An apostille is not a notarial act. It is a post-notarization authentication certificate used for documents going to countries that participate in the Hague Apostille Convention. In practice, a New York notary performs the notarial act first, and a competent government authority later issues the apostille to confirm the origin of the notary’s signature or the public document.
For New York users, apostille questions often matter because they are easy to confuse with an authentication certificate or a certificate of official character. The notary does not issue any of those items by virtue of holding a commission. The notary’s role is limited to properly completing the underlying acknowledgment, affidavit, jurat, or other authorized act.
Why it matters: If the document is staying inside New York, an apostille is irrelevant. It becomes important only when the document is headed to a foreign jurisdiction that recognizes the Hague system.
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