United States

Apostille in Iowa

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: Iowa Secretary of State, Business Services Division

Which documents this office will accept

From the source: "The state can only certify documents that were signed by a notary or elected official within the state" — documents must bear the signature of an Iowa notary or Iowa elected/public official (e.g., certified vital records/court documents); no county-level pre-certification step stated

Certifications you may need first

No additional certification step is required before the apostille.

The request form

Form: A PDF request form.
Where to get it: https://sos.iowa.gov/business/pdf/APCERT.pdf
From the source: Apostille or Certification Request Form; a copy of the document must accompany the form

Requesting online

Online route: Part of the request is made online; the documents themselves still reach the office on paper.
Where: https://filings.sos.iowa.gov
From the source: Fast Track Filing system — submit via "Paper Filing Upload" as one multi-page PDF

Where to go in person

Des Moines

Iowa Secretary of State, Business Services, Lucas Building, First Floor, 321 E. 12th Street, Des Moines, IA 50319

Access: Open for walk-in service.
Hours: 8:00 AM–3:30 PM Mon–Fri
Same-day service: Available.
From the source: No appointment required

What it costs

Fee

$5.00 USD per document

"$5.00 per apostille or certification"

How to pay

By mail: Check.
Make it payable to: Not published. This office accepts a mailed check or money order but prints no payee name — confirm the payee on the official request form before you write it.
From the source: "Check, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover accepted. Do not mail cash." — channel split and payee string not published in the source block

Where to send your documents

Mailing address: Secretary of State, Business Services Division, Lucas Building, 1st Floor, Des Moines, Iowa 50319

How long it takes

This office publishes no turnaround commitment. What it does say:

In person: In person: same-day walk-in service 8:00 AM–3:30 PM Mon–Fri
From the source: Mail: not stated on official page; expedited return shipping only with requester-provided prepaid label (e.g., FedEx)

Getting your documents back

Expedited return shipping only with requester-provided prepaid label (e.g., FedEx)

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

Status: Remote online notarization is permitted here.
Legal basis: Iowa Code § 9B.14A (notarial acts for remotely located individuals), effective July 1, 2020 (unverified date — 2019 amendments to Ch. 9B took effect 7/1/2020)
What the notary must register: Notification, not registration — before the first remote act the notary must notify the Secretary of State and identify the technologies to be used (Iowa Code § 9B.14A(7)); must also complete an SOS-approved RON training course within 6 months before first remote act (IAC 721-43.5(3)"a")
How the signer is identified: Personal knowledge (§ 9B.7(1)); oath/affirmation of a credible witness (§§ 9B.7(2), 9B.14A(3)(a)); or at least two different types of identity-proofing processes/services: credential analysis (automated, NIST-standard) plus KBA (IAC 721-43.9(2)"a": minimum 5 questions from public/proprietary data sources, ≥80% correct). No biometric option specified
Fee caps: No maximum fee is recorded here for a remote act or for a standard notarial act. A missing cap is not the same as “no cap” — the reason is in the notes below.
From the source: No statutory cap on RON ("reasonable fee") or standard fees — "a notary in Iowa may charge a reasonable fee". Remote notary info page: https://apps.sos.iowa.gov/remotenotary

Other things the source says

E-register: none — receiving countries may call the office to verify a certification number ((515) 281-5204). Since 2025 Iowa issues a single certificate format for all countries, printed on standard paper (no gold seal)

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