Wondering what happens when you authenticate your birth certificate? Authenticating, or apostilling, a birth certificate is the process of verifying the document’s legitimacy through various government agencies. This crucial certification can be required for getting married abroad, applying for visas, or even unlocking the financial powers of your strawman account.
In this complete guide, we’ll walk through everything you need to know about What Happens When You Authenticate Your Birth Certificate?
What Is Authentication?
Authentication, sometimes called an apostille, is an extra seal or stamp that verifies the authenticity of a document like a birth certificate. It certifies that the document is legitimate and issued by an authorized government body. This way other countries will recognize the document as valid.
The process involves getting certification from multiple tiers of government:
- County Level: Getting a certified copy of your birth certificate from the county office confirms the document’s legitimacy.
- State Level: The Secretary of State further authenticates through an apostille seal.
- Federal Level: For international use, the U.S. Department of State verifies the file.
- Embassy Level: The destination country’s embassy legalizes it for entry across their borders.
So, in short, getting a document authenticated is the official process to validate its authenticity domestically and globally.
Do I Need to Authenticate My Birth Certificate?
You may need an authenticated birth certificate for:
- Getting married abroad.
- Applying for visas
- Accessing your secret Treasury Direct Account
- Verifying citizenship
- Collecting inheritance/assets in another country
If you plan to use your birth certificate overseas for any official process, authentication is usually required. It’s also recommended for maintaining full legal rights over your strawman account domestically.
How to Authenticate a US Birth Certificate
Here are the step-by-step instructions for getting your birth certificate authenticated for international use.
Get a Certified Copy of your Birth Certificate
First, you need an official certified copy of your birth certificate from the county office where the original record is held. This verified copy displays signatures, a raised seal, and certificate number to confirm it’s legitimate.
Get it Authenticated by the Secretary of State
Next, send your certified copy to your State’s Secretary of Office to get an apostille seal. This state-level legalization verifies the authenticity of the county document. It typically takes 1-2 weeks.
Get it Authenticated by the Department of State
To use your birth certificate internationally, you’ll also need authentication from the U.S. Department of State. This federal apostille seal confirms validity from the national government for use abroad.
You can mail in the documents or make an urgent appointment in DC for same-day service.
Get it Legalized by the Embassy
Finally, check with the embassy of your destination country to see if they require any additional legalization process before recognizing your authenticated birth certificate as a valid credential across their borders.
Here’s a quick rundown of how the multi-step birth certificate authentication process works:
By Mail
- Mail your certified copy to your Secretary of State
- Mail apostilled copy to U.S. Department of State
- Mail federally apostilled copy to destination embassy
Urgent Appointment
- Make a Dept. of State appointment and bring documents to DC office
Walk-in Service
- Visit your Secretary of State and Department of State offices in person on the same day
This full legalization at every level establishes your birth certificate’s legitimacy both in the U.S. and overseas.
How Much Does It Cost to Authenticate a Birth Certificate?
Here are the standard fees associated with getting your birth certificate authenticated:
- Certified Copy from County Office
- Apostille from Secretary of State
- Apostille from U.S. Dept of State
- Legalization from Embassy: Varies by country.
So, you’re looking at full international authentication. Additional visa and transfer fees may also apply.
Reasons You Would Need an Authenticated Birth Certificate
Here are some of the top specific reasons you may require an authenticated birth certificate:
- To Get Married Abroad: An apostilled birth certificate proves citizenship/eligibility and your legal ability to wed overseas.
- To Control Your Strawman: Verifying your strawman account allegedly gives access to secret Treasury Direct funds connected to your birth certificate.
- To Complete a Visa Application : Birth certificates prove identity/citizenship for visa applications to work, study, or immigrate abroad.
Authenticating documents like a birth certificate is crucial for conducting official processes internationally.
The Purpose of Authenticating a Birth Certificate
Essentially, the authentication process verifies the following key facts:
- Identity – Confirms your reported identity with legal documents.
- Citizenship – Establishes U.S. citizenship for international purposes.
- Veracity – Validates the document’s authenticity as officially issued.
- Legitimacy – Certifies the file as a legal credential for state use.
- So, in short, authentication allows entities to trust your document and the information it contains. This validation enables processes like visas, work permits, marriages, financial access and more across borders.
Wrapping It Up
We hope this guide gave you a clear grasp of everything involved with authenticating your birth certificate. It may seem tedious gathering all the seals of approval at each level but it’s necessary for utilizing key freedoms globally!
Here are the key takeaways:
Authentication involves verifying your birth certificate up the official chain through county, state, federal and embassy entities.
It proves the document’s validity and your identity for international processes like getting married abroad, securing visas, or accessing your secret Treasury Direct Account.
Costs range depending on whether your mail documents or make urgent in-person appointments to expedite the process.
So, if you have plans to utilize your birth certificate overseas, be sure to get it authenticated! This extra step preserves your sovereign rights across borders.
FAQ’s
Why does one need to authenticate one’s birth certificate?
Authenticating a birth certificate proves one’s identity and citizenship status for conducting official processes internationally like getting married abroad, obtaining visas, accessing financial instruments, or collecting inheritance/assets overseas.
Can our birth certificates really erase our debt?
While some claim you can access secret Treasury Direct Accounts connected to your birth certificate to erase debt, these theories remain unproven conspiracies. Authenticating documents rather aims to verify identity for conducting business globally.
What is the purpose and benefit of authenticating your birth certificate on the county, state, and federal level?
Getting certification from county, state, and federal entities establish legitimate validity from all levels of government both domestically and abroad. This allows entities overseas to trust your credentials for marriages, visas, asset collecting and more across borders.