How a Florida birth certificate is used in Chile
Children and grandchildren of Chileans born in Florida can have the birth registered in Chile through the Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación. The Registro Civil asks for the original Florida birth certificate with an apostille and, because it's in English, a certified Spanish translation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the relevant consulate. Registration is free and in person; it can't be done online. The certificate must be signed by the current State Registrar, and pre-2014 certifications won't be apostilled. Minors leaving Chile also travel with an original birth certificate naming both parents.
Translation for Chile
Our general rule for translations is certified by the translator, notarized by a separate notary and apostilled in Florida, but Chile often needs less or something different. Migraciones requires an official translation only for documents in a language other than Spanish or English. The Registro Civil instead wants a certified Spanish translation from Chile's Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the relevant consulate; the Ministry's service translates the apostilled original and can deliver it online. Translate after the apostille, and only when the receiving office asks.
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 Chile
- Order online — pick "Birth certificate" and "Chile" 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 Chile with international return shipping (+$100).
One Florida apostille is all the U.S. side needs for Chile. Whatever the office there asks for after that — a translation, a filing deadline — is covered above.
