American Citizen Services
Public Services
Authentication Procedures
Documents issued in one country which need to be used in a foreign country, such as powers of attorney, affidavits, birth, death and marriages records, must be "authenticated" or "legalized" before they can be recognized as valid in the foreign country. This is a process in which various seals are placed on the document. Such documents range from powers of attorney, affidavits, birth, death and marriages records, incorporation papers, deeds, patent applications, home studies and other legal papers.
To authenticate a document issued in the United States for use in a foreign country that is not a signatory to the Hague Legalization Convention, you must complete the "chain authentication process" in which a series of authorities will affix a succession of seals beginning with your document and ending with the seal of the U.S. Embassy in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, or the seal of the foreign Embassy/Consulate in the United States. Turkmenistan is not a signatory to the Hague Legalization Convention.
How to Authenticate a Document
STEP ONE: Obtain the document and complete the first authentication
Documents issued by educational institutions (college degrees, vocational/educational certificates, transcripts):
Documents issued by schools and colleges should be originals and be obtained from the educational institutions themselves. Most schools have notaries public to provide certified copies of the degrees or transcripts. Contact the school to determine how best to have your document authenticated by the state’s Secretary of State. In some cases, you may be required to bring the document to a county office for authentication, and then authenticated by the state’s Secretary of State.
Documents issued by a U.S. State: State documents are those originating with a state court or agency (birth, death, marriage, etc.). They must be authenticated by that state’s Secretary of State. Contact them or send your original document or its certified copy for initial authentication of the town/county/state issuing officer.
Information on the offices of Secretaries of State for the U.S. states:
http://travel.state.gov/law/legal/treaty
www.statelocal.net
Notarized documents: The procedure for authenticating documents executed before a notary public, such as affidavits or acknowledgments, varies from state to state. It is advisable to contact the state authentication authority to learn what steps are necessary between the notary seal and the state level authentication.
Documents issued by federal agencies: If your document was issued under the seal of a federal agency, it does not require a state level authentication. You may skip directly to Step Two.
Documents issued by federal courts: Documents issued under the seal of a federal court should be sent to
Justice Management Division, Security Program Staff
Physical Security Office, Room 6531
9th and Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, D.C. 20530
Telephone: (202) 514-2314 or 514-4667
STEP TWO: Get your document authenticated by the U.S. Department of State Authentications Office
Once you have completed the state level authentication, you must get your document authenticated by the U.S. Department of State Authentications Office. There is a fee of $6.00 for each authentication. You may pay by a check drawn on a U.S. bank or a money order made payable to the Department of State.
Department of State Documents Authentication Office
518 23rd ST. N.W., SA-1, Columbia Plaza
Washington, D.C. 20520
Telephone: (202) 647-5002 or 1-800-688-9889, FAX: (202) 663-3636,
E-mail: aoprgsmauth@state.gov
http://www.state.gov.
For additional information, call the Federal Information Center at 1-800-688-9889. Processing time for authentication requests sent by mail is five working days or less.
STEP THREE: The final authentication
In Turkmenistan -- At the U.S. Embassy:
If you are in Turkmenistan, you may bring the chain of authenticated documents to the Embassy for the final authentication. The authentication costs $30 per document. The Embassy can only authenticate the seal of the Secretary of State of the U.S. Department of State.
In the U.S. – At the Embassy of Turkmenistan: You may submit the chain of authentications to the Embassy of Turkmenistan in Washington, D.C., for final authentication. Contact the Embassy of Turkmenistan for details.
