As a leading mobile notary public service, we at Boston Mobile Notary Service want our clients to fully understand the differences between notarization and apostille. While both are important for validating documents, they serve distinct purposes. Knowing when each process is required can help streamline legal acceptance of your records.
Notarization verifies the identity of individuals signing documents in the presence of a notary public. We confirm the signer willingly executed the signing and is who they claim to be. A notarized signature deters forgery. This process is commonly used for real estate closings, bank forms, powers of attorney and more when keeping documents for domestic use.
An apostille provides further authentication for public records and notarized documents that will be sent abroad. It certifies the validity and origin of select documents like birth certificates, academic transcripts or signed contracts for legal acceptance in other nations. After we notarize a document, the Massachusetts Secretary of State issues an apostille endorsement verifying its authenticity.
Over 120 countries worldwide only accept American records with a certified apostille. While notarization alone may suffice domestically, an apostille is necessary when using documents for official purposes in other countries like school enrollment, property ownership or business deals.
As your mobile notary team, we are well-versed in both processes. We handle all aspects of identity verification, signing supervision, sealing, signing and attaching apostille certifications if needed - with convenience and compliance. Contact us to discuss authenticating documents for signature or international use according to the appropriate procedure. Proper validation is key to legal acceptance worldwide.