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Form DS-4194 Request for Authentications Service
What Is Form DS-4194?
Form DS-4194, Request for Authentications Service , is necessary for documents submitted by U.S. citizens and foreign nationals to the U.S. Department of State (DS). It is the responsibility of the Authentications Office to sign and issue certificates for these documents under the seal of the department.
This document was last updated on January 1, 2023 . A fillable DS-4194 PDF version is available for download through the link below.
Form DS-4194 needs to be completed for yourself or your company, along with a DS-4194 cover letter. Each separate request will require a new cover letter and failure to do so will result in rejection of your case and having your documents returned to you. All documents will be mailed back to a single location so accuracy is key.
How to Fill Out Form DS-4194?
The Request for Authentications Service is comprised of five sections.
- The first section asks for the applicant's contact information, including a formal mailing address (use your personal address if this is for you or the company address if it is for a company).
- The second section asks for courier or representative contact information and will also ask if the person completing this form is submitting or retrieving this request on behalf of another individual. If this is the case, the request must have the entire name of the person or company submitting the DS-4194 Form to properly search the database.
- The third section asks for shipping details for only mailed in requests and is similar to the first section, except for an additional question for the delivery method.
- Section four asks for document information, including the number of documents, document type, and contains an additional page on the next page if additional boxes are needed to complete the form. A maximum of 15 documents is allowed for walk-ins on a per person or company basis.
- The fifth section is the projected cost and asks for the total number of documents, estimated cost, name, and email. There is an eight-dollar processing fee per document (not per page). The fee will be applied whether or not an application certification or a correspondence letter is sent. This change went into effect on April 1, 2012.
The exact total will need to be listed on the form in the section provided. Acceptable payment methods include U.S. Postal ServiceMoney Orders, checks (corporate, certified, cashiers, personal, or travel) and can be made payable to "U.S. Department of State." Walk-ins are also allowed to pay by credit or debit/check cards (accepted cards are VISA, American Express, Discover, and MasterCard).
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