One Missing Certificate Nearly Delayed a Property Purchase in Portugal
Buying property overseas is exciting.
But when international paperwork is involved, even one small mistake can bring everything to a halt.
Recently, I worked with a client who was purchasing property in Portugal. Her experience is a perfect example of why understanding the apostille process matters—and why trying to navigate it alone can sometimes cost valuable time.
It Started with a Power of Attorney
The Portuguese attorney handling her real estate transaction prepared a Power of Attorney in Portuguese.
The document itself wasn't the problem.
It had been professionally prepared and was ready to sign.
The issue was that it did not include a notarial certificate—the wording that allows a U.S. notary public to properly notarize a signature.
Many foreign-prepared documents don't include a U.S. notarial certificate because notarization requirements vary from country to country. Instead, it's the responsibility of the notary performing the notarization to attach or complete the appropriate certificate when required.
Conflicting Advice
Wanting to save money by handling everything herself, she first visited a local notary.
The notary declined because the document was written in Portuguese.
Next, she visited her bank.
The bank agreed to notarize her signature.
The notary signed and stamped the blank space beneath her signature, but no notarial certificate was attached or completed.
Believing everything was finished, she mailed the document to the Florida Secretary of State requesting an apostille.
Several weeks later, the package came back.
The only explanation was a brief notice stating that the document was being returned because of an "invalid notarization."
No additional explanation.
No indication of how to fix it.
Just more lost time.
Now the Clock Was Ticking
By the time she contacted me, her real estate closing in Portugal was approaching quickly.
She was understandably frustrated and had no idea what "invalid notarization" actually meant.
One of the first things she mentioned was that she was in Florida while I was in Tennessee.
Fortunately, that wasn't a problem.
Because I'm commissioned as a Remote Online Notary (RON), I could have notarized her document online while she remained in Florida. Once completed, I could have coordinated the apostille process from here.
However, she preferred to meet with a notary in person. That was entirely her choice, and I was happy to work within her preferences by helping coordinate a local Florida notary while managing the apostille process on the back end.
After reviewing the document, I explained—without providing legal advice—that the issue appeared to be the missing notarial certificate.
A notary cannot simply place a signature and seal on a document and expect it to qualify for an apostille. There must be a properly completed notarial certificate for the Secretary of State to authenticate.
Because choosing the type of notarial act is ultimately the signer's decision (unless the document specifically directs otherwise), I explained the difference between the available certificate types. She then instructed the notary which certificate she wanted completed.
Correcting the Problem
We helped locate a Florida notary who could meet with her promptly.
The document was notarized correctly with the appropriate notarial certificate attached.
From there, we handled the expedited apostille process.
She signed the corrected document on the 6th.
By the 13th—just seven days later—the document had been:
Properly notarized
Delivered to the Florida Secretary of State
Apostilled
Returned to her
For comparison, standard processing alone can often take around two weeks, not including shipping time.
Most importantly...
Her closing in Portugal happened on schedule.
The Lesson
The apostille wasn't the difficult part.
The notarization was.
An apostille does not verify the contents of your document.
It authenticates the signature and seal of the public official who signed it.
If the notarization is incomplete or incorrect, the Secretary of State cannot issue the apostille—even if everything else about the document is perfect.
That's why having someone review your documents before they're submitted can save weeks of unnecessary delays.
Need Help with an Apostille?
Whether you need a document notarized remotely, prefer to meet with a local notary where you are, or already have a completed document that simply needs an apostille, we help coordinate the process from start to finish.
We assist clients nationwide with documents originating from
all 50 states, as well as federal documents requiring authentication for international use.
If you're preparing documents for use overseas, we're happy to help you understand the process, coordinate the necessary steps, and work to get your documents where they need to be—accurately and on time.
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