The right professional, engaged the right way.
Private documents — powers of attorney, declarations, company papers — and copies must be notarised by an Australian notary public before DFAT can legalise them. A Justice of the Peace cannot do this. We coordinate a notary from our network.
Notarisation coordination, explained.
Notarisation is performed by an Australian notary public, who verifies identity, witnesses signatures or certifies copies, and applies their seal. DFAT holds specimen signatures of Australian notaries so it can then legalise the document.
Four steps. Each one visible to you.
Review
We check what the document needs — signing before a notary, a certified copy, or both.
Appointment
We book a notary public; bring photo ID and the unsigned document if it needs to be signed.
Notarise
The notary verifies, witnesses or certifies, and applies their seal.
Onward
We proceed to DFAT, or return the document to you if notarisation is all you need.
Quoted per service
Tell us about your document and we'll email a written quote, with our fee and any government or embassy charges on separate lines. Nothing is payable until you approve it.
Depends on notary availability; appointments can often be arranged within days.
Included
- Matching you with a notary public
- Pre-appointment document check
- Hand-off to DFAT when ordered together
Not included
- Any separate professional fee charged by the notary (confirmed before booking)
Documents we see every week.
- Powers of attorney
- Statutory declarations and affidavits
- Certified copies of qualifications or IDs
- Company resolutions and constitutions
- Contracts and commercial documents
Our role. Apostille Express is an independent, privately owned document assistance service. We are not the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), an embassy, a consulate or any government authority, and we are not affiliated with or endorsed by them. Apostilles and authentication certificates for Australian documents are issued only by DFAT. Embassy legalisation is performed only by the relevant embassy or consulate, and notarisation only by an Australian notary public. Government processing times and acceptance decisions are outside our control and are never guaranteed.