Hague Convention Countries for a U.S. Apostille 2026

There are one hundred and thirty Hague Convention countries as of today. Of those, 128 already have the apostille in force. The other two join within months: Viet Nam on 11 September 2026 and Thailand on 28 February 2027.

An apostille is a certificate that proves who signed a public document and in what capacity. With it, the paper works in another country without a stop at the consulate. The Hague Convention of 5 October 1961 created it, and it replaced the old legalization chain with a single seal.

None active. The only one was against Liberia, and the United States withdrew it on 20 May 2015. Since then a U.S. apostille works before all 130 parties. Objections do exist between other countries — Germany against India, for instance — but they do not affect a U.S. document.

You use the consular route. The document goes first to the Department of State and then to that country’s consulate in the United States. More offices and more time, although the result is the same valid document. We handle that too.

Yes, and the HCCH is explicit: an apostille cannot be refused merely because it was issued electronically. The practical question is different, though, because your document is apostilled in the United States. The Department of State is not listed in the HCCH e-APP register, and of the state pilots only Kentucky and Montana remain active: five others closed on 30 September 2025. In practice, your U.S. apostille is a paper document.

Private ones: powers of attorney, affidavits, minor travel consents, invitation letters and contracts. A U.S. notary signs all of those first. Public documents — birth or marriage certificates, FBI background checks — do not need it, because an authority already issued them.

It depends on your deadline. If you can file after the entry-into-force date, waiting saves you the entire consular step. If it cannot wait, the consular route applies today and remains perfectly valid.

Any address you give us: your home, a relative’s, the law firm, the university or the public office asking for it. It leaves Miami by DHL Express with a tracking number.

It depends on the document and on the office certifying it, so we do not quote a generic figure. What we do is give you the real timeline in writing before we start, together with a closed price.

No. A U.S. notary notarizes, which is a separate and earlier step. Only the competent authority issues the apostille. That means the secretary of state where the paper came from, or the Department of State in Washington.