Expedited FBI Background Check Apostille Services

FBI background checks (Identity History Summaries) are issued by a federal agency, not a state government. Therefore, they must be apostilled by the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., rather than by state Secretary of State offices. This federal apostille certifies the authenticity of the FBI seal and signature for international use.

No. A Texas notary — or any state notary — cannot apostille an FBI background check. FBI documents are federal records, which means they must go through the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. for apostille certification. Texas Secretary of State apostilles only apply to state-issued documents such as birth certificates, marriage licenses, and notarized documents. We handle the federal apostille process end-to-end for Texas residents and clients nationwide, so you don't need to navigate D.C. bureaucracy yourself.

FBI-approved channelers can get you an Identity History Summary in as little as 24-48 hours, but their optional apostille forwarding services rely on the same standard U.S. Department of State mail-in queue that takes 3-6 weeks. By using our expedited service instead, you separate the two steps: get your PDF from any channeler (or directly from FBI.gov), then send it to us for guaranteed 7-10 business day federal apostille processing. This bypasses the multi-week bottleneck entirely. We handle the printing, preparation, submission, tracking, and return — all from our Texas office.

We use an expedited service with established relationships at the U.S. Department of State Office of Authentications. While individuals mailing their documents directly face long processing queues (3-6 weeks), our expedited service prioritizes submissions and retrieves completed apostilles immediately, reducing the timeline to just 10 business days.

Since the FBI issues digital PDF Identity History Summaries, you can securely upload your PDF through our portal. We'll print it on high-quality paper and submit it to the Department of State for apostille. No need to mail anything—your process starts the moment we receive your digital file!

No. We accept FBI Identity History Summaries from any official source, including directly from FBI.gov or from FBI-approved channelers. As long as your document has the official FBI seal and signature, we can process it for apostille certification.

FBI Background Check Apostilles are recognized in all 120+ countries that are members of the Hague Apostille Convention. This includes popular destinations like Spain, Italy, France, Germany, United Kingdom, Australia, Mexico, Canada (some provinces), Japan, South Korea, and many more. If your destination country is a Hague Convention member, your apostilled FBI background check will be legally recognized.

Yes! The U.S. Department of State does not have an expiration policy for apostilling FBI background checks. As long as your document has the original FBI seal and signature, we can get it apostilled regardless of its age. However, note that some foreign countries may have their own requirements about how recent the document must be (typically 3-6 months), so check with your destination authority.

Yes! Our expedited service guarantees your apostilled FBI background check will be completed and shipped back to you within 10 business days from the moment we receive your document and completed order. If we don't meet this timeline due to our error, we'll refund your service fee. Please note: Our guarantee does not cover delays or closures by the U.S. Department of State, federal holidays, or other government-related interruptions beyond our control.

Our pricing is all-inclusive with no hidden fees. It covers: the U.S. Department of State apostille, expedited service, document printing and preparation, secure digital upload portal, real-time tracking updates, customer support, and return shipping to your address. The only thing not included is if you need rush overnight return shipping, which is available for an additional fee.

Either works for apostille — but there are key trade-offs. FBI.gov costs $18 and always includes the official embossed seal, but requires you to mail in a fingerprint card (risk of rejection if smudged) and takes 3-5 days. FBI-approved channelers cost $50-75, use electronic fingerprint scanning (lower rejection risk), and deliver results in 24-48 hours — but you must verify they include the raised embossed seal (not just a digital watermark). Our recommended strategy: use a channeler for fast, clean fingerprints, verify the seal, then send the PDF to us for expedited 7-10 business day apostille processing. Total timeline: approximately 2 weeks from start to apostilled document in hand.

Our expedited FBI background check apostille processing is guaranteed within 7-10 business days from the moment we receive your document and completed order. This compares to the standard mail-in U.S. Department of State queue which takes 3-6 weeks. The speed difference comes from priority submission at the Office of Authentications in Washington, D.C., rather than entering the general mail-in queue with thousands of other documents. We also pre-review your document for formatting issues before submission, eliminating the most common cause of delays — rejection and resubmission. Rush overnight return shipping is available to further compress your timeline.

Your FBI background check must have the official FBI seal (a raised embossed seal visible on the document) for the U.S. Department of State to accept it for apostille. Digital watermarks alone are not sufficient. When you request your Identity History Summary from the FBI, make sure to select the option that includes the official embossed seal. If your document only has a printed watermark or digital seal, contact the FBI or your channeler to request a properly sealed copy before submitting for apostille.