California's Apostille Service Comes to Ventura County for One Day in September
(CLAIR | Simi Valley, CA) — That birth certificate or diploma won't mean much overseas without one extra stamp. This September, getting it takes a walk-in visit in Ventura instead of a drive to LA or a trip to Sacramento.
The apostille pop-up returns for its second year Thursday, September 10, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The partnership between the Ventura County Clerk-Recorder's office and the California Secretary of State's office brings the one-day service closer to home for residents across the county.
An apostille is a certificate that verifies a public document is genuine so another country will accept it. It confirms the signature, stamp or seal of the official who signed the paper, according to the U.S. Department of State. The term comes from the French word for annotation, a nod to the certificate's origin in a 1961 Hague Convention Treaty that streamlined document authentication between member countries.
Take a Simi Valley resident planning a wedding in Italy. Italian officials won't accept a California birth certificate at face value. Once that birth certificate carries an apostille from the Secretary of State, Italy is bound by treaty to recognize it as authentic. No further embassy visits or extra paperwork required.
The California Secretary of State is the only entity authorized to issue apostilles for documents from this state. Its regular in-person service is limited to offices in Sacramento and Los Angeles. That leaves local residents driving well over an hour each way to Los Angeles for routine paperwork, which is why the pop-up shop has drawn steady interest since it launched in the county last year.
"Apostille certification serves to authenticate documents for international use," said Michelle Ascencion, Ventura County Clerk-Recorder. "The SOS began holding pop-up shop events in other counties a few years ago, and we held our first pop-up here last year. Due to positive feedback from the community we are happy to bring this service back to Ventura County."
Documents commonly brought in for certification include birth, marriage, death and divorce records. Diplomas and transcripts qualify. Business filings such as articles of incorporation and certificates of good standing can be authenticated. Legal papers like powers of attorney and court orders are also eligible. Affidavits, medical certificates, travel consent letters and bank statements can qualify as well.
The event is walk-in only, with no appointments taken. Customers are served first come, first served. The county is warning that wait times could stretch one to two hours depending on turnout.
Anyone attending must bring the original document, not a photocopy, along with a completed Apostille Pop-Up Shop Request Cover Sheet. The document must have been issued in California, signed by a California public official, certified in California or notarized by a local notary public.
Payment runs $20 per apostille plus a $6 special handling fee for each different official's signature on a document. The county is not accepting cash. Payment must be made by Visa, MasterCard, check or money order payable to the Secretary of State.
This year's pop-up is also adding domestic partnership registration, a new service alongside the apostille certifications.
The event runs at the Hall of Administration, Ventura County Government Center, 800 S. Victoria Ave. in Ventura. Parking is available in Lot F or Lot G. More information on apostille services is available at sos.ca.gov/notary/request-apostille. Details on the county Clerk-Recorder's office can be found at clerkrecorder.venturacounty.gov.
