North Carolina apostille

Documents issued or notarized in North Carolina are apostilled by the Authentication Office, North Carolina Department of the Secretary of State (North Carolina Secretary of State). The office authenticates the signatures of North Carolina public officials — registrars, court clerks, state agencies — and North Carolina-commissioned notaries public, then attaches an apostille for Hague Convention countries or an authentication certificate for all others.

Issues three certificate types: Apostille (Hague), Authentication (non-Hague, then US Dept of State) and Authority.

Where to file

How to get a North Carolina apostille

1. Confirm the document is a North Carolina public document

   The Authentication Office, North Carolina Department of the Secretary of State authenticates signatures of North Carolina officials and North Carolina-commissioned notaries only. Documents from other states go to their own state; federal documents go to the U.S. Department of State.

2. Prepare the request

   Complete the request form (official form), naming the destination country so the office issues an apostille (Hague country) or an authentication certificate (non-Hague country).

3. Submit the document, fee and return envelope

   Submit by mail to North Carolina Secretary of State, Authentication Office, PO Box 29622, Raleigh, NC 27626-0622; in person at 2 South Salisbury Street, Raleigh, NC 27601-2903 (Hand delivery Monday-Friday 8:00 am-5:00 pm. Documents can be hand-delivered any time without appointment but are processed in the normal queue. Same-day service only via limited morning appointments (8:00-10:00 am, bookable up to 30 days ahead); pickup 4:00-5:00 pm same day. A March 2024 notice states appointments are limited to funeral home documents (call 919-814-5405).). The fee is $10 per document.

4. Receive the apostille

   Processing: Authentications landing page states about 2-3 business days; the division manual states a three-week turnaround for mail and non-appointment hand deliveries due to resource issues.. Expedited: No fee-based expedite. Emergencies (funeral home, adoption) may qualify for expedited handling with documentation; same-day via morning appointment.. Keep the apostille attached and translate afterward if the destination requires it.

Fees and processing time

Fee: $10 per document. Check or money order payable to 'NC Secretary of State'; debit/credit cards not accepted at the counter. Adoption-related duplicate originals ordered at the same time: $5 each. $10 may be refunded if a document is rejected and a refund is requested.

Processing time: Authentications landing page states about 2-3 business days; the division manual states a three-week turnaround for mail and non-appointment hand deliveries due to resource issues.

Expedited: No fee-based expedite. Emergencies (funeral home, adoption) may qualify for expedited handling with documentation; same-day via morning appointment.

Documents North Carolina will apostille

• Birth, marriage and death certificates (Register of Deeds or NC Vital Records)
• Divorce decrees (Clerk of Court)
• Notarized documents
• Corporate documents (articles, bylaws, mergers)
• Powers of attorney
• Diplomas and transcripts (notarized by NC notary)
• Deeds and assignments
• DMV driving records with Commissioner's seal (Raleigh office)
• Adoption documents

Not accepted or commonly rejected

• School documents bearing only a registrar's seal without NC notarization
• Photocopies without a True Copy affidavit
• Documents from other states or countries
• Consular reports of birth/marriage/death abroad
• Agency documents certified before April 1, 2000
• Federal documents (FBI checks)

Notarized documents

Documents must be notarized by a North Carolina notary; notarization must show state and county, acknowledgement, signature exactly as commissioned, seal and commission expiration. Photocopies require a 'True Copy' affidavit (notary cannot certify a true copy inside an acknowledgement). Notaries cannot notarize photocopies of documents from Register of Deeds, Clerk of Superior Court, Dept of Agriculture, Vital Records, DMV or Attorney General. All NC agency documents must have been certified since April 1, 2000. Non-English documents need a certified, notarized English translation.

North Carolina does not require county clerk certification of notarized documents before the state apostille.

General rules: notarized documents and apostilles.

Birth, marriage and death certificates

Certified copies issued by the county Register of Deeds where the event occurred or by NC Vital Records are both accepted; office prefers copies issued since 2000. Divorce decrees come from the county Clerk of Court or a Certificate of Divorce from NC Vital Records (Register of Deeds does not issue divorce documents). Photocopies and consular reports of birth abroad are not accepted.

See the document guides for birth, marriage and death certificates.

North Carolina-specific points

• Prepaid courier return labels must be generated and paid online; handwritten labels with an account number are rejected, and couriers will not deliver abroad.
• Same-day service exists only for morning appointments; regular hand delivery goes into the mail queue.
• County Register of Deeds birth certificates are accepted directly, which is faster and cheaper than NC Vital Records.
• School records must be notarized via affidavit; a school seal alone is rejected.
• Adoption duplicate originals are discounted to $5 when ordered with the first original.

Federal documents and non-Hague destinations

North Carolina does not apostille federal documents. An FBI background check, Certificate of Naturalization, DD-214, IRS letter or Social Security letter issued to a North Carolina resident is authenticated by the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. — see the federal section. For destinations outside the Hague Convention, the North Carolina authentication certificate must then be authenticated by the U.S. Department of State and legalized at the destination's embassy (how the chain works).