Power of Attorney Apostille for Germany

Selling a flat in Berlin, handling an inheritance or managing a German bank account from Florida usually runs through a Vollmacht. German land registries require such a power to carry an officially certified signature, so the German notary handling the deal should send the text, often bilingual German-English. Sign before a Florida notary with a complete certificate, and we apostille it; the German consulate in Miami can also certify the signature. Ask the German notary whether remote online notarization is acceptable for land registry use before you choose it. If it is, ours costs $40 for the first document ($10 notarization + $30 platform fee).

Signed by the principal and two subscribing witnesses, with a complete Florida acknowledgment certificate in English (venue, presence or online box, date, ID type, notary's signature and seal). The body can be bilingual or in the destination language. The state checks the notarization, not the powers granted, so have the foreign lawyer or notary approve the wording before you sign.

Get the draft from the foreign lawyer, notary or bank that will use it, then sign before a Florida notary in person or through our online notarization add-on: $40 for the first document ($10 notarization fee + $30 technology platform fee) and $20 for each additional document. Remote witnesses must be physically in the U.S. while witnessing. Notarization and legal drafting are not included in our $220.

State fee for this document: $10 — included in our price. Full details on the power of attorney apostille page.

The registrar's office (Standesamt) handles marriages, birth registrations and name declarations; births of children who never lived in Germany go to Standesamt I in Berlin. State justice departments recognize foreign divorces, probate courts (Nachlassgerichte) issue certificates of inheritance, and German notaries and land registries handle property. Recognition of qualifications runs through state authorities and the ZAB. The Consulate General of Germany in Miami serves Florida.

German offices that require a translation usually want one by a translator sworn, publicly appointed or authorized under German state law, searchable in the state justice administrations' database. Our general rule is a translation certified by the translator, notarized by a separate notary and apostilled in Florida; some German offices accept it, but many will instead require a sworn German translator. For recognition of a Florida divorce, plan on the apostille plus a sworn German translation. Translate after the apostille, including the apostille page.

To marry in Germany, the birth certificate must not be older than six months. Other offices set their own limits, so ask; German notaries and register courts also tend to reject corporate certificates that are several months old.

Consular office serving Florida: Consulate General of Germany in Miami.

$220 per document, $380 for two and $160 each for three or more — the state fee, request form, in-person filing in Tallahassee and FedEx shipping inside the U.S. are included. Shipping the finished apostille to Germany is a flat $100 per order.

Not included: whatever the issuing office charges for the certified copy or certificate, and notarization (online notarization is $40 for the first document — $10 notarization fee + $30 technology platform fee — and $20 for each additional one).