What does an apostille stamp certify?

If you are in need of getting an apostille certification on your public, legal, personal or educational documents (vital records certificates, divorce decrees, courts decisions, letters from courts, IRS forms, FBI Clearance certificate, power of attorney, affidavits, marriage-free certificates, statements, residence confirmation, diplomas, records of grades, medical exams, etc.), you may be wondering, “What does an apostille certify?” Even if you’ve made an online research and learn where the apostille came from and why it is used as a form of internationally-recognized verification, understanding what it certifies may prove to be harder.

Validation of authorized representatives’ signatures

When answering the question “What does an apostille certify?” the first step is to understand what the certification means. An apostille does not attest that the information in the documents is truthful or correct. The apostille stands for a form of international notary recognized by the Hague Convention signatory countries. This means that an apostille stamp will authenticate the signatures on the documents meant for international use. Furthermore, the apostille also certifies that any copies of documents are true copies of the originals that they purport to correspond to.
This is a key difference to make. An apostille will not verify the validity of a document’s information, but it will verify the document’s validity itself.

Now, what types of documents require an apostille?

Preparing documents for an Apostille country

Obtaining an apostille is obligatory when it comes to public documents legalization if the documents are intended for a foreign country – Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia,Uzbekistan, Poland, Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, Spain, Italy, France, Germany or any other State, which is a party to the Apostille Convention. This means that the document is coming from an authority recognized by the country. In other words, personal documents are considered to need verification by the apostille.

Also, if a company overseas, such as a Dutch bank, for example, needs official documents to prove your identity or information provided by you – a copy of your birth certificate, a court decree regarding your name change, then you should provide an apostille certificate attached to document or to the certified copy (in some states, such as New York, called “long form copies for international use”) of your birth certificate. The same holds true of death certificates and marriage certificates. If this is a legal matter, you may have to provide patents or court judgments. These also will need to be certified by an apostille. You may even need to have this certification on a diploma, transcript, record of final grades or medical exams documents if you intend to start your studies or continue education in a foreign country.

Apostille on documents issued by private institution?

Nevertheless, this certification cannot be applied to diplomas issued by private institutions. Rather, they would be needed on diplomas issued by public universities. Again, this does not legalize the diploma itself, but rather the authenticity of it. It cannot prove the standards of the diploma, but it can authenticate the copy that it was officially issued by the educational institution (school, college or university).
Understanding what does an apostille certified is crucial if you are dealing with in any foreign legal or private authorities. The apostille will carry much weight, especially in countries that are members of the Hague Treaty, which officially introduced the apostille as a simplified form of international verification of documents. Keep this in mind and do your research before submitting documents overseas to confirm whether or not you will need the apostille to continue. More than ever in certain legal and financial matters, you likely will need an apostille certification to move along the process in a foreign country. Otherwise, you might experience significant delays and unexpected complications. That’s why, understanding the apostille is significant and helpful when you intend to bring your personal or business matters to international level.

Being a leading provider of apostille and legalization services in all five NYC boroughs while assisting clients from other states, Apoling Solutions is here to give you a hand and explain the process of your documents preparation. Please, contact us, and we’ll be happy to offer you the consistent answers on any questions regarding documents apostilling or legalization.