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Need document authentication Houston filing through the U.S. Department of State? After state certification, we send the file to Washington, DC. Clients ship to Sam's Passport in Houston, the authenticated papers come back overnight. Call (713) 784-5501.
Outline
Sam’s Passport Inc. files document authentication requests with the U.S. Department of State in Washington, DC for Houston clients whose documents are heading to non-Hague countries. This is the federal step between state certification and embassy legalization.
Hague member countries accept a single apostille from the Texas Secretary of State and need no federal step. Non-Hague countries require a three-step chain:
The U.S. Department of State in Washington, DC confirms the state certification (this page).
Any document that has already received state certification can move to federal authentication. Common types from Houston:
Bring the state-certified document to 1811 Bering Drive, Suite 100, or ship FedEx/UPS Priority Overnight.
We send the document to the U.S. Department of State with the $8 authentication fee.
The State Department verifies the state seal and applies its own authentication certificate.
Required documents
Federal authentication requires a document that has already been certified at the state level. Call (713) 784-5501 if you need the state step first.
If the document has not yet been certified by the state, we can handle both steps. Tell us the destination country and we route the file correctly.
Ship your documents
Clients nationwide can ship to our Houston office. Walk-in drop-off is also available at Suite 100.
It is a federal seal confirming that a state-level certification on a U.S. document is genuine. Non-Hague countries require it as the second step before embassy legalization. Hague countries do not need it — an apostille is enough.
Yes. The U.S. Department of State only authenticates documents that already carry a state seal — either a certificate of notary or an apostille from the Secretary of State. The one exception is federal documents like the FBI background check, which go directly to Washington.
The U.S. Department of State charges $8 per document. Sam's Passport adds a service fee ($150 regular, $200 rush, $250 emergency) plus FedEx postage to and from Washington, DC. If you also need state certification, those fees are separate.
The federal step alone takes about 5-10 working days depending on U.S. State Department volume. If you also need state certification, add that processing time. The full state-plus-federal chain is about 10-15 working days.
Yes. We can file the document with the Texas Secretary of State first, then forward it to Washington for federal authentication. Tell us the destination country so we route correctly.
Yes. Clients nationwide ship to our Houston office by FedEx or UPS Priority Overnight. Include Sam's Request Form, ID copies, and call (713) 784-5501 before shipping so we confirm the document is ready for federal filing.