About FbiApostilleLosAngeles.com
FbiApostilleLosAngeles.com is an educational publication owned and operated by Anshin Mobile Notary & LiveScan. We explain how applicants prepare FBI background checks for international use and how the FBI report, federal apostille, delivery, and any later country-specific steps fit together. Applicants who need professional assistance can learn about federal apostille services.
This article is based on our day-to-day experience coordinating FBI background checks and federal apostilles for applicants in Los Angeles, elsewhere in the United States, and abroad.
We regularly hear this question from people preparing for residency, citizenship, employment, education, or another opportunity overseas:
“How much will it cost to obtain my FBI background check and get it apostilled?”
Our standard express FBI background check and federal apostille package is $350 for the domestic electronic workflow described in this article. The purpose of the package is to coordinate the process from the FBI-report stage through Washington, D.C. submission and secure tracked return delivery, so the applicant does not have to divide one international document project among several providers.
Applicants who are living abroad use a different fingerprinting and FBI-submission workflow. That overseas service is priced separately, so an applicant outside the United States should not assume that the standard $350 package applies.
The price is important, but the more useful question is what happens after the applicant pays. An FBI report and a federal apostille are separate documents produced by different federal agencies. Someone must connect those steps correctly, move the case forward promptly, verify the completed work, and return the physical apostille to the right place.
What Does the $350 Express Package Include?
The standard package coordinates:
- The FBI background check stage, when the applicant still needs the FBI Identity History Summary
- Electronic fingerprinting through the appropriate FBI workflow for eligible applicants
- Review and verification of the FBI-issued electronic report
- Secure transfer of the correct report and case information to our Washington, D.C. office
- Preparation of the federal apostille request and required submission materials
- In-person submission to the U.S. Department of State
- Pickup as soon as the completed apostille is available
- Final inspection of the returned document
- Confirmation of the client’s current return address
- All required shipping for the standard package, handled securely with tracking, including return delivery to applicants who are abroad
This is a coordinated document workflow, not simply a charge to place an apostille order in the mail.
If the applicant is living abroad and still needs the FBI background check, the fingerprinting stage is handled as a separate overseas service with different pricing. We first determine where the applicant is located, whether the FBI report has already been obtained, and what must be coordinated before providing the correct price.
Step 1: Confirm What the Destination Country Requires
The first question is not “How do I get an apostille?” The first question is where the document will be used and who requested it.
A country that participates in the Hague Apostille Convention may require a federal apostille. A non-Hague country may require a different authentication and embassy-legalization process. The receiving authority may also have rules about the age of the FBI report, translation, delivery format, or the document that qualifies as a police certificate.
The $350 package discussed here is the standard express package for an FBI background check that requires a federal apostille. Confirming the destination at the beginning prevents the applicant from paying for the wrong process.
Step 2: Obtain the Correct FBI Report
Applicants who do not yet have an FBI Identity History Summary must obtain the report before the federal apostille can be prepared.
When fingerprints are submitted through our electronic workflow and the FBI does not require additional review, the FBI result is ordinarily available the same day. Same-day FBI results do not mean the federal apostille is completed the same day. They mean the first stage of the larger international workflow can move forward quickly.
Los Angeles applicants may complete the fingerprinting at our office. Mobile fingerprinting can also be arranged at an appropriate home, office, or other location when needed. Applicants can learn more about the electronic report stage through Anshin Mobile Notary & Livescan’s FBI background check service.
Same-day results are the ordinary experience for a successful electronic submission, not a guarantee that every FBI request will be released within a particular number of hours. Fingerprint-quality problems, additional FBI processing, incorrect applicant information, or a system interruption can affect an individual case.
Step 3: Retrieve and Verify the FBI PDF
Receiving an email that the FBI result is ready is not the same as having the correct file safely prepared for apostille processing.
The applicant must retrieve and save the FBI-issued PDF. We then verify that the file opens correctly, belongs to the correct applicant, contains the expected federal features, and is suitable to move into the apostille workflow.
This verification is important. A screenshot, an incomplete download, a damaged file, or a document belonging to the wrong person cannot simply be corrected after the physical apostille package has been submitted.
Step 4: Transfer and Prepare the Case in Washington, D.C.
After the FBI report is verified, the document and case information are securely transferred to our Washington, D.C. office. The Washington team prints and reviews the report, prepares the federal request, confirms the destination country, and assembles the physical submission package.
The case is then delivered in person to the U.S. Department of State during its permitted walk-in submission window. This avoids placing the document into the ordinary mail-in processing route.
The Department of State’s current authentication-service instructions publish a seven-business-day processing period for eligible walk-in submissions. Based on our operational experience, applicants should plan for approximately seven to nine business days inside the Department of State process, and many cases take the full nine business days.
That government period begins after the properly prepared package is actually submitted. Weekends and federal holidays are not business days.
What Makes the Service Express?
“Express” does not mean that a private provider can shorten the Department of State’s internal processing clock or move a routine request ahead of other applicants.
The service is express because we move the case promptly before and after that government processing period:
- The electronic FBI result is ordinarily obtained the same day when the submission processes normally
- The correct report is verified instead of sitting in the applicant’s inbox
- The case is sent promptly to the Washington, D.C. office
- The physical request is prepared for the next eligible submission opportunity
- The package is submitted in person instead of entering the ordinary mail-in route
- The completed apostille is picked up as soon as it is available
- The document is inspected, packaged, and shipped with tracking
Our complete FBI background check and apostille timeline explains why the government-processing period is only one part of the total turnaround time.
Step 5: Pick Up, Inspect, Confirm, and Ship
Completion by the Department of State is not the end of the service.
Our Washington office retrieves the completed package as soon as it is available. We inspect the apostille, confirm that it corresponds to the correct FBI report and destination country, and make sure the physical document is intact.
Before shipping, we confirm the return address. This is especially important for applicants who are relocating, traveling, already living abroad, or directing the document to an attorney or another authorized recipient.
The completed package is then shipped securely with tracking. All required shipping costs for the standard $350 package are included, and the shipments are handled securely with tracking. The client does not have to arrange a separate return label or wonder whether the completed apostille was sent without a tracking record.
Can This Be Done for Someone Living Abroad?
Yes. We regularly help applicants who are already outside the United States.
An overseas applicant may already have the correct FBI-issued PDF and need help beginning at the apostille stage. Another applicant may still need to complete the FBI background check first. When fingerprinting and the FBI report must be coordinated from abroad, the applicant uses a different service and the cost is different from the standard $350 domestic package.
Overseas pricing depends on where the applicant is located, whether acceptable fingerprints or an FBI report already exist, what shipping is required, and which stages still need to be completed. The Washington submission, pickup, verification, and tracked return-delivery stages can still be coordinated without the applicant returning to the United States, but the correct overseas price must be confirmed separately.
Our guide explains how applicants can complete the FBI background check and apostille process while living abroad.
Why Is Coordinating the Entire Workflow Important?
An applicant can attempt to manage each step separately. That may mean finding a fingerprint provider, retrieving the FBI report, deciding whether the destination needs an apostille or authentication certificate, preparing the federal request, using the mail-in route or arranging Washington drop-off, monitoring the case, recovering the completed document, and organizing tracked delivery.
The difficulty is not that any single step is impossible. The difficulty is that a mistake or delay at one stage affects everything after it.
Common problems include:
- Obtaining the wrong background check
- Submitting a screenshot instead of the original FBI PDF
- Using the wrong destination-country information
- Confusing a federal apostille with a California apostille
- Waiting too long and allowing the FBI report to become too old for the receiving authority
- Sending the completed apostille to an outdated address
- Using untracked shipping for an important international document
The value of a coordinated package is that one workflow connects the FBI report, federal submission, Washington pickup, final inspection, and return delivery.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does the express FBI background check and apostille package cost?
The standard package is $350. It coordinates the FBI-report stage when needed, federal apostille preparation, Washington, D.C. submission and pickup, final document inspection, address confirmation, and secure tracked return shipping.
Does the $350 include shipping?
Yes. All required shipping costs for the standard package are included, and shipping is handled securely with tracking. We confirm the delivery address before the completed apostille is shipped.
Will I receive my FBI background check the same day?
When fingerprints are submitted through our electronic workflow and the FBI does not require additional processing, the result is ordinarily available the same day. Same-day FBI results are not guaranteed in every case and do not mean the federal apostille is completed the same day.
How long does the U.S. Department of State take?
The Department of State currently publishes seven business days for eligible walk-in requests. Based on our operational experience, applicants should plan for approximately seven to nine business days inside the Department of State process, often the full nine. Preparation, submission timing, pickup, and shipping occur outside that government period.
Why is the package described as express?
The package uses same-day electronic FBI processing when the submission proceeds normally, prompt report verification, Washington preparation, in-person Department of State submission, pickup as soon as the apostille is released, and tracked return shipping. It does not promise to bypass the government’s processing time.
Can fingerprinting be performed at my location?
Mobile fingerprinting can be arranged for eligible applicants in the service area. In-office appointments are also available. Confirm the location and scheduling details when beginning the case.
Can you help me if I am already living abroad?
Yes. We assist applicants who are outside the United States. However, the overseas fingerprinting and FBI-submission workflow is a different service, and the cost is different from the standard $350 domestic package. Pricing is confirmed after we determine where the applicant is located, whether the FBI report already exists, and which stages still need to be completed.
Do I have to manage the Department of State submission myself?
No. The package is designed to coordinate preparation, in-person submission through the Washington, D.C. office, pickup, final inspection, and return delivery.
One Price for a Coordinated International Document Workflow
The standard express FBI background check and federal apostille package is $350 for the domestic electronic workflow described here. Applicants living abroad use a different fingerprinting service and receive separate pricing based on the stages that still need to be completed.
If you are preparing for residency, citizenship, employment, education, or another objective abroad, begin by confirming the destination country, the requesting authority, and the date the completed document must arrive. Then review Anshin Mobile Notary & Livescan’s FBI apostille service to start the correct workflow.