Do you need to notarize
a document before apostille?
Yes and no.
It all depends on what type of document you have that needs to be apostilled.
If you need an apostille for a recordable document that the recording authority (Texas clerk of a county court, probate court, DMV, or Vital Statistics/Vital Records) is authorized to record, usually by state statute. In this case, you don’t need to, and you cannot get it notarized.
Recordable documents are birth certificates, marriage certificates, marriage licenses, divorce certificates, divorce decrees, death certificates, probated Wills, judgments, TXDPS criminal background checks, and Texas Department of Public Safety driving record history checks.
If you need to apostille a non-recordable document, which is a document that does not appear in the official records of any government office or publicly recorded records of a governing body, you will need to get it properly notarized by a Texas notary public.
Non-recordable documents are power of attorneys, Wills, Trusts, lease agreements, K-12, high school or college degrees, diplomas, transcripts, or records, affidavits, contracts, leases, translation and translated documents, consent forms, travel forms, utility bills, bill of sales, agreements, shipping records, immigration and adoption paperwork, VA benefits letters, social security benefit verification letters, and ID photocopies like driver’s licenses, passports, visas, and social security cards.
