Apostille Services in NJ

An Apostille is a form of certification set out in the 1961 Hague Convention and the United States became its subscriber in 1981. It is a form of numbered fields, which allows the data to be understood by the receiving country regardless of the official language of the issuing country. Today at Bergen Funeral, we’d like to discuss our apostille services in NJ.

When is it needed?

Apostille Services in NJ 

You need this authentication when you are transferring public documents between countries. Apostilles and authentication certificates validate the seal and signature of a Notary on a document so that it can be accepted in a foreign country. Both verify that you held a Notary commission at the time you notarized the document.

The Hague Convention defines public documents as:

Those originating in a court, clerk of a court, public prosecutor or process server, Administrative documents, Notarial acts, and Official certificates placed on documents.

These types of public documents would include birth or death certificates, marriage licenses, divorce decrees, school transcripts and diploma or degrees among others.

Who issues an Apostille?

An apostille is issued by your Secretary of State’s office or Notary commissioning agency. The single apostille is the only certification needed. Once prepared and verified, the apostille is attached to and sent along with the notarized documents. This all happens after the notarization and requires no action on your part. You can request for an Apostille in person or via email. The documents will be handled by the appropriate division within this agency. Requests for corporate documents requiring an Apostille should be directed to the Corporations Section.

Where does the Apostille convention apply?

You should know what countries are members of the Apostille Convention. The Apostille Convention only applies if both the country where the public document was issued and the country where the public document is to be used are parties to the Convention. A comprehensive and updated list of the countries where the Apostille Convention applies, or will soon apply, is available in the Apostille Section of The Hague Conference website.

What to do if the country is not a member of the Apostille Convention?

If your public document was issued or is to be used in a country where the Apostille Convention does not apply, you should contact the Embassy or a Consulate of the country where you intend to use the document in order to find out what your options are. This alternative method for Authenticating documents is called Embassy legalization. This process is used for the countries that choose not to be members of the Hague Convention. Since they don’t accept Apostilles you will need to have your documents go through the embassy legalization process instead. This means the documents will have to be certified by the highest levels of the Government prior to being certified by the respective Embassies in the country of origin.

To save both time and money, involve professionals

Going through the authentication process is time-consuming. You will have to research all about the Apostille services if you are not already familiar with it and then begin with the entire process. It is recommended that you hire a professional company to do your work so that you can save time and you don’t have to again in case something goes wrong the first time. We know our work and Bergen Funeral can help you legalize your documents in the least possible time.

To learn more about our apostille services in NJ at Bergen Funeral or for more information about us, please call us today at 800-262-7901. A funeral and apostille expert will be ready to speak with you.