Washington apostille service for Washington State documents

Who issues apostilles in Washington

In Washington State, apostilles are issued by the Secretary of State's Corporations and Charities Division through its Apostilles Program. It authenticates Washington public documents and papers notarized by a Washington notary, for $15 per document. Its walk-in counters are in Tumwater and Cheney, and mailed requests go to a post office box in Olympia.

The Division describes an apostille as an authentication for countries that joined the Hague Convention of October 5, 1961. For other countries, it issues a certificate of authentication that needs further processing through federal authorities, which means a stop at the U.S. Department of State before the destination's embassy legalizes it. Its request form adds a disclaimer that the certificate is not valid anywhere in the United States, its territories or possessions.

The Division does not notarize or authenticate federal documents, and it will not apostille a vital record issued in another state. What it accepts is an original or certified copy of a document issued by a Washington government entity, or a personal document properly notarized by a Washington notary. Even a photocopy of a driver's license has to be properly notarized before it can be authenticated.

Washington documents we apostille

We apostille Washington birth, death, marriage and divorce certificates, letters of single status, court records, corporate records on file with the Secretary of State, and personal documents notarized by a Washington notary, such as powers of attorney, affidavits, school records and notarized copies of a driver's license or passport.

• Vital records: birth, death, marriage and divorce certificates as an original or certified copy, issued in Washington. Our birth certificate apostille, marriage certificate apostille and death certificate apostille services take certificates you already hold, which the Department of Health's combined route cannot.
• Letters of single status: the Department of Health lists them among the records it can send for an apostille, and couples marrying abroad may be asked for one. Our single status apostille page explains the document.
• Corporate records: only certified copies or certificates of documents on file with the Secretary of State's Corporations Division, ordered together with the apostille, which is why our corporate apostille service places both requests in one Washington order.
• Court records: certified copies issued by a Washington court, such as a divorce decree.
• Diplomas and transcripts: notarized by a Washington notary. The state issued its first digital apostille in June 2024, on a diploma, under a pilot program that began that February, and our transcript apostille service covers the paper route.
• Notarized personal documents: powers of attorney, consent letters, affidavits and notarized ID copies, each signed before a Washington notary.

Tumwater does not authenticate federal records. FBI Identity History Summaries, naturalization certificates, DD-214s, IRS and Social Security letters and USCIS notices all belong to the U.S. Department of State, and making a notarized copy does not help, because a notarized copy of one of these records cannot be apostilled. When the federal record is an FBI result, our FBI report apostille takes it from there.

Washington requirements that trip people up

Washington's rules center on the notary block and the source of the record. A personal document must be notarized by a Washington notary, and the certificate must show the notary's signed and printed name, the title Notary Public, the commission expiration date, the date, the jurisdiction and the stamp. Vital records must be Washington originals or certified copies.

A complete notarial certificate

Those six items are the Division's own checklist. A notary block missing the printed name or the expiration date is the kind of error we catch during the free review, before your document travels anywhere.

Corporate records are ordered with the apostille

The Division issues apostilles only on certified copies or certificates of its own corporate records, and it wants the records and the apostille ordered at the same time on its Business Records Request Form. Buying a certified copy separately and sending it in later is not the process.

Speed is priced per 10 documents

The $100 expedite fee applies to each block of 10 documents, so 1 to 10 documents cost $100 and 11 to 20 cost $200. The $150 same-day fee covers the first 10 documents at a counter. For a family set of records, that math adds up quickly.

Getting a certified copy in Washington

Washington birth, death, marriage and divorce certificates come from the Department of Health's Center for Health Statistics at 111 Israel Road SE in Tumwater. Order online through VitalChek, by phone at 1-866-687-1464, by mail or at an in-person appointment. The Department charges $25 per certificate, as published in September 2026.

Washington also has a combined route. If you want an apostille at the same time, order by phone through VitalChek or by mail with the order form, and pay $25 per certificate plus $15 per apostille. The Department processes the certificate within 3 to 5 business days, then sends it with your apostille request to the Secretary of State. Apostilles usually go out within a week after the Secretary of State receives them, though the Department cannot guarantee that timing. Details are on the Department of Health apostille page.

The combined route works well for a single certificate going to one country. If you also need a translation, notarized papers or records from other states, send everything to us and we coordinate the full set.

How long a Washington apostille takes

Washington publishes three speeds. Standard requests are typically processed within 7 to 10 business days of receipt, expedited requests within 2 to 3 business days, and same-day counter requests while you wait in Tumwater or Cheney. For same-day service, your documents must be in 30 minutes before the counter closes.

Tumwater's counter keeps Monday to Thursday hours of 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and closes at 3:00 p.m. on Fridays. Cheney is open Monday to Wednesday and Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and closed on Thursdays.

Our Express service runs 1 to 5 business days in most states and Economy runs 1 to 3 weeks, while same-day rush is reserved for Massachusetts and New Hampshire documents. Because Washington's standard queue alone is 7 to 10 business days, give us your deadline with the order and we will say before you pay whether it can be met.

What a Washington apostille costs

The Washington fee is $15 per document. Faster state service costs more: $100 per 10 documents to expedite, or a $150 same-day fee for the first 10 documents at a counter. Our Washington packages run $149.95 for Economy and $199.95 for Express, including the $15 filing fee.

The price covers your free review, the Division's request form with the destination country, the state fee, filing, tracking and return mail. The state wants checks and money orders made payable to the Secretary of State, and we take care of that payment for you. Extras stay optional: a certified translation for a Korean or Chinese office, notary service at our office, and courier return across the Pacific or anywhere else. For countries outside the Hague Convention, such as Qatar or Kuwait, the authentication and embassy steps are quoted per country. When the stack runs past a handful of documents, ask us about a volume discount.

Getting a Washington apostille without visiting Olympia

Living far from Tumwater is no obstacle. Our Tewksbury, Massachusetts office accepts Washington documents by mail from anywhere, reviews them free of charge before you pay, files them with the Secretary of State and returns them by the shipping option you pick, in the U.S. or overseas.

That works for people in Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma, Vancouver and Bellingham who cannot reach Tumwater or Cheney during office hours, and for former Washington residents now living abroad. If your papers are crossing the Pacific, our guides for South Korea, China and India explain what those offices expect. Canada, just north of the state line, has accepted apostilles since January 11, 2024. A teacher moving to South Korea with a Washington diploma and an FBI check, for example, can send both in one order, and we route each to the right office.

Everything starts with our apostille application form, and our apostille services overview answers the questions people usually ask before ordering. The Hague apostille country list shows whether your destination takes an apostille or needs legalization.