more layers than an onion

04Nov08

Earlier I mentioned that I would go over the steps for getting your apostille. I neglected to mention that there are three things you should do to prepare for the day

• Give yourself an entire afternoon; possibly an entire day 
• Bring a checkbook and some cash
• Get a smoothie when you’re done (you’ve earned it!)

First step: Get diploma. If you don’t have this already (my mom held onto mine on my behalf), order an official copy from the university. 

Second Step: take diploma to a notary public (NP). You may have to explain to them that you need a document stating that you are getting an apostille on a copy of a document that is a true original. Once you get the copy from the NP, head down to the county clerk’s office.

Third step: The county office’s job (in addition to handing out permits and marriage licenses) is to verify that the notary public is a real guy and authorized to authenticate a document. Then you head on over to the office of the Secretary of State.

Fourth step: The Secretary of state’s office job is to verify that the county clerk’s signature is real and to provide you with the actual apostille. It’s very pretty. Or maybe it’s just really pretty after dealing with all of these steps. Either way. You’re done.

I’m lucky. The notary public, county clerk and secretary of state’s office are all within blocks of each other in San Francisco. But if you’re in a smaller city, you’ll want to give yourself time to get this all completed. 

So go on and grab that smoothie

Filed under: moving   |  1 Comment
Tags: apostile, apostille, belgium visa, immigration, moving, moving to belgium, tips for moving