How to Fill Out and Submit the Kentucky Apostille Request Form

To use the Kentucky apostille request form, download the one-page Apostille or Authentication Request Form from the Secretary of State’s apostille page, fill in your contact information and destination country, and mail it with your original or certified documents and a $5-per-document check to P.O. Box 718, Frankfort, KY 40602. You can also drop everything off at 1025 Capital Center Drive, Suite 201, in Frankfort. Mailed requests are completed within three business days.¹

What Goes on the Form

The form is a cover sheet. It links your contact information to the documents in the envelope so the office can reach you if something is wrong and can match the fee to the count. Print clearly or type it. Illegible handwriting slows processing because staff have to call you, and if your phone number is also unreadable, your package waits.

Contact name and phone number, used if the office has questions about a document.
Destination country. Kentucky issues a single certificate that works as both an apostille and an authentication, but the destination still goes on the form.¹
Number of documents, so the office can confirm what arrived and check your fee.

Which Documents Qualify

The Secretary of State can only apostille public documents that originate in Kentucky and carry a signature the office can verify. Three categories cover almost every request, and each has its own signature rule.

Vital Records

Birth, marriage, divorce, and single-status certificates qualify only when they come from the Kentucky State Registrar of Vital Statistics and bear the current State Registrar’s signature. Copies issued by a county health department will not work, and neither will photocopies you made at home. If you don’t already have the right version, order a current certified copy from the Kentucky Office of Vital Statistics at (502) 564-4212 before you send in your apostille request. Ordering a new certificate adds time, so start that step early if a deadline is involved.¹

Notarized Documents

Powers of attorney, business contracts, affidavits, and similar private documents qualify when they carry a complete notarization from a Kentucky Notary Public. The notary block must include the notary’s signature, official seal, and commission expiration date, and the notary must hold a current Kentucky commission, because the Secretary of State verifies that standing before issuing the apostille.¹

School Records

Transcripts and diplomas take an extra step that catches people out. The school official’s signature must be notarized by a Kentucky Notary Public, and then the notary’s signature must be certified by the County Clerk in the county where the notary is registered.¹ Skip the County Clerk certification and the Secretary of State will send the package back.

Fees and Payment

The fee is $5 per document.¹ Three documents is $15. Every document gets its own certificate, so there is no bundling discount. Pay by check or money order made out to the “Kentucky State Treasurer.” Count your documents before writing the check: a short payment stops the whole request until you send the difference.

How to Submit

You can mail your package or drop it off.

By mail, send the completed form, the original documents or official certified copies, and your payment to:

Office of the Secretary of State
Authentications and Apostilles
P.O. Box 718
Frankfort, KY 40602¹

Use a shipping method with tracking, since you are mailing originals that can be hard to replace.

In person, bring your documents and payment to 1025 Capital Center Drive, Suite 201, in Frankfort.¹ Walking in cuts out the mail time in both directions.

The office returns completed documents by USPS First Class mail at no charge. First Class has no tracking. If you want tracking on the return trip, include a self-addressed prepaid FedEx, UPS, or USPS Priority Mail label with your request.¹

Why Requests Get Rejected

Most rejections trace back to signatures the office cannot verify. Check for these before you seal the envelope:

Vital records that are not from the State Registrar. County copies and home photocopies lack the signature the office needs to verify.¹
School records without a County Clerk certification on top of the notarization.¹
A notary whose Kentucky commission has expired, or who is commissioned in another state.
Incomplete notarization: a missing seal, missing commission expiration date, or missing signature.
Wrong payment amount. The fee must come out to exactly $5 times the document count.

If Your Destination Country Is Not in the Hague Convention

Kentucky’s certificate functions as both an apostille and an authentication, and for the 120-plus countries in the Hague Apostille Convention, it is the only authentication you need.² For a country that did not sign the convention, the Kentucky certificate is only the first step. You will typically also need national authentication through the U.S. Department of State and then legalization at the destination country’s embassy or consulate, done in that order. Contact the embassy before you start to confirm their requirements.

Translation

An apostille certifies a signature. It does not translate anything. If the destination country’s official language is not English, you will likely need a certified translation of both the original document and the apostille certificate. Whether to translate before or after the apostille depends on the receiving authority, so ask them which order they accept before you commit, because reversing course wastes time and money.

1
Kentucky Secretary of State. Apostilles and Authentications
2
HCCH. HCCH Apostille Section