Apostille of a US Marriage Certificate
A marriage certificate is a legal government record that legally demonstrates a legal union between two people.
A marriage certificate apostille is a common requirement amongst marriage-based citizenship petitions, inheritance claims, and for updating marital status for identification documents. Other international procedures may require the apostille of your marriage certificate.
In the United States, a short-form marriage certificate is often issued for domestic purposes, whereas the long-form marriage certificate is what is usually requested for international purposes. A short-form marriage certificate only lists the bare minimum information needed for most US-based procedures, where the long-form marriage certificate (often dubbed extended form in foreign countries) contains all the information of your marriage, including parents’ countries of birth, witnesses, and times previously married.
Not sure if your certificate is the correct one? Request a quote and use our upload document feature so that our team can provide guidance for your documentation and apostille needs!
NYC Marriage Certificates
New York City Marriage Certificates are issued by the Office of the City Clerk of New York (if issued after 1950). Located in Downtown Manhattan, they are the only agency in charge of issuing records for births that occur across the five boroughs.
If your record was issued before 1950, you or your relative’s marriage certificate is under the custody of NYC Municipal Archives.
We are able to assist with obtaining your records, whether they are new certificates or historical ones. Let us know if this is your case!
Apostille Requirements for a New York City Marriage Certificate
Your certificate can either be a long-form or a short-form marriage certificate. We always recommend the long-form marriage certificate, since this is what most foreign countries and embassies require.
Your certificate must be certified by the New York County Clerk office.
Failure to comply with any of the above requirements will result in a rejected application from the New York Department of State.
In a rush? Global Apostille Group can assist with obtaining your record, if needed, as well as obtain your apostille. Contact us today for a quote!
True Copy Apostille
What if my record does not comply with the above requirements?
What if I do not want to give up my original record? It’s my original record!
Or what if I simply no longer have the original record and obtaining a certified copy will take months? I need my apostille now.
Global Apostille Group can provide a “true copy” apostille of copies of your record. We can attach an affidavit to your document, certifying the record as a true copy of the original, and notarize the affidavit. This process bypasses the need to have the original, as the apostille will certify the notary’s signature, not the signature on the official record. The apostille of this notarized true copy will be done in New York State.
Before opting for this process, please contact the authorities who are receiving your document if they will accept the apostille of your document via a notarized copy. If the country of destination:
Requires the apostille to certify the official signature of the record,
Will not accept a notarized copy of your record, or,
Requires the apostille must be issued by the official Department of State where the document was issued (i.e. if your document is from the State of Virginia, the apostille is from Virginia).
If any of the above apply, please obtain a correct, certified copy of your record prior to submitting for apostille.