Last verified: Oct 25, 2026

Florida apostille: fees, mail vs. walk-in, and processing dates

Per the Florida Department of State, "The Florida Secretary of State is the only competent authority authorized to issue notarial and apostille certifications in the state of Florida." The Division of Corporations issues them, and Florida apostilles "are only issued at 2415 N. Monroe Street, Suite 810 Tallahassee, FL 32303." [1][2]

This page is for Florida-issued or Florida-notarized documents: birth and marriage records for Italian or Spanish citizenship files, school transcripts for study abroad, and powers of attorney for property sales overseas. Every fee and timeline below comes from the official pages listed under Sources.

Which office	Florida Department of State, Division of Corporations, Apostille Section, Tallahassee [1][2]
What it costs	"$10.00 per document; OR $20.00 per document, for documents certified by any Clerk of the Court for any county in Florida when requesting an apostille. ($10 for Apostille; $10 for Certificate of Incumbency.)" [1][3]
How you pay	Check or money order payable to the Florida Department of State, in U.S. currency drawn from a U.S. bank. "We do not accept cash or credit cards." [1]
How long it takes	Mail: "processed in the order it was received." No expedited service. [2] Walk-in: "Most requests may be completed while you wait," Monday–Friday, 8 am–5 pm, except state holidays. [2] As of the Division's page "Updated 10/23/26," it was processing Apostille Requests received on 10/09/26. [4]

Which Florida documents qualify

The Department of State lists these acceptable document types [1]:

State of Florida agency or official documents
State of Florida birth and death certificates
State of Florida circuit court documents and Clerk of the County documents
State of Florida marriage and divorce certificates
State of Florida school transcripts
State of Florida vehicle titles
Documents notarized by a Florida notary public
Florida criminal background checks (Florida Department of Law Enforcement and local law enforcement agencies)
Florida Secretary of State certified copies and certificates of status

The document must be an original: "An original certified copy or certificate of status of a public document is required. A photocopy is not acceptable. Notarized documents must contain a full notarial statement and the original notary public's signature, stamp and seal." [1]

Not a Florida document? Federal documents (for example an FBI background check) go to the U.S. Department of State. A document issued in another state, or signed by a notary in another state, goes to that state's competent authority. [1] See the state index.

Step 1: Get the right certified copy

Birth certificates. The Florida Department of Health's Bureau of Vital Statistics sells certified copies by mail, walk-in (1217 N Pearl St., Jacksonville, FL 32202; lobby hours Monday–Friday, 8 a.m.–4:30 p.m.), or online through VitalChek, which it calls "the only contracted vendor for the Florida Department of Health's Bureau of Vital Statistics." [5] Its listed fees ordering directly from the Bureau: $9 for the first computer-generated certification (the $9 search fee is non-refundable), $4 for each additional one, and $1 shipping and handling. Through VitalChek: $19 for the first certification (includes the $9 search fee and $10 rush fee), plus a $7 VitalChek processing fee, and $4 per additional certification. [5] By mail, "Normal processing time for computer-generated birth certificates is 3-5 business days, not including shipping time." [5]

Births less than 125 years old are confidential and may only be issued to eligible requestors such as the registrant (18 or older), a parent listed on the record, a legal guardian, or a legal representative, and photo ID is required. [5] For dual-citizenship files built around a grandparent's record, read the DOH eligibility rules, including the "Deceased" provision, before ordering. [5]

Unverified: an older Department of State procedure page says "records obtained from local health departments are NOT ACCEPTABLE" for apostille and asks for certificates signed by the State Registrar. [6] The current apostille page doesn't repeat this. [1] If you're using a county health department copy, call the Division (850.245.6053) before mailing it. [3]

Marriage and divorce records, court documents. Documents certified by a Clerk of the Court for a Florida county cost $20 per document to apostille: $10 for the apostille plus $10 for a Certificate of Incumbency. [1][3]

Powers of attorney, affidavits, consent letters. These need to be notarized by a Florida notary, with a full notarial statement and the notary's original signature, stamp, and seal. [1] The Department checks the notary against its database, verifying "the notary public's commission number, expiration date and name." [2] More detail: power of attorney apostille.

Step 2: Apostille or notarial certification?

Hague Convention country: you get an apostille. For countries "that are nonmembers of the 1961 Hague Convention," Florida issues a notarial certificate instead, which "authenticates the issuing official or notary signature." [2] The request form asks for the country, so the office can issue the right one. [3]

For a non-Hague country, the U.S. Department of State says to first get the state document "authenticated by the state who issued the document," then submit a Form DS-4194 request to its Office of Authentications. [7] For a Hague country, a state-issued document needs only the state's certification, not a federal apostille. [8] The Florida FAQ says the same: submit to the Florida Secretary of State first, "then forward the documentation to the U.S. Department of State, if required." [2] After that, the foreign country's embassy may have its own step. See apostille vs. authentication.

Step 3: Send it by mail

Fill out the Apostille or Notarial Certification Request form: your contact details, the country the document is for, and the total number of documents. [3]
Enclose the original document(s). [1]
Enclose "A self-addressed stamped envelope with the requestor's name and address listed as both sender and recipient; OR A pre-paid, pre-addressed air bill with requestor's name and address listed as both sender and recipient." [1]
Enclose a check or money order payable to "Florida Department of State" for $10 or $20 per document. [1][3]
Mail it. [3]

USPS mail	Division of Corporations, ATTN: Apostille Section, P.O. Box 6800, Tallahassee, FL 32314-6800 [3]
Courier (FedEx/UPS)	Division of Corporations, ATTN: Apostille Section, 2415 N. Monroe Street, Suite 810, Tallahassee, FL 32303 [3]

Check the queue before you mail. The Division posts the date it's working on at Document Processing Dates. For check payments, it says "the receipt date is the date of deposit of your check," so the back of your cleared check shows when your request entered the queue. [4] On the 10/23/26 update, Apostille Requests showed 10/09/26. [4] The gap changes week to week, so check the page again close to your deadline.

Step 4 (faster): Walk in

"Our office does not offer expedited services. We do, however, offer walk-in services." Walk-ins are taken only at 2415 N. Monroe Street, Suite 810, Tallahassee, Monday–Friday, 8 am–5 pm, except state holidays, and "Most requests may be completed while you wait." [2] Payment rules are the same: check or money order, no cash or credit cards. [1] If a consulate appointment is close and you can get to Tallahassee, or have someone you trust go for you, this is the fastest official route.

Common reasons Florida requests get delayed

A photocopy instead of an original. "A photocopy is not acceptable." [1]
Wrong fee for Clerk documents. Clerk-certified records are $20, not $10. [1]
Paying by card or cash. Not accepted. [1]
No return envelope or air bill addressed to you as both sender and recipient. [1]
Out-of-state notary. Florida can only certify Florida notaries and officials. [1]
Expecting a translation. "Our office does not provide translation services." The FAQ adds: "The person translating the document cannot be the person that notarizes it." [2]

FAQ

How much is a Florida apostille?

$10.00 per document, or $20.00 per document certified by a Florida county Clerk of the Court ($10 apostille + $10 Certificate of Incumbency). [1]

Can I pay by credit card?

No. Check or money order payable to the Florida Department of State only. [1]

How long does a Florida apostille take by mail?

Requests are processed in the order received. [2] Florida doesn't publish a fixed number of days. It posts the receipt date it's currently working on (10/09/26 on the 10/23/26 update), plus return mail time. [4]

Can I get same-day service?

There is no expedited mail service, but walk-ins in Tallahassee are offered, and "Most requests may be completed while you wait." [2]

Does Florida translate documents?

No. [2]

How can a foreign office check that my Florida apostille is real?

Florida certificates are on security paper (photocopies show "VOID"), each has a unique ID number on the back, lower left corner, and the Department will verify a certificate on written request. [2]

My birth certificate is from another state. Can Florida apostille it if I live in Florida?

No. It goes to the competent authority of the state that issued it. [1] See the birth certificate guide.

General information, not legal advice. Not affiliated with the Florida Department of State. Fees and processing dates change, so confirm on the official pages before you send anything.