How a Florida birth certificate is used in Argentina
The Argentine use we see most is the opción de nacionalidad for a Florida-born child of a native Argentine. The Cancillería lists an apostilled foreign birth certificate as a requirement, and the procedure is personal and in person at the consulate, with one appointment per family member. Because the whole point is proving the link to the Argentine parent, order a certified copy that shows the parents' names. It must be signed by the current State Registrar: copies certified before 2014 won't be apostilled. Have the spellings checked against the parent's DNI before you file.
Translation for Argentina
Our general rule is a translation certified by the translator, notarized by a separate notary and apostilled in Florida, but Argentina instead requires an in-country professional for official filings. Under Law 20.305, foreign-language documents filed with Argentine authorities need a Spanish translation by a registered traductor público, and Migraciones and the Buenos Aires Registro Civil also want the Colegio de Traductores to legalize the translator's signature. Get the Florida apostille first so the traductor público translates the apostille page too.
What your Florida birth certificate must look like
The Florida Department of State apostilles the signature of the State Registrar, so you need a certified copy issued by the Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics or a county health department — not a hospital certificate, a photocopy or a scan. Copies certified before 2014 carry an older signature and are not accepted; order a fresh certified copy through VitalChek or your county health department before you send it. The certified copy itself (about $9–$14 from the issuing office) is the only cost on top of our $220.
Step by step: birth certificate apostille for Argentina
- Order online — pick "Birth certificate" and "Argentina" on the order form; $220 per document, $380 for two, $160 each for three or more.
- Send a photo — reply to the confirmation email with a picture of the document. We check the certification before anything ships, so a defect is caught before it costs you a round trip.
- Drop it at FedEx — after approval, FedEx emails you a prepaid QR code; show it at any FedEx Office or Ship Center, no printer or label needed.
- Filed in person in Tallahassee — we walk the document into the Florida Department of State and ship the apostilled original back by FedEx within 5–7 business days of receipt — to your U.S. address, or to Argentina with international return shipping (+$100).
One Florida apostille is all the U.S. side needs for Argentina. Whatever the office there asks for after that — a translation, a filing deadline — is covered above.