Apostille Checklist for a Florida LLC Opening a Bank Account Abroad

Before you order anything: confirm the list with the bank

The first step, before ordering a single certificate, is to ask the bank in writing for its exact document list, the exact name of each document, the maximum age it accepts, and the format it must be delivered in (physical, certified digital, or both). This checklist describes the documents most common in this type of process, but each bank decides its own final list, and there's no universal version that applies to every case.

The checklist

• 1. Certificate of Status or Certificate of Good Standing. Issued by Florida's Division of Corporations (or the state of formation, if the LLC wasn't formed in Florida). Apostilled through that same state's apostille authority. Full guide: How to apostille a Florida Certificate of Status.
• 2. Certified copy of the Articles of Organization. Officially reproduces the LLC's formation document. Apostilled through the same authority as the Certificate of Status, but as an independent certification. If you're not sure which of the two documents your bank wants, see Certificate of Status vs. Certified Articles: Which One Does a Foreign Bank Need?.
• 3. Internal resolution or member consent. Authorizes opening the account and names the signers. Only apostille-eligible if signed before a notary, and apostilled in the state where that notarization occurred. Full guide: How to Apostille a Corporate Resolution for Use Abroad.
• 4. IRS EIN Letter. Issued by a federal agency and follows different authentication rules than a state certificate. Confirm with the bank which form of authentication it accepts before assuming a state apostille applies.
• 5. Ownership or beneficial-owner documentation, if the bank expressly requires it. May include a certified copy of the Articles (if they include that detail), a notarized affidavit, or the bank's own form. Neither the Certificate of Status nor, in many states, certified Articles prove on their own who owns the company. Full guide: Foreign Bank Wants Proof of Company Ownership: What U.S. Documents Can Be Apostilled?.
• 6. Power of attorney, if a third party will sign on the LLC's behalf. Apostilled in the state where it was notarized, not the company's state of formation.
• 7. Identification for authorized signers. Passport copies or other ID the bank requests; usually doesn't require an apostille, but confirm with the bank.

Two rules that summarize the whole checklist

Almost every mistake in this process comes from mixing up these two rules. First: documents the state issues directly, like the Certificate of Status and certified Articles, are apostilled through the apostille authority of the LLC's state of formation, regardless of where the company operates. Second: documents the company drafts and signs internally, like resolutions, powers of attorney, and affidavits, are only apostille-eligible if notarized, and are apostilled in the state where that notarization occurred, which may differ from the state of formation. Applying the wrong rule to a document is the most common reason an apostille office rejects a request.

Recommended order for organizing the process

1. Get the bank's exact list in writing, with document names and maximum age.
2. Verify the LLC is listed as active on Sunbiz before ordering the Certificate of Status.
3. Order the Certificate of Status and, if applicable, the certified copy of the Articles, in the same request if Florida allows that for your case.
4. Draft, with your lawyer, any resolution or power of attorney the bank requires, and sign it before a notary in the state where the signer is located.
5. Confirm with the bank whether it needs additional ownership or beneficial-owner documentation.
6. Process each apostille in the correct jurisdiction: Florida (or the state of formation) for state-issued documents, and the state of notarization for internally signed documents.
7. Confirm whether the bank requires certified translation and at what point in the process it should happen.

A practical example: a Jupiter, Florida LLC opening an account in Panama

Suppose an LLC formed and headquartered in Jupiter, Florida needs to open a corporate account at a bank in Panama. The bank asks for: a recent Certificate of Status, a certified copy of the Articles of Organization, an IRS EIN Letter, a resolution authorizing the account opening and naming the signer, and a beneficial-owner declaration. The Certificate of Status and certified Articles are apostilled through Florida's Division of Corporations. The resolution, if signed before a notary in Florida, is also apostilled in Florida, but as a separate process. The EIN Letter follows a separate federal rule the bank must specify. If the LLC prefers to coordinate the process in person given its South Florida location, see our Jupiter, Florida apostille page.

Common mistakes that delay the whole file

• Ordering only one of the two state documents (Certificate of Status or Articles) when the bank wanted both.
• Notarizing a resolution or power of attorney in one state and then trying to apostille it in the LLC's state of formation.
• Sending the EIN Letter for a state apostille instead of first confirming with the bank which authentication it accepts.
• Assuming a single document (for example, the Certificate of Status) answers every question the bank has, including ownership.
• Waiting until the bank's deadline to start the apostille process.

The full file, in context

If you'd rather first understand why an LLC's file isn't resolved with a single process, see Opening a Foreign Bank Account for a U.S. LLC: Which Company Documents May Need Apostilles?, which covers the general picture before getting into each document's detail. For the broader context of how a bank evaluates corporate documentation, also see Apostilled Certificate of Good Standing for a foreign bank.