Apostille New York Vital Records

Authenticate New York birth, death and marriage certificates for use abroad

Isarey provides expedited Apostilles to authenticate Vital Records issued by New York State and New York City.

Apostilles on New York marriage, death and birth certificates are obtained from the Secretary of State and dispatched in 1 - 2 business days.

New York State certificates requiring prior certification by the local County Clerk (certificates signed by local Registrars, City Clerks or Town Clerks) take an additional 3-5 business days.

Apostilles can be obtained for New York City birth, death and marriage certificates issued in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens or Staten Island, certificates issued by the New York Department of Health, and certificates signed by local Registrars, City Clerks or Town Clerks of New York State.

• Get a quotation to apostille New York documents
• FAQs - New York Apostille Services
• How to obtain New York vital records

New York City Birth and Death Certificates

Some New York City death and birth certificates are only eligible for authentication and Apostille stamping if submitted with a Letter of Exemplification. Letters of exemplification are issued by the Deputy City Registrar and confirm the authenticity of the underlying certificate.

New York City birth and death certificates issued by the New York City Department of Health do not require a letter of exemplification if they have the signatures of one of the following city registrars:

• Steven Schwartz, Irene Scanlon, Earlene Price, Irwing Mellon

To confirm whether your certificate is eligible for a New York Apostille without a letter of exemplification, please contact us.

Letters of exemplification are only issued with new certificates and cannot be ordered separately. If your certificate requires a letter of exemplification to be authenticated and you do not have one, then a new certificate must be ordered.

New York City Marriage Certificates

New York marriage certificates issued for marriages occurring in the boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens or Staten Island can be authenticated with an Apostille Stamp when it has then signature of one of the following New York City Clerks:

• Michael McSweeney, Carlos Cuevas, David Dinkins, Victor Robles

If your certificate has a different signature, it is not eligible for a New York Apostille and a new certified copy must be obtained. To confirm whether your certificate is eligible, please contact us.

New York State Certificates

Certificates issued by New York State, for births, deaths and marriages occurring outside the 5 boroughs of New York City can be legalized as they are with an Apostille stamp when issued by the New York Department of Health.

Certificates signed by local Registrars, City Clerks or Town Clerks of New York State are also generally eligible for an Apostille Stamp and Authentication, but will require prior certification by the local County Clerk. Please allow an additional 3-5 business days for us to obtain County Clerk certification.

In some cases, older certificates cannot be certified and new copies will need to be ordered. Please contact us and we will confirm whether your certificate is eligible for a New York Apostille.

Long and Short Form Certificates

New York City and New York State issue both long and short form birth and marriage certificates. While both types can be authenticated and stamped with an Apostille, not all overseas authorities will accept short form certificates.

Short form birth certificates ("Certification of Birth", "Certificate of Birth Registration", "Certified Transcript of Birth") only provide basic information. Long form birth certificates include additional information about the child's parents, place of birth and assisting doctor. Long form marriage certificates include information about the spouses' parents, number of previous marriages and names of witnesses.

If your certificate is a short form certificate, please confirm with the authority you are submitting it to that a long form certiifcate is not required. For any assistance, please contact us.

New York City Marriage and Death certificates issued before 1949

Certified copies of New York City death and marriage certificates dated before 1949 and issued by the New York City Municipal Archives are also eligible for authentication by the New York Secretary of State. The Municipal Archives will issue a copy of the certificate certified with a letter of exemplification, which can then be authenticated with a New York Apostille.

Isarey can retrieve vital records from the Municipal Archives for clientrs requiring apostilles or authentication. Please contact us.

Apostille or Authentication

Countries that have acceded to the Apostille Convention will recognise New York Apostilles directly as confirming authenticity, without requiring additional certification in the United States. New York birth, death and marriage certificates needed for use in non-Apostille countries require an Authentication Certificate from the New York Secretary of State and must then be attested by the embassy of the recipient country (some embassies also require prior legalization by the U.S. Department of State in Washington DC).

Countries that accept New York Apostille stamps directly include:
Spain - Italy - Portugal - Greece - Cyprus - France - United Kingdom - Saudi Arabia - Germany - China

Countries requiring an authentication certificate and embassy attestation include:
Qatar - Kuwait - United Arab Emirates - Taiwan - Vietnam

See: List of Apostille Convention Countries

New York Apostilles cannot be obtained for Birth, Marriage, Death and Adoption certificates issued in other U.S. states. Notarized copies of New York vital records cannot be used to obtain apostilles - the original certificate is required and the Apostille or Authentication will be attached to the original.

Certified translations of New York vital records

When New York birth, death and marriage certificates are required for submission to the authorities of a country that does not have English as an official language, a certified translation is often required. The translation should normally be done after the Apostille is obtained on the original certificate, as the original apostille will also need to be translated.

There are generally two options for certifying the translation so that it is officially accepted by the consulates, embassies or authorities of the recipient country.

• A translation can be done in the United States. The translation is then certified before a notary and a second Apostille is obtained to authenticate it. The notarization and Apostille do not need to be issued in New York and normally it is cheaper and easier to certify the translation in Washington DC with an Apostille from the Washington DC Secretary of State.
• A certified translation can be done in the destination country. We work with sworn translators in Italy, Brazil, Spain, France, Germany and many other countries, ensuring that your documents are correctly translated and that the translations are properly certified for official acceptance.

The best option normally depends on whether the documents and translations are to be submitted to authorities in the recipient country or to an embassy or consulate of the recipient country in the United States.

Please contact us for advice and assistance.

Vital Records from other U.S. states

As well as New York, we provide apostille services across the United States. We work with local notaries and authentication companies in different states to ensure low-cost and expedited processing of apostilles and authentications of birth, death and marriage records as well as other State and Federal documents, including Apostilles for FBI Background Checks.