Wisconsin Apostille Services

Before you start

1. 1Identify the destination country and confirm whether the Apostille Convention applies between that country and the United States — non-Convention destinations use the Secretary of State, not DFI.
2. 2Obtain the correct certified record from the responsible issuing office — vital records, court orders and corporate certificates each come from different custodians.
3. 3Contact us with your document type and destination before mailing originals. If mailing, use a trackable shipping method and keep your tracking number.

Two Wisconsin authorities, with different services

• Wisconsin recognizes both the Secretary of State and the Department of Financial Institutions as apostille authorities.
• For an authentication intended for a non-Convention destination, use the Secretary of State.
• Confirm that the Apostille Convention applies between the United States and the destination before choosing a route.
• The Secretary of State allows customers to begin a paper-document order and pay online, but the required paper records must still be delivered for review.
• Starting online does not itself authenticate the document.

Vital records: use the custodian's certified copy

• Birth, marriage, death and divorce certificates must come from the appropriate public records custodian, such as the state registrar or local register of deeds.
• They should not be notarized as replacement copies.
• Tell the custodian that the record is for foreign use, and check whether the receiving authority requires a recently issued or long-form record.
• For other government records, the official's name, title, date and proper signature or seal matter.
• An apostille authenticates the origin of the record; it does not establish that its contents satisfy every overseas requirement.

Need a new certificate and an apostille?

• Wisconsin Vital Records describes a combined mailing process: submit the vital-record application, identification and fee together with the selected apostille authority's application, fee and prescribed return envelope.
• Vital Records issues the certified copy and forwards the apostille materials to the Secretary of State or DFI, which completes its own review.
• If you already hold a suitable certified copy, apply directly to the appropriate apostille authority.
• A divorce certificate is a one-page summary; the detailed decree or judgment must be obtained from the county clerk of court where the divorce occurred.
• Ask the receiving office which record it needs before ordering.

Paper scans and electronic apostilles are different

• The Secretary of State's modernization guidance describes e-apostilles for eligible documents created, issued and maintained electronically from the beginning.
• Examples may include electronic transcripts or eligible remotely notarized documents.
• Scanning a paper document does not make it eligible.
• The guidance excludes vital records from the electronic program.
• Confirm the native file, verification method and destination requirements before selecting this service.
• Some general instructions still describe wet-ink-only notarizations, so ask the office to confirm eligibility for your specific electronic document instead of assuming every PDF or online notarization qualifies.
• Paper documents follow the physical certificate process.

UW–Madison diplomas: request the university's letter

• UW–Madison can prepare a notarized letter certifying a diploma and mail a true copy for submission to the Secretary of State.
• If you have the original diploma, the university says you do not need to buy a duplicate just for this procedure.
• A duplicate with different governance signatures from those in office at graduation may require the registrar's notarized letter.
• Use the university's current Notarized Diploma request form.
• UW–Madison does not notarize CeDiplomas.
• Questions about the university process can go to [email protected] or 608-262-3811.

UW–Madison official transcripts need no extra notarization

• The university's official transcript carries the registrar's signature and office seal.
• UW–Madison states that this satisfies the Wisconsin Secretary of State's apostille requirements without additional notarization, and it does not offer a separate handwritten or notarized transcript.
• Order the official record and confirm the paper or eligible electronic submission route.
• Do not apply these UW–Madison instructions automatically to a different school; ask that institution's registrar about its own certification process.

Powers of attorney and other private documents

• Private powers of attorney, affidavits and consent documents need a complete appropriate notarial certificate.
• For an eligible copy of a privately held document, Wisconsin's guidance requires the notary to inspect the original and personally make the copy.
• Public-record certification remains with its custodian.
• Share the receiving office's instructions before arranging notarization so the proposed document and certification can be reviewed together.

Corporate records need the right order

• DFI's Certificate of Status and Certified Copy Order provides a foreign-use notarization selection for certified copies.
• Identify the entity, specific filing and date rather than sending an ordinary search-result printout.
• Internal corporate papers and official filed records should be reviewed separately.
• Tell us exactly what the receiving office has requested so the preparation matches the record.

Secretary of State delivery addresses and return options

• For USPS, the order form lists: Secretary of State Certification Desk, P.O. Box 7848, Madison, WI 53707-7848.
• For FedEx or UPS, it lists: Secretary of State Certification Desk, State Capitol Mailroom, 17 W. Main Street, Madison, WI 53703-3960.
• These are Secretary of State instructions; use DFI's separate instructions if that agency handles your order.
• The form allows prepaid USPS return or eligible FedEx/UPS return labels, but excludes FedEx Ground and DHL for return shipping.
• In-person pickup is listed at Room B41W, State Capitol Building.
• Contact [email protected] or 608-266-8888 to confirm current arrangements and fees before sending documents.

Federal records and help from Miami Dade Apostille

• FBI background checks and other federal records require the appropriate federal route, generally through the U.S. Department of State rather than a Wisconsin state authority.
• Miami Dade Apostille can help separate state and federal items in a mixed package, review destination instructions and coordinate preparation, submission and return delivery.
• We can discuss translation and eligible remote online notarization; a Florida notarization does not change the issuing state of a Wisconsin public record.
• We are a private coordinator, not a government agency or law firm, and do not issue apostilles.
• Submit a review request 24/7, 365 days a year; we typically reply in approximately two hours during regular business hours.

Frequently asked questions

Wisconsin locations served

Miami Dade Apostille serves clients throughout Wisconsin by mail. Documents can be sent from anywhere in the state — no in-person visit to our office is required.

• Milwaukee
• Madison
• Green Bay
• Kenosha
• Racine
• Appleton
• Waukesha
• Eau Claire

Sources

• Wisconsin Secretary of State: how to get an apostille ↗
• Wisconsin DFI: apostille document requirements ↗
• Wisconsin Vital Records: record ordering ↗
• Wisconsin Secretary of State: modernization and e-apostille guidance ↗
• UW–Madison Registrar: diplomas ↗
• UW–Madison Registrar: transcripts ↗
• Wisconsin DFI: Certificate of Status and Certified Copy Order (CORP48) ↗
• Wisconsin Secretary of State: apostille and authentication order form ↗
• U.S. Department of State: apostille certificate ↗