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Notarial Services
Notarial services are provided by appointment only. Walk-in services are not available.
Overview
Preparation for a Notary Appointment
Services We Provide
Services We Do Not Provide
Useful Information

Notice:

To best serve U.S. citizens with urgent needs, please check first whether your document can be notarized elsewhere or by the Ilyang courier service.

Overview

Hand signing documentThe Embassy prioritizes notarial service appointments for U.S. citizens and those who have business before a U.S. government agency that requires notarization by a U.S. Consular Officer (e.g. federal benefits, passport issuance, etc.). You may consider the following options before scheduling an appointment:

  • For information concerning remote notarial and authentication services, we direct you to the following recently updated Department of State webpage. Please note that remote notarial services may only be provided in accordance with the laws and regulations of the U.S. state that commissioned the notary public and the laws of the state or country where the document is notarized.
  • You may be able to get quicker service by providing a certified Korean language translation of your document and using a Korean notary public.
  • For certified copies of documents for Social Security Number (SSN) applications or benefits, please send them to us via the Ilayng courier service.  Please see Services We Provide for more information.

Notarial services are provided by appointment only.  Notarial needs are not considered to be an emergency.  If you arrive at the Embassy for a notarial service without an appointment, you will not be allowed to enter.  Please do not sign the form before you come to the Embassy. You will need to sign it in front of a Consular officer.  Please see our appointment page.  Unfortunately all forms are no longer available on our website.  We will provide necessary forms when you make an appointment to visit us.

Applicants visiting the Embassy will be allowed to check in only one cell phone and one set of electronic car keys before entering the building. No other devices will be permitted, and the Embassy has no capacity to store them.  Please leave these items at home or store them before arriving for your appointment.

Preparation for a notary appointment:

    • Bring a valid government-issued photo ID.  The name on the documents must be the same as the name on your ID.
    • Make sure you understand your document.  We are not allowed to explain the contents to you.
    • Please complete the document with the appropriate names, places, and dates before you arrive (but do not sign the form; you will sign it at the Embassy in front of a Consular officer).  If you have multiple documents, please sort them prior to your appointment.
    • Please mark the pages where you and the notary need to sign. The Consular staff cannot advise you in any way on what is required of you for your documents so come to the appointment fully prepared.
    • Pay the appropriate fee: $50 per seal.  All fees are payable in U.S. dollars or Korean won at the Embassy’s exchange rate.  A combination of U.S. dollars and Korean won will not be accepted.  The Embassy also accepts payment by US or International credit card.
    • If your document requires the presence of witnesses in addition to the notarization, you are responsible for providing these witnesses. Consular staff cannot act as witnesses.

Notarial services are provided by appointment only.  Notarial needs are not considered to be an emergency.

Click Here to Make an Appointment

Services We Provide

Scales, Seal, Pen

  • Certified copies of documents for Social Security Number (SSN) application
    Please refer to the Federal Benefits Unit (FBU) in Manila for instructions on how to apply for SSN for children under the age of 12. Along with the application, the minor child’s passport (signed by the applying parent), Consular Report of Birth Abroad, and the applying parent’s signed passport or government issued photo ID are generally required. If you prefer to keep the original documents and submit certified copies to FBU instead, the U.S. Embassy can certify your originals at no cost. However, as there are certain documents we cannot certify (e.g., court documents, U.S. naturalization certificates, civil documents issued by a U.S. state or foreign entity, etc.) you may need to send these directly to FBU. Due to limited notarial appointment availability, you may send your documents to us at your expense via ILYANG courier service. Please include a letter requesting certified copies.
    For active duty military customers, it may be more convenient to obtain certified copies at your Passport/Visa Office.
    IMPORTANT: The child’s passport MUST be signed by a parent in order to be valid (sign the parent’s name and state the relationship)
  • Affidavit
    An affidavit is a sworn statement. Please note that the U.S. Embassy cannot verify the statement made by the affiant or the information in any attached document of the sworn statement. We will only confirm the identity of the individual making the statement.
  • Power of Attorney
    A power of attorney allows you to designate someone to take legal actions on your behalf.  A common example of this is empowering someone else to buy or sell property in the United States in your name while you are overseas.  We cannot advise you on the specific language or content of a power of attorney, so you may wish to consult a lawyer or other appropriate advisor before coming to see us to have your power of attorney notarized.
  • Acknowledgement of Signature
    An Acknowledgement of Signature or Acknowledgement of Execution is a notarial service which verifies that a particular person signed a given document.  It is often used for legal agreements, business documents, etc.  It is also used when more than two signatures are required on the document but all of the parties who must sign are not present.  We can notarize (or acknowledge) only the signatures of those who are present to sign in front of us or appear in front of us and verify that they have signed the document.
  • Certified copies of U.S. passports

Services We Do Not Provide

  • U.S. Apostille
    The Embassy cannot offer any apostille services.  Please see this page for further information about apostilles.
  • Authentication/Notarization/Legalization of public documents issued in the United States.
    Such documents include vital records (birth, marriage, death, and divorce), as well as academic, commercial, or other credentials.  Consular officers do not have access to the records of the issuing office or the seal of the custodian of these records.
  • Certification of True Copies of Non-U.S. Documents
    Korean documents, such as a Korean family census register, must be obtained from a Korean ward office.  If an apostille is required, please contact the Korean Apostille Issuing Authority (Tel:(02)2002-2051 or 0252) for guidance. 
  • Signature (or “Medallion”) Guarantees
    Consular officers are not authorized to provide signature guarantee/medallion guarantee service. A Medallion Signature Guarantee is not a notarial service, but rather a special procedure related to securities, which can only be performed by an authorized representative of a financial institution participating in a medallion program approved by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Please be aware that the consular officer may refuse any notarial service when:

  • The host country does not authorize the performance of the service.
  • The document will be used in transactions that may be prohibited by U.S. law.
  • The officer believes that the document will be used for a purpose that is unlawful, improper, or inimical to the best interests of the United States.
  • The officer does not understand the document, due to language or any other reason.
  • The officer believes the customer does not understand the document to be notarized, due to language or any other reason.

Useful Information

Notarial Services or U.S. Consular Officers Abroad

U.S. Birth Certificate Apostilles