Will my document be rejected?
Answer a handful of yes/no questions and find out instantly. Uses the same rejection rules the California Secretary of State applies — the ones our automated packet review checks for. No email, no signup.
Why a pre-check matters before you pay for an apostille
The Secretary of State's office does not review your document for accuracy — it only verifies the signature or seal of the underlying official. That means an outdated certified copy, a missing raised seal, a photocopy of a certified copy, or a notarization that never touched a currently commissioned notary will all pass through the intake window and then get rejected at the authentication desk. Rejections cost you the state fee, the shipping fee, and the time it took to route the document there and back.
This quick pre-check runs the same eleven questions our reviewers ask before we agree to submit a document. It catches the four failure patterns we see most often: expired FBI background checks, uncertified school transcripts, "informational only" vital records, and notarizations performed by out-of-state notaries. Every one of these is fixable — but only if you catch it before the packet leaves your hands.
After the pre-check, most people move straight into the document review or full-service intake. If your document type has state-specific quirks — California vital records, Texas school transcripts, federal FBI checks — jump to the matching guide from the California hub, federal hub, or destination-country library.