So why did my apostilled document get rejected?

Almost always because the underlying document was too old on the day you submitted. Consulates word their rule around the issue date of the certificate, not the date the apostille was attached.

Does getting a fresh apostille on an old report help?

No, and this is the expensive mistake. Re-apostilling a report the FBI issued eight months ago does not make it eight months newer. You need a new report.

How long is my document good for, then?

It depends on the consulate, not the country. Every Spanish consulate we read says six months. Portugal says 90 days. Italy varies by post. We quote each one with a link to the source.

Does an Apostille Expire? No — But Your Document Does

Q: Does an apostille expire?

No. There is no expiry date on an apostille certificate and the Hague Convention sets none. What expires is the document underneath it, and that is what consulates actually check.

Apostille › Answers

Does an apostille expire?

No. The apostille never expires. The document underneath it does, and that is the one consulates actually check.

Verified 2026-08-05

There is no expiry date printed on an apostille, and the Hague Convention does not give one. Once the U.S. Department of State attaches it, that certificate is valid indefinitely as a statement that the signature on your document is genuine.

That is also why the question is asked so often and answered so badly. People are told “apostilles do not expire”, take that as reassurance, and then get turned away at the consulate.

What actually has a clock on it

The underlying document. And every consulate we have read words its rule the same way: around the date the document was issued, not the date it was apostilled.

Spain · Six months Consulate General of Spain in Miami “Issued within six months prior to the submission of the visa application. The translation does not need an Apostille and the Apostille does not need a translation.” Read 2026-08-04 · source → · all of Spain →

Spain · Six months Consulate General of Spain in San Francisco “The Criminal record check certificate cannot be issued more than 6 months preceding the submission of the visa application.” Read 2026-08-04 · source → · all of Spain →

Spain · Six months Consulate General of Spain in Chicago “It cannot be older than 6 months from the application date. The certificates must be translated into Spanish by a certified translator.” Read 2026-08-04 · source → · all of Spain →

Spain · Six months Consulate General of Spain in New York “The certificate cannot be older than 6 months.” Read 2026-08-04 · source → · all of Spain →

Italy · Six months Consulate General of Italy in San Francisco “FBI Criminal Background check ("Identity History Summary") issued within the last six months. Applicants can find instructions for ordering their background checks through www.fbi.gov. Please note that these require fingerprinting by a local police authority.” Read 2026-08-04 · source → · all of Italy →

Portugal · 90 days Embassy of Portugal in Washington, D.C. “Se o requerente tiver residido nos EUA por mais de um ano, o certificado de registo criminal deve ser emitido pelo FBI, devidamente apostilado (Convencao de Haia) e emitido ha menos de 90 dias antes da apresentacao do pedido de visto. (If the applicant has resided in the USA for more than one year, the criminal record certificate must be issued by the FBI, duly apostilled under the Hague Convention, and issued less than 90 days before the visa application is submitted.)” Read 2026-08-04 · source → · all of Portugal →

South Korea · Six months Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Seattle — F-4 overseas Korean visa “Criminal history record check issued by FBI and apostille confirmation by US Department State office of Authentications (Washington D.C) It must be issued within 6 months before application submission (No Exceptions). FBI criminal background check is only valid for 6 months from its date of issuance by the FBI (Not from the date of Apostille).” Read 2026-08-06 · source → · all of South Korea →

New Zealand · Six months Immigration New Zealand — police certificates “If you plan to stay in New Zealand for 24 months or longer, you must provide a police certificate. The police certificate is less than 6 months old when you submit your visa application.” Read 2026-08-06 · source → · all of New Zealand →

Read those again and notice what none of them mention: the apostille. They talk about when the certificate was issued and when your application is submitted. The authentication step sits inside that window; it does not restart it.

The mistake this causes

Someone orders an FBI report, the process drags, and five months later they get it apostilled and assume the clock reset. It did not. If their consulate works to six months from issue, they now have weeks left, not six months. If it works to 90 days, the document was already dead before the apostille was attached.

Re-apostilling an old document does not refresh it. If your report has aged out, you need a new report, not a new apostille. Any service that offers to “renew” an apostille to solve this is selling you something that will not work.

What to do instead

Find the issue date on the document itself, and count forward from that
Check your specific consulate’s window — it is set per post, not per country
Work backwards from your submission date, not your appointment date
Order the document once the appointment is booked, not months in advance

One exception worth knowing: some receiving authorities do apply a freshness rule to the apostille as well as the document. It is uncommon and we have not seen it stated by any consulate we read. If yours says so in writing, send it to us and we will publish it.

Check your consulate’s window