799
011-684-633-4116
http://www.amsamoa.com
Designated Authority: Secretary of American Samoa; Attorney General of American Samoa. Guam (Territory of)
Office of the Governor
P.O. Box 2950
Agana, GU 96910
011-671-472-1537
http://www.admin.gov.gu/doa
Designated Authority: Department of Administration Northern Mariana Islands (Commonwealth of the)
Designated Authority: Attorney General; Acting Attorney General; Clerk of the Court, Commonwealth Trial Court; Deputy Clerk, Commonwealth Trial Court
http://www.saipan.com/gov Puerto Rico (Commonwealth of)
Supreme Court of Puerto Rico
Office of Notarial Inspection
P.O. Box 190860
San Juan, PR 00919-0860
787-763-8816
http://www.lexjuris.com/lexnotaria.htm
Designated Authority: Supreme Court of Puerto Rico U.S. Virgin Islands
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
7 & 8 King St.
Christiansted, St. Croix, USVI 00802
340-774-2991
http://www.ltg.gov.vi/Departments/Administration/index.html
No authority designated: refer requests to the U.S. Department of State, Authentications Office, 2400 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20520. 202-647-5002 Authentication of Foreign Documents for Use in U.S.: In countries party to the Hague Legalization Convention, foreign documents are authenticated by the foreign competent authority listed in our separate information flyer on the Convention. See "Additional Information" below. In non-Hague countries, documents can be authenticated by a consular officer at the U.S. embassy or consulate. Effective June 1, 2002, the consular fee for authentication is $30.00 per seal. See Federal Register, May 16, 2002, Volume 67, Number 95, Rules and Regulations, Page 34831-34838; 22 CFR 22.1; Item No. 41. Hours for authentication services may vary from one U.S. embassy to another. Contact the U.S. embassy or consulate directly for more information. See our Consular Information Sheets via our home page on the Internet or our automated fax system for the addresses, phone numbers and fax numbers for U.S. embassies and consulates abroad.
Selected Bibliography: Addendum (Section 4, paragraphs 304.1-304.7) to Guide to Judiciary Policies and Procedures (Vol. IV, Ch. 3), by Administrative Office of the United States Courts. Amram, Toward Easier Legalization of Foreign Public Documents, 60 A.B.A.J. 310 (1974). Basic Documents of International Economic Law, II, 845-854 (S. Zamora & R.A. Brand eds. 1990). Clerks Manual, United States District Courts, Vol I, Section 17.06- (Hague Convention) Apostilles. Corr, Authentication of Foreign Conveyances of Connecticut Real Property, Connecticut Attorneys Title Insurance Company, (1986). Cumulative Digest of United States Practice in International Law, 1981-1988, Department of State, Office of the Legal Adviser, Vol. II, 1548, 1555 (1994). Digest of United States Practice in International Law, Department of State, Office of the Legal Adviser, 1975, 255. Digest of United States Practice in International Law, Department of State, Office of the Legal Adviser, 1976, 780, 781. Digest of United States Practice in International Law, Department of State, Office of the Legal Adviser, 1977, 146, 149. Digest of United States Practice in International Law, Department of State, Office of the Legal Adviser, 1978, 397-398, 400-401. Digest of United States Practice in International Law, Department of State, Office of the Legal Adviser, 1979, 888-891. Epstein & Snyder, International Litigation: A Guide to Jurisdiction, Practice and Strategy, 2d ed., Prentice Hall Law & Business, Section 9.07, p. 9-16 - 9-20; Appendix 9 and Appendix 10, app-119 - app-124 (1994 supp.). Golding, Foreign Public Documents Proof/Authentication, 6 Estate Planning, Trust and Probate News 21 (No. 1, Spring 1984). Griew, Hague Draft Convention on the Legalisation of Foreign Public Documents and the Form of Wills, 8 Int'l & Comp. L.Q. 559 (1959). Hackworth, Digest of International Law, Department of State, Office of the Legal Adviser, Vol. IV, p. 847-850, 854. Harvey, The United States and the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents, 11 Harv. Int'l. L.J. 476 (1970). Hergen, How to Practice Family Law in Europe When You're Not European, Family Advocate, Vol. 3, No. 4, p. 25-27, 41-44, Spring, 1981. Note, Authentication: Proving Your Powers, The National Notary, p. 24, January 1990. Note, Patent and Trademark Review 39, January l982. Report of the Committee on the International Unification of Private Law, with Action by the ABA Section of International Law and the House of Delegates, 9 Int'l Law. 755 (1975). Note, The Time-Saving "Apostille", The National Notary, p. 25, January 1990. Note, Untangling the Red Tape of Authentication, The National Notary, p. 34-35, January/February 1981. Opinion of John K. van de Kamp, Attorney General of the State of California, 71 Ops. Cal. Atty. Gen. 362 (1989); California Attorney General's Opinion No. 88-802, January 5, 1989, 89 Daily Journal D.A.R. 148 (recordability of an apostille in the French language). Opinion of George Deukmejian, Attorney General of the State of California, on the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents, 65 Ops. Cal. Atty. Gen. 205 (1982); 21 Int'l. Leg. Mat. 357 (1982); California Attorney General's Opinion No. 81-1213, March 19, 1982 (Convention supersedes state law). Pedowitz, New Procedures for Authentication of Foreign Documents, ABA, Probate and Property, Vol. 10, No. 5, p. 9-10, Spring 1982. Pfund, P.H., Chapter, "Legalization of Documents for Use Abroad" in The International Lawyer's Deskbook, edited by Lowe, Norton and Drory, ABA (Section of International Law and Practice) 1996, ISBN 1-57073-166-7. Ristau, Ch. XII, Authenticating Foreign Official Documents, Transnational Commercial and Trade Litigation: Recent Developments, ALI-ABA Course Stury Materials, p. 245-260, November 20-22, 1986. Ristau, International Judicial Assistance (Civil and Commercial), Vol. 1, International Law Institute, Washington, D.C., Sec. 6-1-1 - 6/1/3, pp. 241-254 (1995 supp.). Sinnott, A Practical Guide to Document Authentication: Legalization of Notarized and Certified Documents, N.Y., London, Rome, Oceana Publications, Inc., 1984. Whiteman, Digest of International Law, Department of State, Office of the Legal Adviser, Vol. 7, p. 519-520, 597-605 (1970). Additional Information: The Office of American Citizens Services has available general information flyers on international judicial assistance many of which are available through our automated fax system or via our Internet Consular Affairs Home Page. These topics include country-specific information about service of process and obtaining evidence abroad. Using the Internet: Many of our judicial assistance flyers are also available on the Internet via the Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs home page under Judicial Assistance. See also, the Authentication Office section of the Department of State home page for information. See also the home pages for many of our embassies which are linked to the Consular Affairs home page. As noted above, the text of the Convention and updated information concerning countries which have acceded to the Convention can be found in the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory, Law Digest Volume. See the Martindale-Hubbell home page on the Internet. Treaty Databases on the Internet: United Nations (UN): Databases/Treaties Council of Europe (COE) under Texts/Treaties Organization of American States (OAS): under Documents/Treaties and Conventions. Questions: General questions may be addressed to the Office of American Citizens Services at 202-647-5226. Return to the Judicial Assistance Page | 
