United States

Apostille in Consular records (CRBA)

Verified as of August 9, 2026

Everything below is transcribed from this office's own published sources and printed in its words. A value we could not confirm against an official page carries an unverified marker — but the absence of that marker is not a guarantee that a fact was checked, and the source's own doubts stay inside the notes reproduced here verbatim. Confirm fees, addresses and deadlines with the office before you send documents or money.

Who issues the apostille

Competent authority

U.S. Department of State — Passport Vital Records Section

NOT the Office of Authentications — the Passport Vital Records Section issues (and apostilles) overseas U.S.-citizen vital records: Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA, FS-240), Consular Reports of Death Abroad, and certificates of witness to marriage. HCCH lists this office as a separate federal competent authority ("no fee for issuance or an apostille on a document bearing the seal")

Which documents this office will accept

From the source: Mail: a "Notarized, completed Form DS-5542" + "Photocopy of a valid photo ID" + check or money order. Death/marriage apostille process mirrors CRBA — (unverified as separately stated on travel.state.gov)

Certifications you may need first

No additional certification step is required before the apostille.

The request form

Form: A PDF request form.
Form number: DS-5542
Where to get it: https://eforms.state.gov/Forms/ds5542.PDF
From the source: Form DS-5542 "Request for Overseas U.S. Citizen Vital Records" — the form must itself be NOTARIZED; covers all "Overseas U.S. Citizen Vital Records"

Requesting online

Online route: There is no online request route — this office takes requests on paper.

Where to go in person

The source lists no office for in-person service.

What it costs

Fee	Applies to	Details
No fee	apostille on an existing CRBA/consular vital record	Apostille itself: NO fee. Verbatim: "You don't need to pay for an apostille if you have a Consular Report of Birth Abroad issued within the last 5 years." Confirms HCCH's "no fee" statement
$50.00 USD per document	new certified copy of the CRBA (required when the record is older than 5 years)	"The cost is $50 if you need a new copy of your Consular Report of Birth Abroad." — $50 buys a new certified copy; the apostille is added at no charge

How to pay

By mail

Check or money order.

Make it payable to

U.S. Department of State

Copy that exactly as written.

From the source

Payment must be drawn on a U.S. bank.

Check or money order payable to "U.S. Department of State" (U.S. dollars, U.S. bank)

Where to send your documents

Mailing address: U.S. Department of State
Passport Vital Records Section
44132 Mercure Cir.
PO Box 1213
Sterling, VA 20166-1213

How long it takes

By mail: "We should process it in 4 to 8 weeks" (locating some records can take longer; National Archives manual searches "will take 6 months")

Checking status and verifying an apostille

Verify an issued apostille: No public verification register is published for this office. That is not the same as an apostille being unverifiable — ask the office how it confirms one.
Check a request's status: No status-tracking page is published for this office.

Remote online notarization

This authority issues apostilles but commissions no notaries, so there are no remote-notarization rules at this level. They belong to the state or province where the notary holds their commission.

Every United States jurisdiction in this handbook

Other countries: Canada — Federal — Global Affairs Canada · Mexico — Federal — Secretaría de Gobernación (SEGOB)

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