What is an apostille?

When you are gathering your documents for your Italian dual citizenship, you will undoubtedly come across the need to obtain apostilles.

Apo--what? I know! Most people have never even heard of such a thing until they're putting together their citizenship files.

So, what exactly are they? And how do you get one?

In this post, I'll go through the A to Z of apostilling so you can DIY this portion of your Italian citizenship application with ease.

The Hague Convention of 1961

Pretend you're a government worker in Italy, how do you know the vital records you're accepting from the United States are actual, official documents? For all you know, the documents a person hands to you can be fake.

That question got answered in 1961 at the Hague Convention.

A bunch of countries decided together that they would formulate a common certification that could be affixed to documents issued among them. This would simplify processes to provide a single, unifying element on official documents that each country could recognize as valid.

Any document issued with an apostille would be immediately accepted by another. And only real, official documents can be affixed with an apostille.

So, in essence: if you hand in your documents with apostilles on them, the Italian government can breathe a sigh of relief that they are indeed proper certified documents.

What does an apostille do?

Essentially, an apostille certifies the signature of the person signing the original document as official.

It is an insurance that your documents are valid and will be accepted in another country party to the Hague Convention.

What does an apostille look like?

Here's the fun part. Every state has their own apostille format, though they basically all look similar and have the same wording.

Here's an apostille from California, taken from the website of Global Apostille.

Here's one from New York:

And here's one from Pennsylvania:

As you can see, all apostilles basically say the same thing even if their formatting is different.

How do you get an apostille?

Obtaining an apostille is actually very simple. It's probably the easiest part of the dual citizenship process, even if it at first seems unfamiliar.

First of all, know that apostilles can only be obtained in the state in which the original document was issued. In other words, a New York document can only be apostilled in New York. A Utah document can only be apostilled in Utah. A Hawaii document can only be apostilled in Hawaii. And so on.

Here's what you need to do:

1. Google "apostille (the name of the state". So, Google "apostille Georgia" if you're looking for apostilles in Georgia. Insert the name of your specific state where appropriate.

2. Ignore the first few results. Sadly, these are probably from private companies offering apostille services. Their prices are usually CRIMINAL ($200 and up for one apostille. Oh, heck no!).

3. You want to find the result that is from the actual government of the state you need. So, the Treasury office for some states, or the Secretary of State for others. It all depends on which state you need, but it will always be a government website.

4. Download the state-specific apostille request form.

5. Drop your certified vital record in an envelope with the apostille request form and payment.

6. The state will send your apostilled document back to you. It will consist of the original vital record plus a cover. The cover is the apostille.

A word of advice: do not--and I repeat, do not!!--use a company for apostille services. They usually charge an arm and a leg for what is a very affordable process. It should cost no more than $40 (in the most expensive state, Connecticut) to apostille your document.

Note that if you have documents from New York, you need to complete one step prior to the above. You first need to get the document authenticated by the county clerk of the county that issued the document. This is usually $3-5. An apostille in New York costs another $10. As far as I am aware, New York is the only two-step state.

Conclusion

If you are applying for Italian dual citizenship, you will need to apostille some (or all) of your documents. As long as you follow my steps outline above, you'll be a paperwork pro in no time!