How to Complete Texas Form 2102: Request for Universal Apostille

Texas Form 2102, the Request for Universal Apostille, is a one-page application you submit to the Texas Secretary of State’s Authentications Unit to get an apostille attached to a Texas-issued or Texas-notarized document for use abroad. You complete the form, attach your original document and payment of $15 per document, include a prepaid return envelope, and send the package to Austin by mail or bring it in person.¹

What Form 2102 Is For

The apostille is a certificate confirming that the signature of the Texas public official or notary on your document is genuine, so a foreign government will accept it without further embassy legalization. As of the form’s November 2025 revision, Texas issues a single “universal apostille” that covers both Hague Convention member countries and non-member countries. You still list the destination country on the form, and for non-Hague countries the document may need additional consular legalization after Texas is done with it.¹

One boundary matters up front: the Texas Secretary of State cannot apostille federal documents. FBI background checks, certificates of naturalization, and other federal agency records must go through the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Authentications in Washington, D.C.² Sending an FBI result to Austin is one of the most common wasted submissions.

What Documents You Can Submit

Only documents originating from Texas officials or Texas notaries qualify. Eligible documents fall into two groups.²

Recordable documents are records issued by a state or county office: birth certificates, death certificates, marriage certificates from the State Registrar or a county clerk, court orders, and similar public records. These must have been issued within the past five years.³

Non-recordable documents are notarized items like powers of attorney, business contracts, affidavits, and translations. The notary must hold an active Texas commission on file with the Secretary of State, and the notarial certificate must show the notary’s signature, seal, and commission expiration date. Diplomas and transcripts from Texas public universities or school districts also qualify if they carry the signature of an authorized official the office can verify.

Photocopies, unsigned documents, and digital printouts are not eligible. You need the original or a certified copy.

Translations get one extra step. The translation itself is what receives the apostille, and the translator must sign a typed or written statement describing their translation services, with that signature notarized. Include a copy of the original foreign-language document with the notarized translation when you submit.²

How to Fill Out the Form

The PDF is on the Secretary of State’s Apostille/Authentication Forms page and has three sections.⁴

Submitter Information

Enter your full name, mailing address, phone number, and email. The mailing address is where your documents will be returned, so check it carefully.¹

Required Information

List the embassy or country where the documents will be presented. The form notes that apostilles cannot be presented to the United States, since the service is only for documents going abroad. Also list the number of documents you are submitting so the office can match your payment to the request.¹

Method of Payment

For mailed submissions, enter the check or money order number on the form. Mail-in payments must be a check or money order made payable to the Texas Secretary of State; credit and debit cards are not accepted by mail. A personal check must include the payment amount, your complete address, and your signature.³

Fees

The standard fee is $15 per document.³ Three documents cost $45. If one document carries multiple signatures that each need a separate apostille, each signature counts as a separate document for fee purposes.

International adoption requests are billed at $10 per document, capped at $100 total, and use a different form (not Form 2102).⁴

For in-person visits, the office accepts checks, cash with exact change, and American Express, Discover, Mastercard, and Visa. Card payments carry a 2.7% convenience fee.

How to Submit

By Mail

Send the completed Form 2102, original document, payment, and prepaid return envelope to:

Authentications Unit
P.O. Box 13550
Austin, TX 78711-3550⁵

Processing takes up to 25 business days from the day the office receives your package, and can run longer during busy periods.³

Walk-In

Walk-in service runs Mondays and Fridays at 1019 Brazos Street, Room 106, Austin, TX 78701, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Central. Requests are processed the same day.³

Appointment

Same-day appointments are available Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays through the online booking system linked on the Secretary of State’s request page.³

Bulk Requests

Walk-in and appointment visits are capped at ten documents per person, company, or transaction. For larger jobs, use the bulk drop-box at the same office, available every weekday with a 24-to-48-hour turnaround.³

Return Shipping

Every mailed submission needs a prepaid, pre-addressed return envelope or carrier label. A self-addressed stamped USPS envelope works, as does a prepaid FedEx, UPS, or USPS label. Handwritten airbills are not accepted; the label must be printed.¹ A tracked label is worth the small extra cost, because the office cannot confirm delivery once the package leaves Austin.

Your original document comes back with the apostille certificate attached. Do not separate the two, and do not disturb the staples or seals. A foreign authority will likely reject a document that looks altered after certification.

Why Submissions Get Rejected

If something is wrong, the Authentications Unit returns the package unprocessed and you lose the turnaround time. The most common problems:

Recordable documents older than five years, even if still valid for domestic use.²
Federal documents, which must go to the U.S. Department of State instead.²
Notarized documents missing the notary’s seal, signature, commission expiration date, or a proper notarial certificate.
Payment that does not match the number of documents submitted.
Missing return envelope, or a handwritten airbill.
Photocopies or printouts instead of originals or certified copies.

Check the form, the document, the payment, and the return envelope against this list before you seal the package. A ten-minute review at your desk saves a month of turnaround.

1
Texas Secretary of State. Form 2102 Request for Universal Apostille
2
Office of the Texas Secretary of State. Apostille/Authentication of Documents
3
Office of the Texas Secretary of State. How to Request a Universal Apostille
4
Office of the Texas Secretary of State. Apostille/Authentication Forms
5
Office of the Texas Secretary of State. Contact the Agency