If you live in Texas and receive an IMSS or ISSSTE pension from Mexico, you must periodically prove you are still alive to keep the payments flowing. If a Mexican relative has passed away and you are entitled to a survivor's or inheritance pension, you will need to send a US death certificate to Mexico in a form the institution will accept. In both situations, a Texas document usually has to be apostilled before it will carry any legal weight south of the border.
This page explains when an apostille is required, how the Texas process works, and what Mexico specifically expects for proof-of-life and survivor-pension claims.
What an apostille is
An apostille is a certificate that authenticates a public document — a notary's signature, a court seal, a registrar's certification — so it will be accepted by authorities in another country. For countries in the Hague Apostille Convention, the apostille is the finish line. For countries outside it, the same Texas certificate is the first step in a short legalization chain.
Does an apostille work in Mexico?
Yes. Mexico is a member of the Hague Apostille Convention. A single apostille issued by the Texas Secretary of State is accepted throughout Mexico, so there is no need for further legalization by a Mexican consulate for the document itself. The apostille certifies that the Texas notary or official who signed your document is genuine; a Mexican institution or the Registro Civil will then accept it as authentic.
How the Texas Secretary of State apostille works
Texas apostilles come from a single office: the Secretary of State's Authentications Unit in Austin. There is no county-clerk step — a document notarized by any Texas notary, in any of the 254 counties, goes straight to the state. Since October 2023 Texas issues one Universal Apostille (Form 2102) that works for every destination, whether or not the country belongs to the Hague Apostille Convention.
The state fee is $15 per document. Mailed requests can take up to 25 business days; in-person and appointment service in Austin is same-day for up to 10 documents, and a bulk drop-box handles larger batches in 24–48 hours. There is no online submission — every request is handled by mail or in person. Certified copies of vital records (birth, death, marriage, divorce) must be less than five years old.
Federal documents — FBI background checks, USCIS naturalization certificates, IRS letters — cannot be apostilled by Texas; they go to the U.S. Department of State. We confirm the correct authority before anything is filed, so your documents are never rejected on a technicality.