What Is the Hague Apostille Convention?

The Hague Apostille Convention — formally known as the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents — is an international treaty established in 1961. Its purpose is to simplify the process of authenticating public documents for use across international borders.

Before the Convention, getting a document accepted in a foreign country required a lengthy, multi-step process called embassy legalization. Each document had to be authenticated by multiple government agencies and then verified by the foreign embassy or consulate. The Hague Convention replaced this complex procedure with a single, standardized certificate: the apostille.

When a country is a member of the Hague Convention, it agrees to accept apostilled documents from all other member countries without any further authentication. This means a federal apostille issued by the U.S. Department of State is directly accepted by governments, courts, universities, employers, and institutions in all 120+ member countries listed below.

Federal Apostille and Notary Processing handles the entire apostille process for U.S. federal documents at $120 per document. We submit your documents directly to the U.S. Department of State from our office at 400 8th St NW, Washington, DC 20004.

Hague Convention Member Countries by Region

The following countries are members of the Hague Apostille Convention and accept federal apostilles issued by the U.S. Department of State. Countries are organized by geographic region for easy reference.

Notable Countries NOT in the Hague Convention

The following major countries are not members of the Hague Apostille Convention. Documents destined for these countries cannot be apostilled and instead require embassy legalization — a separate, multi-step authentication process through the U.S. Department of State and the relevant foreign embassy or consulate.

• Bangladesh
• Canada
• China
• Egypt
• Ethiopia
• Ghana
• Indonesia
• Iraq
• Kenya
• Kuwait
• Malaysia
• Nigeria
• Pakistan
• Qatar
• Saudi Arabia
• Singapore
• Taiwan
• Thailand
• United Arab Emirates
• Vietnam

If your destination country is on this list, Federal Apostille and Notary Processing can still help. We offer embassy legalization services for non-Hague countries. The process typically involves Department of State authentication followed by processing at the appropriate foreign embassy in Washington, D.C. Contact us to discuss your requirements.

Federal Documents We Apostille

The following U.S. federal documents are commonly apostilled for use in Hague Convention countries. Every document type listed below is processed at our flat rate of $120 per document.

Federal Document	Issuing Agency	Common International Use Cases
FBI Background Check	Federal Bureau of Investigation	Immigration, visa applications, residency permits, employment abroad, adoption
Certificate of Naturalization (N-550/N-570)	USCIS	Dual citizenship, Italian jure sanguinis, proof of citizenship abroad
Federal Court Documents	U.S. Federal Courts	Name changes, judgments, court orders for foreign legal proceedings
Military Records (DD-214)	U.S. Department of Defense	Veterans benefits abroad, employment, residency applications
Social Security Letters	Social Security Administration	Proof of benefits, income verification, pension claims abroad
USPTO Patent & Trademark Records	U.S. Patent and Trademark Office	International IP filings, foreign litigation, licensing agreements
IRS Tax Returns & Transcripts	Internal Revenue Service	Foreign mortgages, residency applications, business registration abroad
Consular Report of Birth Abroad (FS-240)	U.S. Department of State	Proof of citizenship, marriage abroad, school enrollment, residency

How to Get Your Federal Documents Apostilled

Our process is straightforward. We handle every step between you and the U.S. Department of State.

1. Submit Your Federal Documents Upload online through our application form, mail to 400 8th St NW, Washington, DC 20004, or bring in person. Call (760) 469-2997 or email submissions@federalapostille.org. Available 24/7.
2. We Review & Prepare Your Documents Our team verifies that each federal document meets Department of State requirements — proper seals, authorized signatures, and original documents (not copies). We confirm the destination country is a Hague Convention member.
3. We Submit to the U.S. Department of State We prepare and submit your documents to the Office of Authentications in Washington, D.C. Our nearby office allows us to coordinate directly with the Department of State.
4. You Receive Your Apostilled Documents The Department of State attaches the apostille certificate to your document. We return the completed, authenticated document to you — ready for use in any Hague Convention country worldwide.

Our Full Range of Services

Service	Description
Federal Apostille	Apostille processing for all U.S. federal documents through the Department of State — $120 per document. Accepted in 120+ Hague Convention countries.
Embassy Legalization	Full-service authentication and legalization for non-Hague countries (China, Canada, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, etc.). Multi-step process through the Department of State and the relevant foreign embassy.
Notary Public	Professional notary services for documents requiring notarization before apostille (e.g., tax returns, affidavits, powers of attorney).
Certified / Sworn Translation	Certified translations for countries requiring documents in their official language. Available for all major languages.