For UIUC Students and Scholars
Sending Your UIUC Documents Abroad
What an apostille is, what the Registrar issues, and what happens next.
Why Your Document Needs an Extra Step
If an employer, a university, or a government office in another country has asked you to have a document authenticated, apostilled, or legalized, this page explains what that means. You do not need to know any of the terminology to get started.
A document issued in Illinois carries a signature or a seal that offices in Illinois recognise. An office in another country has no way to know whether that signature or seal is real. So a designated state authority adds its own certificate confirming that the document, or the official signature on it, is genuine. That certificate is what people mean by an apostille.
Without it, the office abroad may simply refuse the document, even though nothing about the document itself is wrong.
An Official Document Is Not the Same as a Printed Copy
This is where most requests stall. A transcript you download and print from a student portal is a copy. It has no original signature or seal on it, so there is nothing for the state to authenticate.
The version this process requires is the official one issued by the university office that holds the record, normally in a sealed envelope. Please leave that envelope sealed. The same principle applies to a diploma, a birth certificate, and a marriage certificate: request the official record from the office that issues it.
Documents Students and Scholars Usually Need
- Diplomas and degree certificates
- Official transcripts
- FBI background checks
- Birth certificates for family or visa matters
- Marriage certificates
- Powers of attorney signed before leaving the United States
Step by Step
- 01
Request the official document from the issuing office
For a transcript or diploma, that is the university office that issues it. For a birth certificate, it is the vital records office that holds it. The version you request has to be the official one, not a copy you print.
- 02
Bring or send the document to Illini Notary
You can drop it off in Champaign or send it to us. Please do not email the contents of your documents.
- 03
We determine the correct pathway
We check what your destination country requires and who issued your document, and we complete the notarization if one is needed for that document.
- 04
We submit it for authentication
For documents Illinois issues or notarizes, we submit the request to the Illinois Secretary of State. If your document belongs to a different authority, we tell you and route it correctly.
- 05
You receive your completed document
The authenticated document comes back to you, and we explain plainly whether any step remains before you send it on.
If You Have Already Left Champaign-Urbana
The process works the same way whether you are still on campus or already home. Documents can be sent to us, and if something needs your signature, that can be handled in a secure video session under Illinois law rather than requiring you to travel.
Questions Students Ask First
Notarization and apostille are separate steps performed by separate authorities. Authentication is issued by a government authority, not by a notary. Handling times are subject to Illinois Secretary of State processing times. We do not guarantee acceptance of a document by any foreign government, consulate, court, agency, or receiving party. Confirm your receiving party's current requirements before ordering.
Illini Notary and Signing Services is not a law firm and is not authorized to provide immigration advice or to prepare immigration filings. We notarize signatures and facilitate authentication where Illinois law permits. We are not notarios. In the United States a notary public has no authority to give legal advice or to represent another person in an immigration matter. Immigration questions must be directed to a licensed attorney or to a representative accredited by the United States Department of Justice. Illinois law also limits the fees a notary public may charge for a notarial act.
Related Pages
Illinois Apostille Services
The full explanation of how Illinois authentication works, in more detail.
Remote Online Notarization
Sign from outside Illinois in a secure video session.
Apostille Service in Champaign and Urbana
The local drop off path if you are still in town.
Apostille for China
What changed in November 2023 for documents going to mainland China.
Apostille for India
Degree certificates and powers of attorney going to India.
Apostille for South Korea
Why a diploma and a background check travel by different routes.
Next Step
Start My Request.
Send your contact details and tell us what you were asked for. We will tell you what is needed next, in plain language.
Prices shown are estimates. Your exact quote is confirmed once we have the full scope of your documents and service needs.
Illini Notary and Signing Services is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. Notarial acts are performed in accordance with the Illinois Notary Public Act.
Please do not send document contents by email.