When in a foreign country, the country’s officials may ask you to submit your formal documents. Without certification, there will be questions on the genuineness of your forms. For that reason alone, the state may issue a rejection of your files. Here is where the Secretary of State comes in. The Secretary of State Office certifies the authenticity of documents. The questions of concern; what are Secretary of State certification services? How is certification done? Where does the secretary of state come in all this? For a better understanding of this topic, keep reading.
What is secretary of state certification services?
Some professional companies provide document certification services. The services include authentication, attestation, legalization, and apostille. The authentication process is very long and can be tiring to do by yourself. Giving your documents to these companies could save you the time and money you will waste by doing it by yourself. In addition, they can handle the entire process for you with efficiency.
The certification process
An authoritative person in the state or country needs to affix their seal to certify the files. The companies send your files to these people. They use the seal to authenticate non-certified documents, certified documents, and allonges (separate sheet attached to the form). The following authorities can certify documents; clerks and their deputies in federal court, Secretary of State, and the Department of State office of authentication.
Providence of Secretary of State certification servicesare to documents that need attestation, apostille, and authentication. In case of legalization, the Secretary of State notarizes the document. Note, certified forms should be issued from a country party of the Hague Convention to another in the same party.
The certification process can be very challenging and tiring. Consider getting help from professionals who offer to do it in your stead. Summing up, requirements and procedures can be different in each country. Look up the requirements of certification for your country to understand better.