Anyone looking for a DC apostille ends up at a small desk with a long name: the Office of Notary Commissions and Authentications, or ONCA. It sits inside the Office of the Secretary of the District of Columbia. The fee is $15 for each document, and there are two ways in: by mail, or on foot with no appointment.
Company records are a different matter. They are kept by the Corporations Division of the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection, and the District of Columbia office guide covers that side. ONCA does not file or search business records. It only certifies the signature on a paper so a foreign country will trust it. Our apostille guide explains the idea in general terms.
What does a DC apostille cost?
| Who issues it | Office of Notary Commissions and Authentications (ONCA), Office of the Secretary of the District of Columbia (os.dc.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Fee per document | $15 per document (os.dc.gov, checked ) |
| How to submit | Mail in service, or walk in service with no appointment, 9 am to 1 pm Monday to Friday (os.dc.gov, checked ) |
| Turnaround | Mail in: 5 business days from receipt. Walk in: same day (os.dc.gov, checked ) |
| Documents it covers | Documents notarized by a DC notary and certified documents issued or signed by a DC government agency (os.dc.gov, checked ) |
| Hague and non-Hague countries | Hague countries get an apostille. Other countries get a Foreign Certificate, then US State Department authentication (os.dc.gov, checked ) |
| Request page | os.dc.gov/service/authentications (os.dc.gov, checked ) |
| Where to send it | 899 North Capitol Street NE, Suite 8100, Washington, DC (os.dc.gov, checked ) |
| Worth knowing | ONCA does not authenticate federal documents or documents notarized outside DC, and none are needed for use in Guam or Puerto Rico (os.dc.gov, checked ) |
Count your documents before you go. The price is per document, so four papers cost four times that. The fee does not change between the mail in desk and the walk in desk.
Which documents can DC authenticate?
ONCA handles two kinds of paper. The first is a document notarized by a DC notary public. The second is a certified document issued or signed by a DC government agency.
That covers most business uses. A foreign bank may want a company paper certified by the Corporations Division, or a power of attorney signed in front of a DC notary. Both fit. A certificate of good standing is the common example, and our DC good standing guide shows how to order one before you ask ONCA to authenticate it.
Some things are turned away. The office does not authenticate federal documents, such as FBI background checks. It does not authenticate papers notarized outside DC either. Those go to the Secretary of State where the notary holds a commission. And for use in Guam or Puerto Rico you need nothing at all, since those are US territories.
Mail in or walk in?
The mail in service suits you if you live outside the city or if the deadline is loose. Requests come back by mail within five business days of receipt of a complete request.
The walk in service suits you if time is short. Hours for walk in customers are 9 am to 1 pm, Monday to Friday, except holidays, and the work is finished the same day. You need no appointment. Another person may bring your documents for you.
The walk in office is at 899 North Capitol Street NE, Suite 8100, in Washington. Check the hours before you travel, because the window is only four hours a day.
A simple order of steps
- Decide which paper you need. For a company, get the certified copy or certificate first.
- Make sure it is signed by a DC notary or issued by a DC agency.
- Find out which country will receive it. That decides whether you need an apostille or another certificate.
- Count the documents and work out the fee at $15 each.
- Mail the request or walk it in.
Hague countries and the others
An apostille is for countries that belong to the Hague Convention. For a country outside it, ONCA issues a Foreign Certificate. You then have to take that certificate to the US State Department for authentication. Ask the receiving agency which route it expects before you pay anything. The office says plainly that it verifies the signer, not what the document says.
If you want help with the paperwork, you can ask our private filing service. State fees are separate, and you can send the request to ONCA yourself.
Sources
- dlcp.dc.gov/node/1614386: office name, division, business search, online filing, certificate ordering. Checked .
- dlcp.dc.gov/about-dlcp: officeholder. Checked .
- opendata.dc.gov/api/v3/datasets/5238c4fd99c843a1bd7679a243747a8c_0: mailing address, street address, phone, contact page, hours. Checked .
- code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/sections/29-103.02: LLC name endings, corporation name endings. Checked .
- code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/sections/29-103.01: restricted words, name rule. Checked .
- dlcp.dc.gov/node/1621921: name reservation fee, LLC filing fee, foreign LLC fee, good standing certificate, certificate fee. Checked .
- code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/sections/29-103.03: name reservation term. Checked .
- dlcp.dc.gov/page/corporations-division-fees-business-corporation: corporation filing fee. Checked .
- dlcp.dc.gov/page/corporations-division-fees-nonprofit-corporation: nonprofit filing fee. Checked .
- dlcp.dc.gov/page/dlcp-license-corporate-filing-fees: report fee, report due date, late penalty. Checked .
- os.dc.gov/service/authentications: who issues it, fee per document, how to submit, turnaround, documents it covers, hague and non-hague countries, request page, where to send it, worth knowing. Checked .