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US Apostille Offices by State for Documents Used in Türkiye

US documents for Türkiye are apostilled by the issuing state. How state rules differ on County Clerk steps, certified vital records and e-Apostilles.

In the United States there is no single apostille office for state documents. Each state apostilles its own documents, and the office and the steps before it differ from one state to the next. A birth certificate from Texas and one from New York follow different paths, even though both end in Türkiye.

Where the states differ

The biggest difference concerns notarized documents. In New York, Maryland, Tennessee and Kentucky a notarized document first goes to a county official, the County Clerk or, in Maryland, the Clerk of the Circuit Court, who certifies the notary's signature before the state adds the apostille. In Texas and Georgia a notarized document goes straight to the state office.

Vital records bring their own rules. Kentucky and Alabama require the signature of the current State Registrar on birth and death certificates. Virginia only authenticates vital records issued within the past 12 months. Pennsylvania refuses death certificates signed by a local registrar, and Michigan does not accept original records at all, only certified copies from the county clerk or the State Registrar.

Electronic apostilles are not available everywhere. Kentucky and Utah offer them. Arizona states that it does not issue electronic apostilles, and Michigan and Colorado say they cannot provide apostilles online. Whether the Turkish authority that receives your file accepts an electronic apostille is its decision, so ask before choosing one.

Before you send anything

Check three things on your document: who signed it, whether that signature is one your state's office can certify, and whether a county step comes first. The state pages below answer those questions for each state we have verified, with links to the official sources.

After the apostille, the document comes to Ankara for the sworn translation into Turkish, and a Turkish notary certifies the translation when the receiving authority asks for it.

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