Many forms must be notarized by an official Notary Bureau (Notarialnaya Kontora). Documents in a foreign language have to be translated or reviewed by an officially approved translator. There may be a long wait at the office, so call in advance or send someone to wait in line for you. Unfortunately, English is not generally spoken, so take a translator if necessary. There is a small payment and each attestation is hand recorded in a large book. You may have to get your papers or forms notarized at your embassy or consulate as well.

The Apostille: Papers such as diplomas, transcripts, certificates, and incorporation papers needed for submission to authorities in Russia should be notarized in your home country before you leave for Russia by using a form called an "Apostille" which states that the document is authentic. The process is lengthy and requires getting your signature notarized, getting your county's attestation that this is the registered notary's signature, and then sending it to the state Secretary of State, who may have to send it to the Federal Secretary of States who sends it to the Russian Embassy for signature on the "stamped" form. In the USA, call the US Department of State, Authentication of Documents Division (202-647-5005). Once the papers get to Russia, they will need to be translated by "official translators".

Role of the Notary: Notarization plays a large role in Russian life. For example, notaries certify authenticity of contracts, inheritances, warrants. They also issue documents showing property rights of spouses, certificates of authenticity of documents and their copies, authenticity of signatures, and authenticity of translations. In addition, they certify that a person is in good health and alive, the similarity between a person and his/her photograph, the time when a document has been submitted, and the transfer of documents from businesses and individuals to other businesses and individuals.
They have quasi-legal powers found usually with lawyers and even courts in other countries, especially in proving of wills and passing of estates and inheritances. For example, they can hold documents and money in escrow, accept checks for payment delinquencies, take documents for storage, resolve marine disputes, provide proof, take testimony, issue documents on inheritance and take steps to protect inherited property. One of the most common responsibilities now are real estate transactions, especially signing of purchasing sales, gifts and apartment exchange agreements. See REAL ESTATE AGENTS.

Notary bureaus: The notary bureaus listed below usually have several licensed notaries, specializing in different types of notarization services.