What do these terms & conditions cover?

These terms & conditions are the agreement between you and Federal Apostille. They govern every order you place with us: what we do, what you must supply, our flat price of $120 per apostille, all-inclusive, how refunds work, what we can and cannot promise about turnaround, and how we handle your documents and data. Placing an order means you accept them.

Read them before you send us anything. The sections that cause the most friction later are document accuracy (section 6), turnaround (section 5) and refunds (section 4) — those are the ones worth your attention.

We are a document-processing service, not a law firm, and not a government agency. We prepare and file authentication requests on your behalf. We do not decide whether an apostille is issued, and we cannot guarantee that a foreign authority, consulate, university or employer will accept the finished document. Those decisions belong to the issuing agency and the receiving party.

1) Who we are and what we do

Federal Apostille prepares, files and tracks apostille and authentication requests for documents that will be used outside the United States. We operate on two distinct tracks, because U.S. apostille authority is split:

• Federal documents. Records issued by federal agencies — FBI Identity History Summaries, IRS letters, federal court documents, USDA and FDA certificates, records signed by a U.S. federal official — are authenticated by the U.S. Department of State, Office of Authentications, on form DS-4194 (revision 01-2023). The form states its own scope: it is used to request authentication and/or apostille certificates under the seal of the Department of State for documents used for legal and administrative purposes abroad.
• State documents. Birth and death certificates, marriage records, divorce decrees, corporate filings, diplomas and notarised affidavits are apostilled by the Secretary of State of the state that issued or notarised them. The National Association of Secretaries of State is explicit on this: you must go to the state that issued the document. A California birth certificate cannot be apostilled in Texas, no matter where you live now.

An apostille is the certificate created by the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention — HCCH Convention #12. It replaces consular legalisation between Contracting Parties. If your destination country is not a Contracting Party, the document needs embassy or consulate legalisation instead, which is a different and longer chain. We tell you which track applies before you pay.

2) Who may use this service, and in good faith

You may use Federal Apostille if you are at least 18, legally able to enter a contract, and either the owner of the documents or a person authorised to act for the owner — an attorney, a corporate officer, a named agent, a parent or legal guardian.

Every order carries an implied representation: the documents are genuine, unaltered, and being authenticated for a lawful purpose. This is not boilerplate. Under 22 CFR 131.2, the Department of State will not certify a document when it has good reason to believe the certification is desired for an unlawful or improper purpose. DS-4194 also carries the standard federal warning that false statements knowingly and willfully made in the application are punishable by fine and/or imprisonment, including under 18 U.S.C. 1001.

We refuse orders where we see altered seals, doctored dates, mismatched names with no supporting explanation, or a stated purpose that looks like document fraud. We do not adjudicate; we simply decline and return the paperwork.

3) How do orders, pricing and payment work?

Our price is $120 per apostille, all-inclusive. That is the whole number. There is no separate government-fee surcharge, no per-page add-on, and no handling fee bolted on at checkout. Agency filing fees are covered inside our flat price.

What counts as “one apostille”

One apostille means one certificate attached to one document by one competent authority. A few practical consequences:

• Three separate documents that each need their own certificate are three units, even if they travel in one envelope.
• A multi-page document that the agency treats as a single instrument — a bound court transcript, a stapled and notarised contract — normally receives one certificate and is one unit.
• Two copies of the same birth certificate are two units, because each physical copy receives its own certificate.

Where a document requires a preliminary step before the apostille — a county clerk certifying a notary’s commission, a state registrar certifying a vital record, a federal agency exemplifying a court record — we tell you at intake whether that step is inside your quote or is a separate item you must obtain.

Payment and authorisation

Payment is due when you place the order, before we file. We accept the card and electronic payment methods shown at checkout. Submitting payment authorises us to act as your agent for the limited purpose of filing your authentication request and receiving the returned document. Chargebacks filed while an order is in active processing do not stop the government filing, which is already in motion, and we will respond to the issuing bank with the order record and delivery evidence.

4) What is the refund policy?

Refunds turn on one question: how far has your order travelled? Our work has real cost at each stage, and a government filing cannot be recalled once it has been lodged.

The controlling document is our published Refund & Cancellation Policy. Where that policy and this summary differ, the policy governs. If you believe an outcome was our fault rather than yours, tell us and send the agency’s rejection notice — we read it and we fix what is ours.

5) How long does processing take, and what if it is late?

We commit to our own handling: reviewing your documents, preparing the filing, getting it to the right counter or into the right mail stream, and returning it to you with tracking. We do not commit to government processing speed, because we do not control it.

The only federal figure we will state as a hard number is the one the Department of State publishes for in-person service. The Office of Authentications accepts document drop-offs between 8:00 and 9:00 AM, Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays, and documents accepted in that window are processed and returned within one to three business days, with a receipt and a stated pick-up date issued at intake. Everything else varies.

Any date we give for a government stage is an estimate, not a deadline, and does not create a guarantee. Agency backlogs, government shutdowns, federal and state holidays, courier disruption and consular closures all move the date. If your deadline is immovable, tell us at intake so we can route the order through the fastest channel available and tell you honestly whether it is achievable.

6) What are you responsible for?

Most delays we see are document defects that existed before the order reached us. You are responsible for the following, and getting them right saves you weeks.

At-a-glance checklist before you ship

• Name the destination country. The apostille or the authentication chain depends on it. A missing or wrong country is the single most common intake problem.
• Send the right physical item. Certified copies where certified copies are required; originals where originals are required; never a home-printed photocopy of a vital record.
• Check the notary block. Signature, printed name, commission expiry date, legible seal, correct venue (county and state), correct acknowledgement or jurat wording.
• Confirm the issuing state. The apostille must come from the state that issued the document, not the state where you live.
• Check recency limits. Some receiving authorities refuse vital records or background checks older than a set period. Verify that with the party asking for the document, not with us.
• Verify name consistency. The name on the document should match the name on your passport or visa file, or you should be ready to explain the difference with a supporting record.
• Flag translation requirements. Tell us if the receiving country requires a translation and whether the translation itself must be notarised and apostilled.
• Keep a scan. Photograph or scan everything before you ship it.

You warrant that the information you give us is accurate and complete. We act on what you tell us. If you name the wrong destination country, send a document from the wrong state, or omit a prerequisite you were asked for, the resulting rejection and re-filing are your cost, not ours. Court-issued records in particular carry their own certification chain — our page on divorce decree apostille requirements shows what a clerk-certified copy has to look like before a Secretary of State will touch it.

7) Common reasons an apostille request is rejected

These are the failures we intercept most often. Knowing them is worth more than any turnaround promise.

• Wrong competent authority. A state document sent to the Department of State, or a federal document sent to a Secretary of State. Both get returned unprocessed.
• Photocopy instead of a certified copy. A plain copy of a birth certificate has no certifying official to authenticate. The chain has nothing to attach to.
• Expired notary commission. The notary’s commission must have been valid on the date of the notarial act. An expired or soon-expiring commission kills the filing.
• Missing or illegible seal. A smudged embosser or a stamp that fell outside the page edge is a reject.
• Incomplete notarial certificate. Blank venue line, missing date, unsigned, or acknowledgement wording that does not match the act performed.
• Missing intermediate certification. Some states require a county clerk to certify the notary’s commission before the Secretary of State will issue the apostille. Skipping that step returns the whole package.
• Destination country not stated. The apostille names the country of use; the request cannot be completed without it.
• Non-Hague destination. If the country is not a Contracting Party, an apostille is the wrong product entirely and consular legalisation is required.
• Altered documents. Any handwriting added after the seal, whiteout, or a re-typed page voids the instrument.
• Unlawful or improper purpose. Under 22 CFR 131.2, the Department of State may refuse certification outright on this ground.

Our internal review exists to catch these before you pay a government agency’s time. If we spot a defect at intake, we tell you what to fix rather than filing a request we expect to fail.

8) Which route applies to your document?

9) How does the order run, step by step?

1. Accept these terms. You agree to this document at checkout or by signing our intake form. That is the moment the contract forms.
2. Tell us the destination country. We check whether it is a Hague Contracting Party and confirm whether an apostille or consular legalisation applies.
3. Send your documents. Ship originals or certified copies with tracking. Keep a scan for yourself before anything leaves your hands.
4. We review before we file. Seals, commission dates, certification chain, correct authority. Defects are flagged to you, not filed.
5. We file with the competent authority. DS-4194 to the Department of State’s Office of Authentications, or the correct submission to the issuing state’s Secretary of State.
6. The agency issues the apostille. Timing is the agency’s, not ours. We track and update you at each movement.
7. We scan, then ship. You get a digital copy first, then the physical document by tracked courier to the address you gave us.

10) Scans, shipping and how long we keep your records

We scan the completed apostille before dispatch and send you the image, so you have something usable while the original is in transit. A scan is a courtesy record, not a substitute — almost every receiving authority requires the physical certificate with its original seal.

Shipping terms:

• You are responsible for the delivery address you give us. We ship to that address. Correcting an address after dispatch depends entirely on what the carrier allows.
• Risk of loss in transit sits with the carrier. We use tracked services and will open and pursue a carrier claim on your behalf, but we do not underwrite carrier failure.
• Undeliverable or unclaimed packages returned to us are held and re-shipped at your cost.
• Where a named person must collect a document in person — the Department of State requires the retriever’s name to appear on the request form plus U.S. government or state-issued photo ID — we handle that authorisation at intake.

We retain order records, correspondence and scans for the period set out in our privacy documentation, then destroy them on a schedule. We do not keep your physical documents once an order closes; they go back to you. Our handling controls, confidentiality commitments and credentials are set out on our compliance, confidentiality and accreditations page.

11) No legal advice

Nothing on this website, in an email from us, or in a phone call with our staff is legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created by using this service. We explain agency procedure: which authority handles what, what a filing requires, what a rejection notice means, what the usual sequence is.

We do not advise on immigration strategy, whether a foreign employer or ministry will accept your paperwork, the legal effect of a document abroad, tax consequences, or what you should do in a dispute. Requirements differ by country, by institution and by case, and the receiving authority always has the final say. If you need an opinion on your legal position, consult a licensed attorney in the relevant jurisdiction.

12) Privacy, security and acceptable use

The documents we handle are among the most sensitive a person owns: birth records, background checks, court decrees, corporate filings. We collect only what an order requires, restrict internal access to staff who need it, transmit files over encrypted channels, and hand your information to government agencies only to the extent a filing demands it. We do not sell personal information.

Acceptable use runs both ways. You agree not to:

• Submit forged, altered or fraudulently obtained documents.
• Impersonate another person or file on someone’s behalf without authority.
• Use the service to further fraud, identity theft, sanctions evasion or any unlawful scheme.
• Scrape, probe, overload or attempt unauthorised access to our systems.
• Submit another person’s personal data without a lawful basis for doing so.

We may suspend or terminate an order for breach, and we cooperate with lawful requests from government agencies and law enforcement.

13) Disclaimers, liability, indemnity and force majeure

Disclaimers

The service is provided on an as-is basis. We do not warrant that an apostille will be issued, that a foreign authority will accept it, that a stated timeline will be met, or that the website is error-free or uninterrupted. Government agencies change fees, forms, hours and procedures without notice, and treaty status changes as countries accede to the Apostille Convention. Confirm anything time-critical with the issuing agency or at the HCCH status table.

Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, our total liability for any claim arising from an order is limited to the amount you paid us for that order. We are not liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages — including missed visa appointments, lost employment offers, delayed property closings, missed court dates, lost profits or travel costs — even where we were told the deadline mattered. Nothing here limits liability that cannot lawfully be limited.

Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Federal Apostille, its officers, employees and agents against claims, losses and reasonable legal costs arising from documents you submitted, information you provided, your breach of these terms, or your violation of any law or third-party right.

Force majeure

We are not in breach for delays caused by events outside our reasonable control: government shutdowns or funding lapses, agency backlogs and closures, natural disasters, public-health emergencies, war or civil unrest, strikes, carrier failure, cyberattacks, or utility and telecommunications outages. Where such an event occurs we tell you promptly and, where the delay becomes indefinite, we work out a refund position with you under the stage table in section 4.

14) Disputes and governing law

Start with us. Most disputes are resolved in a single email once we see the agency’s rejection notice or the tracking record. Contact us in writing with your order number, what happened, and what outcome you want; we aim to respond promptly and to resolve within a reasonable period.

If informal resolution fails, these terms are governed by the laws of the state in which Federal Apostille is established, without regard to conflict-of-laws rules, and the parties submit to the courts or the agreed dispute-resolution forum of that jurisdiction. Any claim must be brought within one year of the event giving rise to it. If any provision is held unenforceable, the rest stays in force. These terms, together with the refund policy and privacy documentation referenced here, are the entire agreement between us.

15) E-signature and communications consent

You consent to transact with us electronically. Clicking to accept, typing your name into an intake form, or replying in confirmation by email constitutes your signature and has the same effect as ink on paper. You also consent to receive order confirmations, status updates, rejection notices, receipts and policy changes by email or text rather than on paper.

To use electronic records you need an internet-connected device, a current browser, a working email address you monitor, and the ability to read and store PDF files. Tell us in writing if you want paper copies or if you want to withdraw electronic consent; withdrawing it may slow your order, since most agency correspondence reaches us electronically. Keep your email address and phone number current — we send updates to what you gave us.

16) SMS messaging program terms

We run an optional SMS program for order status updates: when your documents arrive, when a filing is lodged, when an apostille is issued, and when it ships. Consent to texts is never a condition of buying anything from us, and we do not sell or share your mobile number with third parties for their marketing.

How to join

Opt in by providing your mobile number at checkout or on an intake form and affirmatively agreeing to receive texts, or by texting our published keyword to our number.

Opt out

Reply STOP to any message from us. You receive one confirmation that you are unsubscribed, and no further texts go to that number. You can also email or call us and ask to be removed.

Rejoin

Reply START from the same number, or opt in again at checkout. Messages resume from your next order event.

Help

Reply HELP for support information, or contact us through the details on our website. We answer SMS support requests through the same channels as email support.

Message frequency and rates

Message frequency varies by order and by how many stages your document passes through — typically a handful of messages per order, more if your document needs a prerequisite step or consular legalisation. Message and data rates may apply according to your plan; those charges are between you and your carrier, and nothing we charge changes them.

Carrier liability

Mobile carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages. Delivery depends on your carrier, your handset, coverage and network conditions. Because texts can fail silently, we never use SMS as the only channel for something consequential — critical notices also go by email.

Privacy of your number

Your mobile number is used to run your order and this messaging program. No mobile information is sold or shared with third parties or affiliates for marketing purposes, and opt-in data is not shared with anyone outside the vendors that deliver the messages on our behalf.

17) Changes to these terms, and where to confirm government requirements

We update these terms as procedures, technology and law change. The version in force for your order is the one published when you placed it, and we post the effective date at the top of the page. Material changes are notified by email to active clients.

Because agency rules move faster than any commercial page, confirm current requirements at the source: the Department of State’s DS-4194 form and instructions (its public information line is 202-485-8000), the NASS directory of state apostille authorities for per-state rules, and the HCCH status table for Convention #12 for treaty membership. For a worked example of how these rules land on a real file, see our case study on getting an FBI background check apostilled for an Australian skilled visa.

What should you do next?

Before you ship anything, do two things that take five minutes and prevent most rejections. First, confirm your destination country on the HCCH status table so you know whether you need an apostille or consular legalisation. Second, put your document flat on a table and check the four failure points: legible seal, signature, a notary commission date that was valid on the day of signing, and a certification chain that starts with the correct issuing office.

If anything on that check is uncertain, send us a photo and the destination country and we will tell you exactly what the document needs before it is filed — then start the order at our flat $120 per apostille, all-inclusive.