Driver's license apostille: what works and what drivers need instead

Route 1: a notarized copy of your license

A notary either certifies that the copy of your license is true, where state law allows it, or notarizes your signature on a statement that the copy is true. Only the state that commissioned the notary can apostille that notarization, so the notary's state decides the route, not where you live.

The method your notary's state expects

Michigan bars its notaries from certifying copies, so there you write "this is a true copy of my" and the document type, then sign before a Michigan notary. Connecticut wants a written statement that the copy is true and accurate, sworn to and signed before a Connecticut notary. North Carolina uses a true copy affidavit, and Texas wants the owner's signed statement plus a full notarial certificate.

What the notarial certificate needs

The date, the notary's signature exactly as commissioned, the commission expiration date and a legible seal. Louisiana also wants the notary's printed name and identification number, and Wisconsin accepts only wet-ink notarizations. We check the certificate when it reaches us. Our apostille vs notary guide explains how the two steps fit together.

If you live abroad

A local notary abroad will not do, because a U.S. state apostilles only its own notaries, and Ohio, for one, refuses documents notarized in a foreign country. Use a U.S. notary on a trip home, or a remote online notarization in a state that apostilles one. Texas does, with the notary's ledger entry and a certificate stating the act was done by two-way audio and video. Delaware, Virginia and Wisconsin refuse remote or electronic notarizations, and Texas warns that some countries refuse online notarized documents even after apostille.

ID copies are not federal records

An FBI background check, a naturalization certificate, a DD-214, an IRS or Social Security letter and a USCIS notice take the federal route only, through the U.S. Department of State, and a notarized copy of one of them cannot be apostilled. ID copies are the exception, and a driver's license is a state ID. Our passport copy apostille guide applies the same rules to passports, green cards and Social Security cards.

How to apostille a driver's license copy in Maryland

Have the copy notarized by a Maryland notary, then take it to the Clerk of the Circuit Court in the county where that notary was commissioned. After the clerk certifies the notary, the Secretary of State's Certification Desk in Annapolis issues the apostille for $5 per document. Skip the clerk and the copy comes back without an apostille.

The county that counts is the notary's commission county, which is not always where you signed. Annapolis lists processing of about 3 to 4 days for FedEx, UPS and USPS Priority Mail, and 7 to 14 business days by regular mail. It also says naturalization and immigration documents cannot be notarized, as originals or copies, so the same route does not work for a green card. We add the clerk step and file for you. New York and Tennessee work the same way with the county clerk, as the table above shows. See our Maryland apostille guide and New York apostille guide.

Massachusetts and Mississippi: where a notarized copy will not work

Massachusetts does not apostille notarized copies of government-issued documents, and a driver's license is one, whichever state issued it. Mississippi says a notary outside the issuing agency cannot certify or authenticate a copy of a driver's license. In both states the fix is a notary commissioned in a state that accepts ID copies, not a better notarization.

The Massachusetts Commissions Section says so on its apostille request form, which refuses notarized copies of federal, in-state or out-of-state government-issued documents. If you live in Massachusetts, we name the state whose notary to use and the method it expects, and confirm both before you pay. See our Massachusetts apostille guide and Mississippi apostille guide.

Route 2: apostille a certified driving record from your DMV

A certified driving record is a state record of your license, issued and certified by your DMV, RMV or MVA. Because a state official certifies it, the apostille office of that state can apostille it directly, with no notary, as long as it certifies that DMV's records. Order the certified version, not an unofficial printout.

Use this route when the office abroad wants your driving history or license status rather than proof of identity. Several state offices name DMV records on their own pages:

• Utah: the Lieutenant Governor's office lists a Driver License Record, as a certified copy from the Driver License Division, among the documents it authenticates.
• Hawaii: the Lieutenant Governor lists driving records among the official state documents it apostilles, at $3 per document.
• North Carolina: documents from the Department of Motor Vehicles, Raleigh office only, need no notarization first.
• Maryland: state-issued documents skip the clerk step and go straight to Annapolis, and its examples include a motor vehicle ownership certification.

Massachusetts is different. Its request form lists the only signatures the Commissions Section authenticates: the Secretary of the Commonwealth and Massachusetts notaries, justices of the peace, city and town clerks, court clerks and the Registrar of Vital Records. The Registry of Motor Vehicles is not among them, so for a Massachusetts license we plan the route with you before you order anything.

Ask your DMV for the certified version of your record, the one it certifies for official use, and keep it exactly as issued. Its fee is separate from our price. The record goes to the apostille office of the state whose DMV issued it, wherever you live now.

How to apostille a driver's license, step by step

Ask the office abroad what it wants, get the route from us, then have a copy notarized in the state we name or order a certified record from your DMV. Send it to us, and we add any clerk step, file it and ship it back, tracked.

1. Ask for the checklist. Identity or driving history, which sides of the card, and any translation.
2. Get a free review. Tell us where you are, which state issued your license and where the document is going.
3. Make the copy or order the record. Front and back if the office wants both, or the DMV's certified record.
4. Sign before the notary, if your route has one. Check that the certificate is complete before you leave.
5. Send it to us. Mail it to 1215 Main St, Unit 115, Tewksbury, MA 01876, or drop it off Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM Eastern.
6. We file it and ship it back by the courier you choose, anywhere in the world.

Start your order, or send us a photo of what the office abroad asked for first. See all our apostille services.

Exchanging your U.S. license abroad: what to ask the licensing office

The licensing office in your new country decides whether you can exchange a U.S. license and what proof it wants. No U.S. office can answer that for it, and neither can we. Ask before you order anything, get the answer in writing if you can, and we will match the U.S. document to its list.

Ask it these questions:

1. Can I exchange my U.S. license, and does the issuing state matter?
2. Which proof of it do you accept: the card, a certified driving record, a certified copy from the U.S. embassy or a notarized copy?
3. Does that document need an apostille, and on what exactly?
4. Does it need a translation, by whom, and before or after the apostille?
5. How recently must it be issued?
6. Will you keep my U.S. card, and will I need a test?

The apostille itself does not expire, as our guide to whether apostilles expire explains, but the office may still want a recently issued document. We are not a law firm or a government office, so these answers have to come from the licensing office. Send them to us with your order, and our free review matches your U.S. paperwork to them. Our guide for American expats covers the rest of a move.

South Korea

South Korea accepts U.S. apostilles, and the Hague Convention has been in force there since July 14, 2007. For a license exchange, though, the U.S. Embassy in Seoul says you need a certified copy of your U.S. license, which the Embassy provides for $50 per copy. It also notes that an IDP functions as an official translation of a U.S. license into 10 foreign languages. Ask the Korean licensing office whether it wants anything apostilled beyond that. Visa files differ: for an F-6 marriage visa, the Korean consulate in Chicago lists a license copy or a utility bill as proof of residence. See our South Korea apostille guide.

The Philippines

The Philippine licensing office sets its own requirements for using or converting a foreign license, so start with the questions above. If it asks for an apostilled license copy or driving record, the U.S. side works as this page describes, and we can ship either one to you there.

Portugal, Spain and other moves

The licensing office decides there too. If it, or a bank or registry, asks for an apostilled copy of your license, the ID-copy rule above applies. Our guides to apostilles for Portugal and apostilles for Spain cover the residency documents themselves.

Translation and countries outside the Convention

An apostille does not translate anything, and an IDP is a driving document, not a filing. If an office wants your copy or record translated, ask who may translate it and whether before or after the apostille. We offer certified translation in more than 100 languages, and our guide to apostille and translation explains the order. Countries outside the Hague Convention, such as the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Egypt, need embassy legalization instead, and the Hague apostille country list shows which is which.

What a license apostille costs and how long it takes

With us, a license copy or driving record apostille is $149.95 on Economy, in 1 to 3 weeks, or $199.95 on Express, in 1 to 5 business days in most states, with the state fee included. Add the time to arrange the notarization or order the record, and any clerk step in Maryland, New York or Tennessee.

The notarization, the DMV's record fee, translation and courier upgrades are separate. A worked example: a couple moving abroad, each with an apostilled license copy, pays 2 x $149.95, or $299.90, on Economy. Our $385.95 same-day rush, with guaranteed 24-hour turnaround, covers Massachusetts and New Hampshire documents only, and Massachusetts will not apostille a notarized license copy, so choose Express when time is short. See how long an apostille takes in every state.