Where was the birth registered
The path depends on who holds the original record. Pick the one that applies.
CHOOSE YOUR PATH
Born abroad? If you were born abroad to US citizen parent(s), your record may be a Consular Report of Birth Abroad issued by the federal government rather than a state. If your record was issued by another country, authentication or apostille normally takes place through that country's authorities. Contact us and we'll help identify the appropriate US-document path.
How it works
SIMPLE PROCESS
1
Tell us the details
​Name at birth, date, city and state, parents' names as shown on the record, and the destination country.
2
Sign the release​
Where the issuing agency requires authorization, we help with the release and can notarize it in person or, when legally appropriate, online.
3
We order the record
​We submit to the appropriate issuing office, track the request, and review the certified copy when it arrives.
4
We get the apostille
​The certified copy goes to the competent authority for the issuing state, then the finished document is returned by tracked mail.
BEFORE WE START
What we need from you
✓ Full name at birth, including any middle name
✓ Date of birth and the city, county and state where the birth was registered
✓ Both parents' full names, including mother's maiden name
✓ A copy of your government-issued photo ID
✓ A signed release authorizing us to request the record — we notarize this for you
✓ The destination country and, if you know it, the organization asking for the document
Spelling matters
​If your passport shows a middle name and your birth certificate does not — or a name is transliterated differently — the receiving authority may have additional requirements. Tell us about differences before we order so they can be flagged early.
AVOID REJECTION
What will not work — and why documents get rejected
For a birth-certificate apostille, the document generally needs to be a properly certified vital record issued by the record custodian. A simple photocopy or scan is not a substitute for the certified record.
✓ Hospital souvenir or commemorative certificate
✓ Photocopy or scan of a certified copy
✓ Notarized photocopy used in place of the vital record
✓ Informational copy marked “not for legal purposes”
Before ordering
Ask the receiving organization whether it needs a long-form or short-form certificate and whether it imposes a recency requirement. State rules and destination-country requirements vary
INTERNATIONAL USE
Where is the document going?
ROUTE A
Hague Convention countries
For countries where the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention is in force for the relevant relationship, the apostille normally replaces the traditional embassy legalization chain. Examples include India, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Mexico, Brazil, Japan and South Korea.
ROUTE B
Non-Hague / legalization route
For destinations where the Apostille Convention does not apply, additional authentication and embassy or consular legalization may be required. Tell us the destination country and receiving organization so the route can be checked before processing.
Convention status and country-specific requirements can change. We recommend checking the current official status for every order. Translation requirements are set by the receiving authority; translation can be coordinated when needed.
MULTI-DOCUMENT PROJECTS
Need several records at once?
Citizenship-by-descent, estate and inheritance matters often involve birth, marriage and death records from several states. We can coordinate the project state by state, including record retrieval, apostille processing and translation coordination where needed.
Attorneys, genealogists and consultants: ask about record-retrieval and apostille support for recurring client matters.
TRANSPARENT QUOTE
Pricing and timeline
Every order is quoted in parts so you can see what you're paying for.
Turnaround depends on the issuing state and the destination. Some certified records are issued quickly; others take several weeks. Apostille and legalization processing times also vary. We provide a realistic range with your quote rather than promising a government-controlled timeline.