$150.00 30 minutes
Multi-Step Legalization Process: Notary → State → Federal → Embassy
Your legalization process begins when you bring your documents to one of our offices. We’ll notarize or certify them as needed, then submit them for authentication by the appropriate Secretary of State. Once state authentication is complete, your documents are sent to the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. for federal authentication. Finally, we submit them to the appropriate embassy or consulate for legalization. Once processed, the fully legalized documents are mailed back to you using the prepaid return shipping label you provided. Our team manages every step to ensure speed, accuracy, and international compliance.
Pricing varies on if the document requires notarization, if the service you are requesting is expedited or not, the embassy/consulate fees, and mailing cost.
Description
Multi-Step Legalization Process for Non-Hague Countries: Notary → State → Federal → Embassy
When your documents need to be legalized for a country that does not accept an apostille (non-Hague countries such as China, the UAE, Qatar, or Saudi Arabia), we provide a complete, end-to-end Embassy Legalization Service to ensure your paperwork is properly authenticated for international use.
Pricing varies on if the document requires notarization, if the service you are requesting is expedited or not, the embassy/consulate fees, and mailing cost.
Step-by-Step Process Overview
1. Document Drop-Off or Mail-In
•Begin by visiting one of our offices in Orange County or sending your documents through secure mail. We’ll review everything to ensure it’s ready for processing.
2. Notarization and Certification
•If your document requires notarization (such as a power of attorney, business letter, or affidavit), our licensed notaries will complete that on-site.
•For vital records (e.g., birth or marriage certificates), we ensure the copies are certified by the appropriate county or state agency.
3. State-Level Authentication
•Your documents will then be submitted to the California Secretary of State for authentication. This confirms that the notary public or issuing authority is valid and recognized by the state.
4. Federal Authentication
•Once the state-level certification is complete, we forward your documents to the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. for federal authentication—a required step before any embassy will review your paperwork.
5. Embassy/Consulate Legalization
•Finally, the federally authenticated documents are submitted to the embassy or consulate of the destination country. This is the last step of the chain, after which your documents are officially legalized for use abroad.
•We include a pre-paid, trackable return shipping label, ensuring the documents are sent back to your preferred address without delay.
Pricing Structure (Per Document)
|
Service Stage |
Fee |
|---|---|
|
Notarization (if needed) |
$15 per signature (California notarial fee) |
|
State Authentication (CA Secretary of State) |
$101 for Standard (includes handling & government fee) |
|
U.S. Department of State Authentication |
$175 (includes DS-4194 form, handling, and shipping) |
|
Embassy Legalization |
Varies by country (see examples below) |
|
Return Shipping |
At Cost (prepaid trackable label) |
Example: China
• Embassy Fee: $50
• Total Average Cost per Document: $335
Example: United Arab Emirates
•Embassy Fee: $41 (personal) / $544 (commercial)
Total Average Cost per Document: $321 (personal), $824 (commercial)
Discounts are available for bulk submissions of 5 or more documents.
Important Notes
•Processing Time: 2–4 weeks depending on embassy backlog and mail delivery times. Expedited service may be available for the State-level.
•Document Translation: Many embassies (like UAE or China) require documents translated into Arabic or Chinese. We offer certified translations in over 90 languages—available as an add-on.