Does I need to
notarized before apostille?
Yes and no.
It all depends on what type of legal document you have.
If you need to apostille a recordable document that the recording authority (clerk of a county court, probate court, DMV, or Vital Statistics/Vital Records) is authorized to record, usually by state statute you don’t need to get it notarized.
Recordable documents are legal documents such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, marriage licenses, divorce certificates, divorce decrees, death certificates, probated Wills, judgments, and Texas DPS-issued driving records or criminal record reports.
If you need to apostille a non-recordable document which is a type of document that does not appear in the official records of any government office or publicly recorded records of a governing body you will need to get it properly notarized.
Non-recordable documents are legal documents such as a power of attorney, wills, trusts, lease agreements, elementary, high school, and college degrees, diplomas, transcripts, or records, affidavits, contracts, leases, translation and translated documents, consent forms, travel forms, utility bills, bill of sales, agreements, shipping records, immigration and adoption paperwork, and identification photocopies like driver’s licenses, passports, visas, permanent resident green cards, Pan Cards, and social security cards.
