Document authentication Services

What is document authentication?

Document authentication for the intent of using the document overseas is a broad field that requires you to know lots of information in regard to procedures and steps demanded by the country where you intend to use your document.

You should be well aware of many variants before requesting the authentication, such as the specific requirements for the type of your document.

Additionally, Secretaries of State may require various demands to complete the authentication; each variant differs accordingly.

In the beginning, you better know that there are two types of authentications. The first one is legalization by the embassy of the intended country;

Steps and procedures may change according to the embassy, of course, the regular steps for document authentication by the embassy go as follows:

Embassy legalization steps:

• Full Notarial Statement by State Notary Public (some documents mustn’t be notarized.)
• Authentication of the document by Secretary of State.
• Authentication of the document by the U.S. Department of State.
• Finally, the Embassy’s authentication on the document.

Second, attaining the document authentication by obtaining an Apostille seal was created originally to eliminate all the above-mentioned time-consuming procedures for legalization by embassies.

Therefore, Sum of countries agreed on unifying the form of authenticating the documents by creating single seal as all required to make documents issued in a certain country participating in the agreement, to be usable and recognized to the rest of the taking part countries.

This agreement is called the Hague Convention, which many countries have agreed on; thus making everything easier and faster; Hague Convention participating countries.

There are two steps required to use your document abroad in a Hague Convention participating country; and in some cases, according to the type of document, it could be just one step.

Apostille attestation steps:

• Full notarized document (usually for non-governmental-issued documents only.)
• Apostille seal attestation by the Secretary of State.

Document authenticaiton

Even though apostille simplified lots of procedures, some countries still didn’t accept the Hague Convention. Hence we’ll still need embassy legalization of those countries to make document recognized over there.

Check out countries that don’t take part in the Hague Convention.

Can you use the apostille seal in a country that isn’t in the convention?

No. But you, of course, you can use the document abroad in a non-participating country if fulfilled the required actions by the embassy.

Usually, each embassy has its own terms and conditions.

Agency providing document authentication services?

There’re variant agencies that provide expedited apostille and legalization authentication services across the United States of America.

One Day Apostille provides several apostille and legalization services to ensure that everything is completed for you as fast as possible.

Even if you wish to do all the procedures yourself, we advised you to use our legal courier services, as you can benefit from using FedEx and UPS overnight shipping services at the lowest rates in the United States.

For example, the regular rate of using FedEx overnight services is $14; however, if you used One Day apostille courier services, the service will cost you only $10.

Additionally, you can benefit from a totally free of charge review of your legal document; specialists in the document legalization services will advise you what you need exactly to certify your legal document to prevent any rejection from the embassy in case of missing any requirement.

No one refuses a free service. You can contact us to review your legal document via this email address: support@onedayapostille.com.

Chinese embassy document authentication

China embassy authentication services

China is considered as a non-participating country in the Hague Convention. Thus, to use your documents over there, you will need to follow some legal procedures placed by China embassy to use your documents in their country, whether personal or corporate documents the instructions are the same.

Bear on mind that Hong Kong and Macao accepted the Hague Convention.

Therefore, if you are travelling to one of those cities, you will only need the apostille seal to use your document.

 This article will cover the following questions:

• What are the required steps to use your documents in China?
• Does China Embassy have different instructions for each state?
• What is the type of documents could be legalised by China Embassy?
• Are there any expedited services provided?

So, first of all, what are the steps required to use your documents in China?

1. Have your document notarized by a State notary public unless its original governmental document issued from Federal /State/ Local office.
2. The documents must be authenticated from Secretary of the State where it was issued from.– Some states may require certifying the document from County Clerk first.

Such as Alabama, Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Tennessee and New York.

3. Authentication of the US Department of State is required in some states

Such as Washington DC, Delaware, Idaho, Kentucky, Maryland, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming.

Besides, all FBI reports must be authenticated from the US Department of State.

4. Finally, Authenticate your document from the Chinese Embassy or Consulate.

Authentication is required by the Chinese Embassy/Consulate that holds consular jurisdiction over the state where the document is certified.

Individuals provide one passport/driver license copy of the applicant; for corporate documents, please provide a cover letter and one passport/ driver license copy of the company’s legal representative.

Does China Embassy have different instructions for each state?

Yes. As we mentioned above, requirements differ slightly according to the state.

The difference is in two steps:

• States Such as Alabama, Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Tennessee and New York require a counter clerk’s signature.
• States Such as Washington DC, Delaware, Idaho, Kentucky, Maryland, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming Required authentication from US Department of State.

What is the type of documents could be legalized by China Embassy?

• Extracts from the commercial register
• Certificates of civil status (certificates of birth, death, marriage and divorce)
• Education documents (school reports, certificates, diplomas)
• Court decisions
• Notary certified copies of documents.
• Notary certified translations
• Further notarial documents (authorizations, last will, declarations)

Single affidavits/certificates intended to be used for marriage registration in China, and certain adoption documents regarding marital status, health status, or criminal records are only valid for six months from the issuance date. The Embassy / Consulate-Generals will NOT authenticate a document if it becomes invalid.

Are there any expedited services provided?

One Day Apostille provides expedited services with nominal additional fees to legalize your document to use them in China.

We offer competitive pricing and discounts for regular high-volume customers.

By using our expedited service, it takes 11 business days to process your documents.

Expedited service fees:

$100.00 service fee + $50.00 embassy fee + $23.00 government fees= Total of $173.00

You can order now by visiting our order page.

For more information, you may contact our customer service department Tel: (410) 349-1212.

Requirements to obtain the Apostille Seal

Secretaries of State requirements to obtain the apostille Seal.

Apostille SOS

Know more about Secretaries of State requirements to obtain the apostille seal

Requirements for obtaining the apostille may vary slightly from one state to another; however, the essential requirements are the same.

After the Hague Convention apostille treaty, many countries agreed on unifying the authentication of documents in order to be used and recognized abroad, that’s why the demanded requirements by Secretaries of State are mostly Unified.

You can have more understanding of the apostille stamp, how and when it was created: what is the apostille stamp.

As you probably realize, there’s a big difference between apostille and legalization, we will not cover the entire story here, but we’ll give you a quick glimpse.

Previously, each country was having its own requirements in order to be able to use your document over there, which created a lot of complexity of course due to many steps and procedures involved in the process.

On the other hand, Apostille -as we mentioned before- is a unified form of authentication that many countries agreed on. Obviously, apostille attestation is much easier and saves a lot of time and money.

Know more about the difference between Apostille and legalization.

How to obtain the Apostille Seal?

apostille SOS Requirement

In a nutshell, here are the essential requirements by Secretaries of State to obtain the Apostille Seal:

• Notarized document (if required depending on the type of document).
• A cover L contains; your name, address, name of the country where you wish to use your documents, and an email address.
• A self-addressed envelope for the return & a prepaid airbill if you wish to use express mail.
• A check or money order payable to the Secretary of State.

It’s worth mentioning that some secretaries of state require a signature from the clerk’s county where the document was issued before authenticating the Apostille on your documents.

Such as Alabama, Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Tennessee, and New York.

According to your State, you may submit your Apostille request via mail or in-person, some Secretaries of State provides fax services as well.

How to get One Day Apostille to complete the authentication for you?

Well, first of all, One Day apostille offers totally free of charge review services for your documentations, just upload a PDF copy of your document, and our specialist will advise you if you’re having any missing steps.

Contact the support team: Support@onedayapostille.com

Additionally, you can use our FedEx services at the lowest rates in the business for only $10 instead of $14 regular prices.

Or you can just leave the whole process for us, we will complete the whole process for you in the shortest time possible. One Day Apostille provides expedited apostille and legalization services with the lowest rates in the business.

If you need any extra help in regards to document authentication don’t hesitate to contact us at: (410)349-1212.