Divorce Decree Apostille and Authentication Service
If you need a divorce decree apostille, we can help you get it. Here is how the apostille process works and the steps to follow.
What is a divorce decree?
A divorce decree is called a Final Judgment of the Dissolution of Marriage or simply a Judgment in California. The Judgment is a court document that outlines the terms of your divorce.
The Marital Settlement Agreement is attached to the judgment, and this document details all the terms of the divorce, including the division of assets and debts, spousal support, and child custody, visitation, and support orders. The Marriage Settlement Agreement does not always need to be included. In most cases, the requesting party is simply looking for proof that the parties are no longer married. Please check with the requesting party to determine exactly which documents you need.
Three Commonly Requested Divorce Documents
According to the California DOJ’s California Courts Self Help Guide, a Judgment (form FL-180) is the final court order to get a divorce.
A Notice of Entry of Judgment (form FL-190) is a form that the court mails out after the judge has signed the judgment. It states the day your marriage or domestic partnership officially ends, making the divorce final.
If after 60 days neither party files for a modification of the divorce settlement, the County Court Clerk issues a Clerk’s Certificate of Non-Appeal.
The California Secretary of State can issue an apostille certification for any or all of these documents.
What is a divorce decree apostille?
In brief, a divorce decree apostille is a Hague Convention apostille (a.k.a. Secretary of State apostille) that authenticates a divorce decree so that it can be legally recognized in foreign countries. Apostilled divorce decrees are often required when applying to remarry overseas and for immigration, foreign estate settlements, and other legal matters.
The California Secretary of State (CA SOS) requires submission of a certified copy of the divorce decree. In the CA SOS process, an SOS staff member reviews the document for eligibility and verifies the signature of the County Court Clerk who signed it. If all is in order, they will staple a numbered paper apostille certificate to the document and add a red circular stamp that is half on the apostille certificate and half on the divorce decree. Our service takes care of this for you in just one or two business days.
Countries that are not members of the Hague Apostille Convention (such as Thailand, the UAE, or Vietnam) require additional embassy or consulate and often U.S. State Department authentication. We will detail the services required and the timeline for obtaining any additional authentication services you need in our price quote (see Step 3).
How do I get a divorce decree apostilled or authenticated?
1. Check the location of divorce
The California Secretary of State will adhere apostille certificates to divorce documents certified by a County Court Clerk working in any of California’s 58 counties. However, if you were divorced in another state or country, we might be able to help you obtain an apostille. Email [email protected] or call +1 (415) 655-9455 to discuss.
2. Obtain an official copy of the divorce decree from the court
While the CA SOS may issue an apostille on a photocopy of a divorce decree attached to a notarized cover letter, overseas entities will rarely accept an apostilled divorce decree in this format. For the most part, parties require a court-certified copy of the divorce decree produced and certified by the County Court Clerk who works in the courthouse in which you were divorced.
We can pick up certified copies of divorce documents in Alameda County, Marin County, San Mateo County, or San Francisco County for an additional fee.
3. Email us for a price quote.
In order to get a quick price quote, email [email protected] with the following information:
- Your name, telephone number, and current physical location
- The name, address, telephone number, and email address of the person to whom we will ship the apostilled divorce document(s)
- The destination country (e.g. France)
- A scan of the document you need or the name of the county in which you were divorced
- A statement indicating whether you have a certified copy of your divorce document, or you need assistance obtaining one or more documents
We will respond with a price quote without delay. Once we’ve agreed upon a price, we will send you an invoice and start the apostille/authentication process.
4. Send the divorce document(s) to us (when applicable)
If you are shipping us one or more documents and we have given you the green light to proceed, please send them to:
SF Notary + Apostille Sacramento
2511 Carlsbad Ave.
Sacramento, CA 95821
USA
If you are including payment by check or money order, please make it payable to “AMN SF, LLC.”
5. We’ll take it from there.
As soon as we have the document, we will obtain the apostille from the Secretary of State in Sacramento. If you need the document authenticated for a non-Hague apostille country, we will obtain the additional authentications required. In either case, once it’s properly authenticated, we will ship the document to you or the specified recipient.
We use FedEx Priority Overnight Service for USA destinations and FedEx International Priority Service for overseas destinations. For any document shipped overseas, we will also send you a scan of the apostilled divorce decree for your records.
In order to obtain more information or place your order, please email [email protected] or call +1 (415) 655-9455.
Disclaimer: Information on this website is for informational purposes only. These instructions are based on our knowledge and experience and are meant to be helpful; however, they might contain errors. Please let us know if you encounter mistakes so that we can promptly correct them. SF Notary + Apostille is not a law firm, and its agents are not attorneys. Please contact a licensed attorney or your local bar association for counsel on legal matters.