- Issued by
- A Florida notary: notarizing a bank officer's signature on a letter or stamped statement, attesting a copy of your statement, or notarizing
- Florida state fee
- $10 — included in $220
- Online notarization
- Available as an add-on
- Turnaround
- 5–7 business days, filed in person
Statements, letters and what the apostille covers
Foreign authorities ask for financial proof in a few different forms:
- Account statements for a period, often the last several months.
- A bank reference or balance letter on bank letterhead, confirming that you hold an account, since when, and sometimes the current or average balance.
- An investment or brokerage statement, treated the same way as a bank statement.
None of these is a public record, and the Florida Department of State does not keep bank officers' signatures on file. The apostille can only authenticate a Florida notary's signature on the document. So the real question is how to get the statement or letter properly notarized.
Why foreign authorities ask for it
- Visa proof of funds, for long-stay, retirement or remote-work visas that require a minimum income or savings.
- Residency renewals, when you show continuing means of support.
- Property purchases, where the seller's notary or lawyer needs to see the source of funds.
- Student enrollment, where a foreign university or immigration office asks a sponsor to prove support.
Some consulates accept plain statements and never ask for an apostille. Check the exact checklist before you pay for one.
How to get a bank document that can be apostilled
Route 1: a bank officer signs before a Florida notary
Ask your branch for a reference letter or a stamped statement, signed by a bank officer in front of a Florida notary. The notary should use an acknowledgment in a representative capacity, showing the officer signed on behalf of the bank, or a jurat if the officer swears to the contents. This route only works with a Florida notary. If your bank prepares the letter at an out-of-state office and has it notarized there, Florida cannot apostille it.
Route 2: an attested copy of your statement
A bank statement is neither a vital record nor a public record, so a Florida notary may attest a copy of it, including a printout of an electronic statement, using the attested-copy certificate. The notary must make or supervise the copy from the statement you present.
Route 3: your sworn statement
You attach the statement to a short sworn declaration that it is a true copy of your account statement as issued by the bank, and sign it before a notary, who completes a jurat.
Routes 2 and 3 work through our online notarization add-on: a Florida-commissioned online notary handles it by video, and we print it with a Florida attested-copy certificate and file it. The add-on is $40 for the first document ($10 notarization fee plus a $30 technology platform fee) and $20 for each additional document.
COUNTY OF ____________
The foregoing instrument was acknowledged before me by means of [ ] physical presence or [ ] online notarization, this ____ day of ____________, ______, by ______________________ (name of person) as ______________ (type of authority, e.g. officer, trustee, attorney in fact) for ______________________ (name of party on behalf of whom instrument was executed).
______________________________
(Signature of Notary Public - State of Florida)
(Print, Type, or Stamp Commissioned Name of Notary Public)
Personally Known ____ OR Produced Identification ____
Type of Identification Produced ______________
COUNTY OF ____________
On this ____ day of ____________, ______, I attest that the preceding or attached document is a true, exact, complete, and unaltered photocopy made by me of (description of document) presented to me by the document custodian, (custodian name), and, to the best of my knowledge, that the photocopied document is neither a vital record nor a public record, certified copies of which are available from an official source other than a notary public.
(Official Notary Signature and Notary Seal)
(Name of Notary Typed, Printed, or Stamped)
Preparation checklist
Before notarization and shipping:
- Ask the receiving party which months, which accounts, and whether they want balances in a particular currency
- Ask whether they need a bank-signed letter or will accept a notarized copy of your statement
- Every page of the statement is included, numbered as the bank issued it
- Account numbers are masked only if the receiving party allows it
- The notarial certificate is complete: venue, physical presence or online notarization box, date, signer name, ID type
- The notary is commissioned in Florida, with seal showing commission number and expiration
- Dates line up with any freshness rule the receiving authority sets
Step by step with My Florida Apostille
Price: $220 for one document, $380 for two, and $160 each for three or more. That covers the Florida Department of State fee, the request form, and FedEx both ways inside the U.S. Shipping the finished documents to an address outside the U.S. is a flat $100 per order. Turnaround is 5–7 business days, and we file every order in person in Tallahassee.
Pick the route
Bank officer letter, attested copy, or sworn statement. If you are not sure what the consulate accepts, start by asking them; then call us.
Order online
Each notarized statement or letter is one document. A statement plus an employment letter is $380; three or more documents are $160 each.
Notarize and send
With online notarization, nothing to ship. Otherwise, send the notarized document with our prepaid FedEx label or bring it to an in-person appointment in West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa or Clearwater.
We file in person
We verify the notary's commission and certificate, then file at the Florida Department of State in Tallahassee.
Back to you
5–7 business days door to door. To an address abroad, $100 per order.
Common reasons bank documents are rejected
- A bank "signature guarantee" or Medallion stamp. That is not a notarization and cannot be apostilled.
- A letter notarized outside Florida, common when a large bank's letter desk is in another state.
- Stamp and signature with no notarial wording.
- Pages missing from a multi-page statement, or pages added after notarization.
- Stale statements. The apostille is fine, but the consulate refuses statements older than its cutoff.
Common uses by country
Proof-of-funds rules are set by each consulate and change often, so treat this list as a starting point only.
- Spain and Italy: long-stay and retirement visas that require evidence of income or savings.
- Mexico: temporary and permanent residency applications based on economic solvency.
- Colombia, Dominican Republic and Philippines: residency and retirement programs, and property purchases.
If the consulate also wants a translation, read our certified translation page first.
Apostille or Florida authentication: it depends on the country
If the country where you will use your bank documents is a party to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention, the Florida Department of State attaches an apostille and you are done on the U.S. side. You can check any country on the official HCCH status table.
If the country is not a party (the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait and Egypt are examples), Florida issues a certificate of authentication instead. We handle that Florida step at the same price and in the same 5–7 business days. Let's be straight with you about what comes after: non-Hague countries then require a U.S. Department of State authentication and legalization by that country's embassy or consulate. We do not handle or arrange those two steps, and we do not refer you to anyone for them. Your receiving authority or the embassy's checklist sets that sequence. Details are on our non-Hague authentication page.