Can You Apostille a Scanned Document or PDF?
Yes. Upload the scan, we print and notarize a true copy and obtain the apostille, and the physical apostilled packet ships to you.
Yes, you can apostille a scanned document or a PDF. You upload the scan, we print it and a notary certifies it as a true copy (copia fiel certificada, true copy), the Secretary of State or the U.S. Department of State issues the apostille on that certification, and the finished physical apostilled packet ships to you. Some documents that are issued electronically, such as an FBI background check PDF, are apostilled directly on the federal path without a true copy step. Either way, a digital file goes in and a real, ink-and-seal apostille comes out.
E-Apostille vs Scan-Based Processing
Searchers conflate these two ideas constantly, and almost no U.S. page explains the difference clearly. They are not the same thing, and knowing which one you actually need saves a lot of confusion.
An e-apostille is a digitally issued apostille certificate: the issuing authority produces the apostille itself as a signed electronic file rather than as a paper attachment. Only some authorities issue e-apostilles, only for certain document types, and only some receiving countries and institutions accept them. There is no single nationwide U.S. e-apostille program, so for most American documents an e-apostille is simply not an option, and even where it exists the destination may refuse it.
Scan-based processing is what we do, and it is a different thing entirely. A digital document goes IN: you upload a scan or PDF. A physical, traditionally issued apostille comes OUT: we handle the notarized true copy where one is needed, the authority issues a conventional paper apostille, and we ship that packet to you with tracking. You never have to be near a state office, and you never have to mail an original. It is the convenience of a digital start with the universal acceptance of a paper apostille.
Bottom line: when people ask about an e-apostille in the USA, what they almost always want is the result of scan-based processing: start online, receive a real apostille. That is exactly what we deliver.
Which Digital Documents Work
If you have a clear scan, a PDF, or even a sharp phone photo, there is almost certainly a path. The processing route depends on the document type.
FBI background check PDF: issued electronically by the FBI, apostilled by the U.S. Department of State on the federal path. Upload the PDF exactly as you received it; no true copy step and nothing mailed.
Diplomas, transcripts, powers of attorney, and corporate documents: we print your scan and a notary certifies it as a notarized true copy, then the apostille is issued on that certification. Your original stays with you.
Phone photos: acceptable when the image is fully legible, shows the entire document, and no edges are cut off. If a photo is too dark or blurry to certify, we will ask for a better scan before we proceed.
How Scan-Based Apostille Works
Three steps, fully online, with the apostille arriving as a real physical packet.
Upload your scan or PDF
Send a legible color scan, a PDF, or a clear phone photo of the full document through our secure portal. For an FBI background check, upload the PDF you received.
We prepare the document for the authority
For most documents a notary certifies a printout of your upload as a true copy. Electronically issued federal documents like an FBI report skip this step and go straight to the federal path.
The apostille is issued and shipped
The Secretary of State or the U.S. Department of State issues the physical apostille, and we ship the finished packet to you with tracking.
Never mail your original documents
We process apostilles from a notarized true copy of your uploaded scan. Your birth certificate, diploma, or FBI report never leaves your hands, so it can never be lost in the mail.
How true copy processing worksFrequently Asked Questions
Yes. If the PDF is an electronically issued federal document like an FBI background check, the U.S. Department of State apostilles it directly on the federal path. For other PDFs and scans, we print the file and a notary certifies it as a true copy, then the apostille is issued on that certification. Either way you start with a digital file and receive a physical apostille.
Related Resources
Turn a Scan Into a Real Apostille
Upload your scanned document or PDF and we obtain the apostille, then ship the physical packet to you. Not sure which path fits your document? Start with a free review.
We are an independent service provider and are not affiliated with any government authority, including the U.S. Department of State or any state Secretary of State office. Whether a scanned document can be apostilled, and on which path, depends on the document type and the rules of the issuing authority and the receiving country or institution. These rules change over time; we verify your specific document during the free review before you pay.