Birth Certificate Apostille

Who needs it

• People applying for dual citizenship (Italy, Ireland, Germany, Poland, and others)
• Couples marrying abroad who need to prove identity and marital status
• Parents enrolling children in a foreign school
• People filing for residency, work permits, or family reunification visas

How the process works

1. 1
   Order a certified copy

   You need a certified copy from the state or county that issued the record — a photocopy or a hospital souvenir birth certificate will not work.

2. 2
   Confirm the format required

   Some countries (Italy, France) require a long-form certified copy, not the short-form abstract. Confirm before ordering.

3. 3
   Send it to the correct apostille office

   Vital records are apostilled by the state that issued them, not by the federal government.

4. 4
   Translate if required

   Countries whose official language is not English usually require a certified translation after the apostille is affixed.

Required documents

• Certified long-form birth certificate from the issuing state or county
• Government-issued photo ID (for identity verification, not submitted with the apostille)

Common mistakes

• Submitting a hospital souvenir certificate instead of a certified state copy
• Submitting a short-form abstract when a long-form is required
• Sending a Pennsylvania record to the wrong state's apostille office
• Requesting translation before the apostille — most countries require translation after