Are you planning to move to a foreign country for work, study, retirement, or marriage? Were you asked to obtain an apostille on your birth certificate, marriage certificate, or other public document issued in California? Is the country of your destination a member of the Hague Apostille Convention?

An apostille is a form of authentication for documents to become acceptable in countries that participate in the Hague Convention of 1961. An apostille authenticates the signature of a public official on a document for use outside of the country of its issue.

If you are going to work, study, adopt a child, retire, or open a business in a foreign country, expect that you will be asked to provide an FBI criminal background check apostille.