Federal Employment Records Apostille

Issuing agency

Office of Personnel Management / employing agency

We can obtain it?

No — you request it from OPM or your agency

Certification first?

Records must be agency-certified to be authenticated

Also known as

SF-50, OPF, federal service record, personnel action

Federal employment records — an SF-50 Notification of Personnel Action, or records from your Official Personnel Folder — verify U.S. government service. Former and current federal employees need them apostilled for foreign employment vetting, security clearances abroad, and benefit or pension claims.

If what you actually need is proof of pension income rather than service history, the OPM annuity letter is the better document — it's the one consulates ask for on retirement visas.

What federal employment records are

The SF-50 is the standard form documenting a federal personnel action — appointment, promotion, reassignment, separation — and it's the single most commonly requested proof of federal service. Your Official Personnel Folder (OPF) holds the fuller record. Current employees typically obtain records through their employing agency's HR office; separated employees' records transfer to the National Personnel Records Center, and OPM administers retirement records.

Why it needs an apostille abroad

A foreign employer or authority cannot verify U.S. federal service records independently. The apostille certifies the agency's certification and seal as genuine across the 120-plus Hague Convention countries. Non-Hague destinations require that authentication plus embassy or consulate legalization.

Getting certified records

Where you request depends on your status. Current federal employees go through their agency's HR or personnel office. Separated employees request records from the National Personnel Records Center, which holds transferred OPFs. Ask specifically for a certified copy — the Department of State authenticates a recognized federal certification, not a plain photocopy.

Document preparation requirements

• Request a certified copy — not a personal or plain photocopy.
• Submit it exactly as certified, with the certification intact.
• Do not notarize it — a notary can't certify a federal record.
• Don't laminate, staple across the certification, highlight, or annotate it.
• Confirm whether the foreign authority wants service history or pension income — they're different documents.

The step-by-step process

1. Confirm which record you need

   Service history or pension income? We'll confirm which document satisfies the foreign requirement before you request anything.

2. Request the certified record

   Current employees through agency HR; separated employees through the National Personnel Records Center.

3. Send it to us & we review

   We verify the certification is in a form the Department of State will authenticate.

4. We submit in Washington, D.C.

   We hand-deliver the certified record to the Office of Authentications with the federal authentication request and fee.

5. Apostille or authentication issued

   You receive an apostille (Hague) or authentication certificate (non-Hague), affixed to your record.

6. Embassy legalization & translation, if required

   For non-Hague destinations we handle embassy legalization, and arrange certified translation where required.

Common rejection reasons — and how to avoid them

Common uses

• Foreign employment verification — proving U.S. government service to an overseas employer.
• Security and background vetting abroad — where prior federal service must be documented.
• Benefit and pension claims — establishing service history for eligibility.
• Professional credentialing overseas — where federal experience counts toward qualification.

Hague vs. non-Hague countries

Pick your destination below, or see all countries we serve.

Official references: OPM — Personnel Records · National Archives — Civilian Personnel Records · U.S. Department of State — Authenticate Your Document. Government fees are set by these agencies and are separate from our service fee.