Federal and state apostilles, handled end-to-end
Monument Visa is the U.S.-based apostille service we recommend for Americans moving abroad. They handle FBI background checks, vital records, IRS letters, naturalization certificates, and notarized affidavits — both the federal apostille route through the U.S. Department of State and the state-level routes through any of the 50 Secretaries of State.
Get an apostille quote →The U.S. has two apostille systems running in parallel — federal documents go to the U.S. Department of State in Washington, state documents go to the Secretary of State in the issuing state. Send a state document to the wrong place and it comes back unapostilled, costing you two weeks. Monument Visa eliminates that risk by routing everything correctly the first time. They handle the most common documents Americans need for visas abroad: FBI background checks, birth certificates, marriage certificates, divorce decrees, IRS Letter 6166 / Form 6166, Social Security letters, naturalization certificates, and notarized affidavits.
Federal + state covered
They route to the U.S. Department of State or the correct Secretary of State automatically.
Fast turnaround
Federal apostilles back in 1–2 weeks. State varies — fast in Texas/Florida, slower in California/NY.
One envelope, one transaction
Ship one packet to Monument; they handle the rest. No back-and-forth with multiple state offices.
When to use an apostille service vs DIY
DIY works fine if you’re only apostilling one or two documents in a single state and you’re not on a tight timeline. Use a service like Monument Visa if you’re apostilling documents from multiple states, you’re working against a consulate appointment, or you don’t want to learn the state-specific notary-clerk-certification quirks. The cost premium is small relative to the consequences of getting it wrong and missing a visa appointment.
- Federal apostilles through U.S. Department of State
- State apostilles in all 50 Secretaries of State
- Document procurement if you don’t have certified originals yet
- Tracked round-trip shipping on every order
- Specialists in expat documents — FBI, vital records, IRS, USCIS
Editorial recommendation. Settleguru recommends Monument Visa as our preferred apostille service. Monument is an independent business; pricing and turnaround are set by Monument and may change.