Free Hawaii DIY guide
Get a Hawaii apostille or certification yourself: prepare the right official record or notary/circuit package, complete the current application, calculate separate office fees and arrange return delivery.
Reviewed 2026-10-26. Published instructions can change; estimates are not delivery promises.
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Choose the document first. Use this checklist, then open the detailed instructions for your record.
Separate signed/sealed official records from private Hawaii-notarized documents. [HI-90.]
Check vital issue date; Hawaii-notarized documents need certification in the notary’s registered circuit first. [HI-90.]
Print the emailed Application Document; include the prepared original and $3 per document, or recorded online prepayment. [HI-90.]
Follow mail/drop-box instructions and return choice; allow 7–10 business days plus other stages and transit. No expedite is offered. [HI-90.]
Checklist sources checked October 28, 2026; the full guide retains its earlier review date. Read the source notes.
Detailed document instructions Common questions
New to apostilles? Start with the existing HCCH foundations guide.
List the exact country/territory of use and receiving office’s written requirements for document type, record age, original/copy, translation and delivery. An apostille authenticates the official signature, capacity and seal; it does not certify the contents, make an invalid act valid or guarantee the document will satisfy every recipient. Check HCCH entry into force, territorial application and objections between the United States and destination for this document. A valid Convention apostille completes that legalization chain; it does not need an additional embassy legalization. Outside that route, Hawaii issues a certification instead, and the actual destination rules determine any further federal/consular steps. Do not assume all Hague conventions or all listed countries mean this treaty already applies. [HI-01; HI-08: legal-effect note; HCCH-01: Arts. 1–3, 5, 12; HCCH-02: status columns/notes.]
Hawaii’s Lieutenant Governor serves as secretary of state for Hawaii documents. A Hawaii-issued official record stays on its Hawaii custodian route even when its owner lives overseas. A private document notarized by an Oregon or Florida notary follows that notary state’s authentication process, regardless of the signer’s Hawaii address. An out-of-state birth certificate is not converted into a Hawaii record by notarizing a cover sheet. An FBI history check and federal-court record use the appropriate federal certification and U.S. Department of State route. A foreign-issued record coming into Hawaii normally obtains any required apostille/authentication from its origin authority; Hawaii cannot issue that foreign record’s apostille. Diplomatic/consular and certain commercial/customs documents have Convention exclusions. [HI-01: document categories; HI-02: FBI; FED-01; HCCH-01: Art. 1.]
Use the official Start Application link at apostille.ehawaii.gov, observed redirecting to hi.accessgov.com/apostille. Follow its destination/document/requester/return prompts and choose credit-card prepayment or payment with the paper submission. The current Lieutenant Governor instructions say two separate emails arrive: a receipt and a printable Application Document. Print the Application Document and submit it with the original record; the receipt alone is not the application, and no extra receipt is required. Account creation is recommended for saving/accessing the record, not stated mandatory. This guide did not complete a live application, so dynamic fields and any checkout-specific surcharge are not independently established. Online application/payment is not electronic apostille issuance and does not eliminate physical submission. [HI-01: Procedure steps 1–3; HI-24: official entry/redirect.]
For birth, death and marriage certificates already in hand, the Lieutenant Governor says a certificate issued after January 1, 2025 may go directly to its office if it bears the State Registrar’s signature and the Hawaii Department of Health embossed seal. This is the certificate’s issue date, not the date of birth, death or marriage. If missing or issued before that date, order a NEW certified record through the DOH apostille process. The exact January 1 issue-date case falls between the page’s “before” and “after” wording: have the Lieutenant Governor confirm that case rather than inventing an inclusive cutoff. A civil-union form exists, but the direct-route page names birth/death/marriage; confirm an unlisted record type. [HI-01: Birth, Death, and Marriage Certificates; HI-02; HI-03; HI-06.]
Use the DOH special apostille page and the linked birth, marriage/civil-union or death paper request. Enter the exact names, event date/place and record-search details; sign the applicant section, mark the reason as apostille/authentication and name the foreign country. Include government photo-ID and the required relationship/direct-and-tangible-interest evidence. A person ordering for the registrant must supply the authorization and both IDs described by DOH; a runner is not entitled to anyone’s restricted record merely by offering delivery. Include the printed Lieutenant Governor Application Document and separate government payments or documented prepayment, plus the required prepaid self-addressed stamped return envelope. DOH issues the fresh certificate and forwards for authentication. Its special process refuses previously issued certified copies; that does not cancel direct Lieutenant Governor eligibility for a qualifying newer certificate. [HI-03: new-record/authorization steps; HI-04: Eligibility; HI-05–HI-07: PDF request and instruction pages.]
For birth/marriage orders the published record price is $10 for the first copy plus $4 for each additional copy and a $2.50 administration charge for each group of up to five copies. One new copy therefore costs $12.50 to DOH; one separate $3 apostille makes $15.50 before postage. Two copies together cost $10 + $4 + $2.50 = $16.50 to DOH, plus $6 for two apostilles: $22.50 before postage. The death form likewise lists $12.50 for the first copy, $4 additional and the extra administration charge at the specified five-copy increments. Fees are nonrefundable/search charges may apply even if no record is found. Use the actual form for your category and number of separate certificates, not an assumed per-page price. [HI-04: Costs & Payment; HI-05/HI-06: instructions; HI-07: PDF p. 1 fee footnote; HI-01: $3/document.]
HI-04 source HI-05 source HI-06 source HI-07 source HI-01 source
The special DOH apostille instructions accept money orders or cashier’s checks, payable to Hawaii State Department of Health for the record and separately to Office of Lt. Governor for the $3-per-document authentication. Do not send one combined check, personal/business checks or cash to DOH for this process. If you prepay the Lieutenant Governor online, send its printed application showing prepayment and omit the duplicate $3 payment; DOH’s record charge remains separate. Follow the special apostille instructions rather than general vital-order payment options that describe other services. [HI-03: payment instructions; HI-05–HI-07: PDF instruction/payment notes; HI-01: prepayment.]
Mail the complete fresh-record/apostille request to Hawaii State Department of Health, Vital Records, PO Box 3378, Honolulu HI 96801. This is different from the Lieutenant Governor’s street address. The DOH apostille page estimates up to 3–4 weeks processing, with transport and correction time to plan separately; it does not clearly define whether its clock includes every Lieutenant Governor stage. Do not automatically promise either a combined 3–4-week delivery or an exact extra 7–10 days. The current birth/marriage page says apostille requests are mail-in only, while the PDF instructions still mention in-person service at 1250 Punchbowl Street, Room 103. Use the published special mail route; resolve the conflicting visit wording with DOH before traveling. Ordinary online vital ordering is not a substitute for this special paper package. [HI-03: mail and processing; HI-04: mail-only apostille notice; HI-05/HI-06: PDF p. 2.]
Someone born in Honolulu decades ago holds a birth certificate issued in February 2025 with the State Registrar signature and embossed DOH seal. The event’s age does not force a new order: that record can use the direct Lieutenant Governor route with its application, $3 and return plan. Someone holding a 2023-issued certificate instead orders a fresh certified record through DOH: one $12.50 record plus $3 authentication, before postage. A certificate lacking the required seal/signature cannot be repaired by the applicant’s notary stamp. An exact January 1, 2025 issue date remains a specific state-confirmation exception. [HI-01: issue-date rule; HI-03–HI-05: procurement/payment.]
For a Hawaii court order, driving record, Bureau of Conveyances document, professional license or other official state record, obtain the issuer’s original or certified copy bearing the state/department seal and an authorized custodian/record-clerk signature attesting to its official status or true-copy character. If the record lacks the seal or signature, use the Lieutenant Governor’s official contact to determine eligibility before mailing it. A private notary cover sheet changes whose signature is being authenticated; it does not supply the absent official certification. Do not apply the notary/circuit chain to every signed official record by default. [HI-01: Other Official Documents Issued by the State of Hawaii.]
For divorce decrees, judgments, name-change orders and other court filings, identify the case number, party names, exact document and certified paper quantity. Use the Judiciary records/contact page to select the appropriate court and request form. Send the request to the court actually holding the case, not automatically to the notary-authentication counter. First Circuit’s purchase form is 1C-P-827; the directory links neighbor-island forms, including the Second Circuit form. The request-for-access form has a different purpose and may be filed in the case: do not use it as an anonymous online purchase. Confidential or restricted files may require identity/access authority or a court order. The Judiciary says certified records are paper records; an eCourt Kokua screen print is not the certified output. A divorce decree is a court judgment, distinct from a vital-event certificate. [HI-16–HI-18; HI-20: PDF pp. 1–2; HI-21/HI-22: PDF p. 1.]
HI-16 source HI-18 source HI-20 source HI-21 source HI-22 source
The written-request procedure says submit the records request without money first. The court calculates an invoice including copies, certification, handling and USPS return; prepay that invoiced amount by money order, cashier’s check or certified check as directed. The general circuit fee schedule lists $1 for the first copied page and $0.50 per additional page; its $2 certification-under-seal charge applies to a pleading or other paper subsequent to the initial filing, except a record on appeal. Other record, retrieval, postage and service charges may apply, so the invoice controls the requested record’s actual total. Exemplification has its own fee and is not a universal apostille prerequisite. After receiving the complete signed/sealed certified record, send it to the Lieutenant Governor with the $3 application/payment/return package. The $3 notary-authentication fee is a different court service from $2 certification of a court record. No current statewide court-record turnaround guarantee was established; add that procurement time before state authentication/transit. [HI-16: Steps 1–2; HI-11: PDF p. 2; HI-23: Rule 2.2(1), (7), (8); HI-01: official records.]
For a filed charter, articles, amendment or company good-standing certificate, use the Business Registration Division’s official service, not an unsigned search-result printout or a registered agent’s private statement. The DCCA page announces a new Hawaii Business Express portal effective July 6, 2026 at hbe.dcca.hawaii.gov. Search the entity, verify its identity/status, and choose the available certified record/certificate product. The FAQ describes selecting the record and Buy Available Docs. Tell BREG the output needs foreign-use authentication and obtain the signed/sealed official output required by the Lieutenant Governor. An electronically downloaded certificate or a customer printout is not assumed apostillable without checking that exact product. A registered-agent appointment does not itself include record ordering, apostilles or shipping. [HI-12: portal transition; HI-13: copy/good-standing instructions; HI-15: certificate product; HI-01: official record requirements.]
BREG’s FAQ lists a $3 flat copy charge plus $10 certification; an older domestic-LLC fees page instead lists $10 certification plus $0.25 per page and a $1 archive fee. These official pages conflict or describe different products; do not present one as a verified universal total. For the FAQ’s one-copy certified product, $3 + $10 = $13, then a separate $3 Lieutenant Governor apostille gives $16 before postage/other charges; use that only if the current order/invoice is that product. Good-standing pricing and exact electronic/paper output must be read for the selected product. The current BREG page says expedited handling is unavailable, despite older pages advertising an expedite surcharge. Do not pay an old “rush” price expecting current priority. [HI-12: current availability; HI-13: copy fee; HI-14: competing schedule; HI-01: authentication fee.]
BREG’s published postal address is Business Registration Division, PO Box 40, Honolulu HI 96810; its office is 335 Merchant Street, Room 201, Honolulu HI 96813. Use the current official portal or the FAQ’s written-request instructions, identify entity name/number, exact filings and certification, give contact and return details, and follow BREG’s current itemized payment/payee instructions. For a paper check order the entity fee page specifies Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs; portal card payment is a different channel. Do not send BREG procurement money to the Lieutenant Governor or assume its courier/counter/expedite arrangements are the same. No current processing promise for the exact foreign-use company product was established. Once the proper official record is obtained, make the separate Lieutenant Governor submission unless BREG has agreed a documented forwarding arrangement. [HI-12–HI-14: ordering/contact/payment; HI-01: official record submission.]
Operating agreements, resolutions, minutes, authorizations and manager declarations not filed with BREG are private documents. Determine the real signer’s authority, required act and certificate wording, then use the commissioned notary and authentication route for that act. A Hawaii company may therefore have an official BREG certificate following the signed/sealed state-record process and a separate Hawaii-notarized resolution requiring circuit certification. Do not attach all company papers to a notarized cover and call it the company registrar’s certified filing. [HI-01: official versus notarized documents; HI-12/HI-13: BREG filed records. Mixed-packet distinction is practical explanation.]
A Hawaii-notarized power of attorney, affidavit, private declaration or educational record first needs its proper Hawaii notarial act. Have the notary complete the act/certificate, place/date, signer information, signature, seal and required notary certification details; a decorative stamp without a completed act is insufficient. Then take or send the original to the Circuit Court Legal Documents Office in the circuit where that notary is registered so the court certifies the notary’s signature. The Lieutenant Governor does not maintain the notary’s registration specimen and requires this intervening certification. Select the circuit by the notary’s registration, not signer residence, document destination or a generic “county clerk” label. Only after the circuit certificate is attached should the document go to the Lieutenant Governor. [HI-01: Notarized Documents steps 1–2; HI-02: circuit prerequisite.]
The Lieutenant Governor lists First Circuit/Oahu: 777 Punchbowl Street, Honolulu HI 96813-5093; Second Circuit/Maui, Molokai and Lanai: 2145 Main Street, Suite 106, Wailuku HI 96793-1679; Third Circuit/Hawaii: 777 Kilauea Avenue, Hilo HI 96720-4212; Fifth Circuit/Kauai: 3970 Kaana Street, Lihue HI 96766. Circuit Rule 2.2(8) lists $3 for certification/authentication of notaries. Confirm that office’s mail/counter procedure, payment payee, appointment/collection rules and prepaid return/forwarding before dispatching originals; they are not all established by the statewide address list. First Circuit’s general filing-window/file-room hours are Monday–Friday 8 a.m.–4:15 p.m. excluding holidays; that does not establish same-day notary certification. UH’s specific First Circuit forwarding package uses a $3 cashier’s check/money order to First Circuit Court; do not silently generalize that school arrangement to every circuit. [HI-01: circuit list; HI-23: Rule 2.2(8); HI-19: hours; HI-10: PDF p. 1.]
A document notarized by a Hawaii notary registered in First Circuit goes first to First Circuit for the $3 notary-signature authentication, then to the Lieutenant Governor for its separate $3 apostille/certification after completing the online application. The listed two government authentication charges total $6, plus the notary charge and shipment/postage. A $3 payment to the Lieutenant Governor alone does not buy or bypass the court step. If the notarization is defective, have the original notary correct/reperform it lawfully before trying to authenticate it; do not fill missing certificate entries yourself. A Florida-notarized POA uses Florida instead, even when its signer or company is in Hawaii. [HI-01; HI-02; HI-23. Correction sequence is practical guidance.]
For a transcript or diploma, ask the school registrar/custodian for the school’s official notarization/apostille service and tell it the destination and required version. A Hawaii-notarized school certification still needs the notary’s circuit authentication followed by the Lieutenant Governor. If a copy alternative is proposed, confirm the recipient accepts that exact registrar-certified or notarized copy rather than the original diploma/transcript. Neither a private notary nor the apostille certifies accreditation or the truth of grades. Do not assume a school in another state follows Hawaii’s chain, or that the student’s ordinary downloaded transcript can be substituted. [HI-01: Notarized Documents; HI-09: school prerequisites; HI-08: legal-effect note.]
UH Manoa tells transcript applicants to order a NEW transcript through National Student Clearinghouse using Employer/Other and the business name Apostille; its service will not authenticate previously issued transcripts. For a diploma its registrar instructions accept an original/official diploma or a legible black-and-white photocopy for the registrar’s certification process; this does not prove the foreign recipient will accept that version. Complete the registrar’s Request for Apostille Certification and the current Lieutenant Governor application. Include two separate $3-per-document cashier’s checks/money orders, one payable to First Circuit Court and the other to Office of the Lieutenant Governor, plus the required record-order fee and postage. If using state online prepayment, resolve how the registrar carries that printed prepayment evidence instead of sending a duplicate $3; its July 2025 form still describes paper payments. [HI-09: Steps 1–4; HI-10: PDF p. 1, revision/payment.]
UH’s specific package requires three prepaid, addressed USPS envelopes: registrar to First Circuit Court, court to Lieutenant Governor, and the final completed packet to your return address. Send the complete school request/record/payment/envelopes to Office of the Registrar, Queen Liliuokalani Center for Student Services, 2600 Campus Road, Room 010, Honolulu HI 96822. Include the full Lieutenant Governor delivery address, 415 S. Beretania Street, State Capitol 5th Floor, Honolulu HI 96813, even where a school form abbreviates it. The registrar notarizes the eligible academic record and sends it through the court and state chain using your materials. One envelope is not sufficient for this forwarding plan. Count school preparation, both intervening deliveries, state queue and final delivery; no same-day or complete turnaround is promised. [HI-09: mailing steps; HI-10: PDF p. 1; HI-01: full LTGov address.]
For an eligible official record or a private document with its completed circuit certification, include the printed emailed Application Document, the actual document to authenticate, payment or indicated online prepayment and your return plan. The state charge is $3 per document, not $3 per page. Without online prepayment, the page lists cash, cashier’s check or money order and the FAQ rejects personal checks; for a mailed order use the accepted cashier’s check/money order payable to Office of Lt. Governor rather than risking cash in transit. If already prepaid, do not add another payment. Keep distinct records intact; do not staple unrelated documents beneath one notary cover to reduce the certificate count. [HI-01: Procedure; HI-02: payments; HI-08: paper form payee/return notes.]
Mail to Office of the Lieutenant Governor, State Capitol, 5th Floor, 415 S. Beretania Street, Honolulu HI 96813. The page offers walk-in/document drop-box submission Monday–Friday 7:45 a.m.–4:30 p.m.; it does not publish a routine appointment requirement for this submission. Check current holiday/access notices before traveling. Submission at a counter/drop-box does not promise immediate issuance. No separate courier address or specific courier account/label acceptance was established by the checked instructions: use the published street address only with confirmed carrier/access arrangements rather than inventing a FedEx/DHL-specific desk. DOH, BREG, the circuit court and the school are different offices with different addresses and service rules. [HI-01: By Mail; By Walk-In or Document Drop-Box.]
The Lieutenant Governor estimates 7–10 business days and says no expedited service is available; prepaying online is described as fastest processing, not an expedite guarantee. It ordinarily returns documents by USPS to the address on the application unless you include a self-addressed prepaid envelope. If you choose pickup, the office phones when the packet is ready; wait for that notice. Retain inbound/return tracking independently and size/postage the envelope for the added certificate pages. For overseas or a particular courier, establish a usable accepted return arrangement with the state before surrendering originals; the published USPS-default rule is not proof of worldwide or DHL/FedEx service. Add record procurement, circuit steps, corrections, weekends/holidays and each journey to the state estimate. [HI-01: return/pickup and processing; HI-03: stamped DOH return envelope.]
Obtain the receiving office’s written requirements for translator qualifications, language, whether the apostille itself needs translation and whether a separate translator declaration must be notarized/authenticated. An apostille does not translate or certify the truth of a translation. A notarized copy alternative is only an alternative accepted by that recipient, not the issuer’s certified record. No true Hawaii e-Apostille issuance capability was established in the checked sources: an online request, card payment, electronic notarization, printed PDF and scan-back are distinct from an electronically issued apostille. Check the exact state acceptance route for an electronic/remote notarization before purchasing it or mailing a printout. [HI-01: copy alternative; HI-08: legal effect; HCCH-01: Art. 5. Translation and output planning are practical guidance.]
Keep the complete record/court/notary certifications and state apostille attached; do not detach pages to scan, replace a page or add a stamp after completion. Compare the returned country, authenticated official, document and order details. For an incomplete application, wrong fee, missing circuit certificate or unsuitable official record, retain the state’s written reason and fix the originating problem through the issuer/notary/court, then resubmit as directed with corrected return materials. For a foreign-recipient refusal, obtain the named approving office’s written reason, precise rule and escalation contact before changing the route; an informal refusal is not proof an apostille needs extra consular legalization. For issuer/register verification contact the Lieutenant Governor through its official page or 808-586-0255; no Hawaii public online certificate register was verified. The apostille’s authenticity and substantive acceptance are separate questions. [HI-01/HI-02: official contacts and prerequisites; HCCH-01: Arts. 3, 7. Recovery/packet-care sequence is practical guidance; no Hawaii security-feature examination was made.]
A person abroad assembling three records obtains the signed/sealed certified Hawaii judgment from its custodial court, sends a Hawaii-notarized affidavit through that notary’s circuit certification, and obtains the proper FBI-issued history check for the federal path. The judgment and completed affidavit package can use separate $3 Hawaii certificates if eligible; only the affidavit needs the Hawaii notary-signature court certification. The federal document goes to the U.S. Department of State. A single Hawaii-notarized cover sheet does not turn all three into Hawaii-authenticated official originals. Recipient record/version requirements, separate fees and final shipping remain part of the plan. [HI-01; HI-02; HI-16; HI-23; FED-01.]
HI-01 source HI-02 source HI-16 source HI-23 source FED-01 source
For an eligible federal original/certified record, follow the issuing agency and U.S. Department of State document requirements; do not notarize the federal original as a substitute. Complete DS-4194 naming the country and enclose $20 per document plus a prepaid USPS or UPS return envelope. Mailed check/money order is payable to U.S. Department of State; the current page requires printed name/address on a check and a check number over 100 and prohibits mailed cash/card details. Mail by tracked USPS to Office of Authentications, U.S. Department of State, 44132 Mercure Circle, PO Box 1206, Sterling VA 20166-1206. The checked page says processing within five weeks of receipt, separate from transit/mailroom movement; DC walk-in and emergency appointment rules are different. Its current October 2026 in-person payment rules differ from the older January 2023 form, so use the current service page for that operation. These are federal instructions, not Hawaii’s $3 route. [FED-01: federal originals; FED-02: Request services, updated 2026-10-01; FED-03: PDF pp. 1–3.]
This guide and the official instructions are free. Government record/certificate fees, any notary work and postage are separate costs you can pay directly without hiring Notary Geek. Greg Lirette / Notary Geek’s documented practical guidance separates procurement, notarization, state submission, scan-back and outbound shipping and plans around real carrier cutoffs. That is operating judgment, not Hawaii law or a claim of an established Hawaii runner network. A local notary can execute an already determined act; a managed service can be useful for multiple issuers/circuits, receiving, labels, completeness checks and correction follow-up. A runner may save personal travel if the required appointments, access and handoffs are actually arranged. Neither a runner nor a fee guarantees state priority, valid underlying records or recipient approval. Agree scope/price before handing over originals. [Practical attribution: Greg Lirette / Notary Geek; official processes HI-01–HI-24.]
No. Send the printed Application Document with the physical prepared record. [HI-90.]
No. That prerequisite concerns Hawaii notarizations. Eligible official signed/sealed records have their own direct route. [HI-90.]
Check the certificate’s issue date, signature and seal, not the event date. Exact January 1, 2025 eligibility remains unresolved by the page’s before/after wording. [HI-90.]
Check the cited official instructions · Unresolved exceptions
Source confidence: High for cited ordinary paper instructions, actual form footnotes, source-specific fees and circuit prerequisite checked 2026-10-26. Conditional for exact Jan1 issue dates, old/new application seams, DOH visit wording/combined timing, BREG product/fee conflicts, circuit-specific handling, electronic and international output. Retrieval is not an order, payment, issuance or acceptance test.
Electronic output: Unknown from these sources. The online request/payment portal still requires printed application and physical documents; it does not prove true electronic apostille issuance or qualify a printed RON output. [HI-01; HI-24.]
Keep the packet intact: Keep the record, court certifications and apostille/certification packet intact. Scan without detaching, inserting or altering pages; corrections go through the responsible issuer/notary/court. Practical packet-integrity guidance, not an inspected Hawaii security-feature claim.
Bracketed source IDs in the guide point to these records. Each record identifies the exact supporting section or PDF page and its checked date. A checked date is an observation, not an effective date or service guarantee.
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