Do you need to certify, legalize, and attest your U.S. documents for Canada?

Documents originating from the United States (Example: Birth, death, marriage, divorce, single status, etc…) can be certified, legalized, and attested for Canada.

Canada is not a member of the Hague Apostille Convention (Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents).  Documents originating from the USA and destined for this country requires several steps to complete. These steps are necessary in order for the country of Canada to accept your documents.

Here is an illustration to help explain the process:

In order to process your documents for Canada, they first needs to be certified from the State of origin.  For example, if your birth certificate is from New York City, the certificate will need to be authenticated through the County (Exemplification), New York Department of State, US Department of State, and Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C.

For U.S. Federal documents (Example: FBI, Social Security, FDA, USDA, etc…), these documents only require US Department of State certification and Embassy legalization.

Office Hours: Monday – Saturday 9am – 6pm
Customer Support: 1-800-850-3441
Email: Canada@apostilleservices.com

Please Note: We can help you with documents originating from or notarized within the United States and for another country. If your documents originated from Canada (Example: Birth, marriage, death, divorce, etc..), you will need to contact the correct competent authority to assist you in that country.

Legalizing documents for Canada can be complicated and time-consuming. Don’t leave this process to untrained employees or non-professionals who do not fully understand the legalization process and the unique requirements of this country. Your paperwork could be rejected costing you time and money. Don’t let this happen to you!