How to Apostille a Birth Certificate in Texas: The Five-Year Rule
A Texas birth certificate apostille costs fifteen dollars from the Texas Secretary of State’s Authentications Unit, and in person in Austin it is same-day service. The rule that decides whether the trip works is printed in the state’s own requirements: a birth certificate is a recordable document, and recordable documents must be certified copies less than five years old. An older certified copy, perfectly valid for most purposes, gets refused for apostille.
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An apostille is a certificate a state office attaches to a document so countries in the Apostille Convention will accept it. The background is in our apostille explainer.
Start With a Fresh Certified Copy
Order the birth certificate from Texas Vital Statistics or the local registrar as a certified copy, and check the issuance date before anything else. The Secretary of State’s requirement is about when the copy was issued, not when the birth was registered. A certified copy printed last month from a 1970 birth record qualifies. A certified copy printed in 2019 does not.
If the destination country also expects a recent certificate, the five-year state rule and the destination’s expectation stack, and the binding one is whichever expires first.
The Apostille Step, in Austin
The Authentications Unit sits at 400 West 15th Street in Austin, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. Walk-ins run Mondays and Fridays only; Tuesday through Thursday the office serves appointments booked online. Either way the limit is ten documents per person per transaction, and waits can exceed an hour. In person is same-day. By mail the office estimates a two-week turnaround, and it states plainly that it will not pull a mailed request forward for someone who shows up, the two queues do not mix.
Texas issues what it calls a universal apostille, a single certificate that works as both an apostille for treaty countries and an authentication for non-treaty countries. For destinations outside the Convention, the embassy legalization that follows is a separate process at that country’s consulate.
What Does Not Work Here
The Texas office authenticates Texas documents. An out-of-state birth certificate goes to that state’s process. A Consular Report of Birth Abroad is federal and belongs to the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Authentications. A hospital-issued souvenir certificate with footprints is not a certified copy and fails on sight.
Texas Birth Certificate Apostille Quick Facts
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Issuing office | Texas Secretary of State, Authentications Unit, Austin |
| Fee | $15.00 per document |
| The copy | Certified copy issued within the last 5 years |
| In person | 400 West 15th Street; walk-ins Mon/Fri, appointments Tue-Thu; same day; 10-document max |
| Estimated 2-week turnaround; no expedite | |
| Certificate type | Universal apostille, valid for treaty and non-treaty use |
FAQ
How much does a Texas birth certificate apostille cost?
Fifteen dollars per document, whether in person or by mail, plus the cost of the certified copy itself.
Why was my certified copy refused?
Texas requires recordable documents, birth certificates included, to be certified copies issued within the last five years. Order a new certified copy and resubmit.
Can I walk in any day?
Walk-ins are accepted Mondays and Fridays. Tuesday through Thursday run on online appointments. Both are same-day and capped at ten documents per transaction.
Does Texas apostille for non-Hague countries too?
Yes, through its universal apostille. The destination country’s embassy legalization, where the country requires one, is a separate step after the state certificate.
Notaries who run Texas apostilles schedule the vital statistics order and the Austin counter as one job. Our apostille agent training covers the Texas chain and every other state’s.
