We personally submit your Ontario birth certificate to Ontario's Official Document Services in downtown Toronto, for a 7–10 business day turnaround. Flat pricing, government fee included, domestic return shipping included, tracked every step of the way.
An apostille is a certificate that authenticates your Ontario birth certificate for legal use in another Hague Convention member country, confirming the signature, seal, or stamp on it is genuine. It's commonly required for dual citizenship applications, marriage abroad, adoption, immigration, and residency applications.
Since this document is issued directly by the Ontario government, it's already apostille-ready. We submit it to ODS as-is, no notarization step required.
Your Ontario birth certificate is issued by the Office of the Registrar General (ORG) and lists your legal name, date and place of birth, sex, and your parents' names. There are two formats: the wallet-sized card and the long-form (printed) certificate. Most apostille requests need the long-form version, since it carries the full detail many foreign authorities require. If you're not sure which one you have, send us a photo and we'll confirm before your order moves forward.
Many countries, including Italy, Ireland, and Poland, require an apostilled birth certificate to prove lineage when applying for citizenship through a parent or grandparent.
Foreign marriage registrars commonly require an apostilled birth certificate as proof of identity, age, and legal name before issuing a marriage license.
International adoption and legal guardianship proceedings almost always require an apostilled birth certificate for every party involved, including the child.
Work permits, study permits, and permanent residency applications abroad frequently list an apostilled birth certificate as a required supporting document.
If you're eligible for a foreign passport through a parent's citizenship, the issuing country typically requires an apostilled birth certificate as proof of eligibility.
International schools and universities sometimes require an apostilled birth certificate to confirm a child's or student's identity and age for enrollment.
Ontario's Official Documents Services can apostille your original birth certificate directly, since it's a government-issued vital record. But you also have the option of having a notary certify a true copy of your birth certificate, which is then apostilled in place of the original. Both are legitimate, commonly used paths. Here's how they compare.
Best when: the receiving country or institution expects to see the original government document, and you don't need the certificate for anything else in the meantime.
Trade-off: your one-of-a-kind certificate travels through the submission and return process. If you need it back quickly for something else, factor that into your timeline.
Best when: you want to keep your original safe at home, or you may need to apostille the same document again later for a different country or purpose.
Trade-off: adds a notarization step and fee, and not every destination country or institution accepts a certified copy in place of the original. Always confirm with the receiving party first.
Not sure which option fits your situation? Reach out before you order and we'll help you decide based on where your birth certificate is headed.
Source: Ontario Official Documents Services, "Authenticate a document for use outside Canada"
A minimum of 15 business days of ODS processing, plus standard shipping time to send your documents and standard shipping to get them back.
Government fee, hand delivery to ODS, and tracked return shipping, all included. Nothing extra for you to arrange.
Here's exactly what happens once you start your birth certificate apostille order with us.
Mail it in, drop it off, or request pickup, whatever's easiest for you.
Only required for documents that aren't already government-issued.
We personally submit it to Official Document Services for the fastest turnaround.
Shipped back to you, tracked the whole way, domestic shipping included.
Many countries require an apostilled birth certificate to prove lineage for citizenship applications.
Foreign marriage registrars commonly require an apostilled birth certificate as proof of identity and age.
Birth certificates are a core document required for most international residency and visa applications.
ODS will reject anything that isn't the original government-issued certificate (or a notary-certified true copy). A plain photocopy can't be apostilled.
Many destinations specifically want the long-form certificate, not the wallet-sized card. Confirm the format before you order.
Apostille turnaround is typically 7–10 business days. If you're working against a hard deadline abroad, start well ahead of it or ask us about rush processing.
Some countries want the certificate itself issued within a certain window, separate from how recently it was apostilled. This is easy to miss if you're only checking apostille timing.
Most companies advertise one low price, then add extra charges once you're already committed, such as return shipping, rush processing, file handling, or a government fee they didn't mention upfront. We don't do that. Because our team personally hand delivers your documents instead of paying a courier or a third-party agent, we're able to pass those savings on to you.
| First apostille | From $150 |
| Each additional apostille, same order | From $95 |
| Domestic return shipping | Included |
Once your documents are in our hands, you'll be able to follow their progress online, from drop-off at ODS to the moment they ship back to you.
ODS requires the original, government-issued Ontario birth certificate. A photocopy cannot be apostilled.
7–10 business days when we hand deliver it to ODS, versus a minimum of 15 business days plus shipping time if mailed in yourself.
No. Since it's issued directly by the Ontario government, it's already apostille-ready and doesn't need notarization.
We only process documents issued by the Ontario government. If your birth certificate was issued by another province or country, contact us and we can point you in the right direction.
Yes, you can include multiple documents in the same order and pay the discounted rate for each additional apostille.
Your birth certificate instead needs authentication and legalization through a Canadian authority and that country's embassy or consulate. We can guide you through this.
For official, government-sourced details on how authentication and apostilles work in Ontario, see Ontario's Official Documents Services guide and the full list of Hague Apostille Convention member countries.
We can combine multiple documents into one order, so if you need more than one of these apostilled, let us know and we'll bundle them together.
Send us your document and we'll take care of the rest.