Quick answer
Custody judgments are the Florida court records Colombia sees most, because of minor travel. One Florida apostille is all the U.S. side needs — $220, 5–7 business days.
- Issued by
- The Clerk of the Circuit Court in the Florida county where the case was filed: judgments, probate letters, guardianship letters and family orders.
- Florida state fee
- $20 — included in $220
- Route
- Apostille only — Hague member since 2001
- Online notarization
- Not applicable — needs a certified copy
- Consulate serving Florida
- Consulate General of Colombia in Miami
- Translation
- Colombia accepts translations made in Florida when they're certified by the translator, notarized by a different notary and apostilled, which matches our general rule…
How a Florida court records is used in Colombia
Custody judgments are the Florida court records Colombia sees most, because of minor travel. The Cancillería's rules say that when only one parent holds patria potestad, that parent shows a copy of the sentence "debidamente ejecutoriada", meaning final. A Florida custody order used this way must be certified by the Clerk of Court, apostilled and translated, and it has to show it's final, not temporary. If the parents are in conflict, Colombia expects a permit from a Colombian family judge instead.
Getting a court records Florida will apostille
A complete copy certified by the Florida Clerk of Court, either with an original wet-ink certification and the clerk's seal or with the clerk's official e-certification, including the judge's signature page and with nothing removed or added. The state fee is $20 ($10 apostille + $10 certificate of incumbency), included in our price.
Order the certified copy from the clerk of the county where the case was filed, online, by mail or at the courthouse. Florida law sets the clerk's certification fee at $2 plus copy charges, usually $1 per page, and some clerks add online fees. Sealed or confidential records need the clerk's release. Clerk fees are not included in our $220.
State fee for this document: $20 — included in our price. Full details on the court records apostille page.
Who receives it in Colombia — and translation
Florida documents go to the Registraduría Nacional del Estado Civil and notarías (registro civil), the Cancillería (visas, apostille rules, minor-travel guidance), Migración Colombia (departures of minors), the Ministerio de Educación Nacional (convalidación), the Corte Suprema de Justicia (exequátur of foreign judgments) and the ICBF (adoptions). The Consulate General of Colombia in Miami handles registrations and authentications for Florida residents.
Colombia accepts translations made in Florida when they're certified by the translator, notarized by a different notary and apostilled, which matches our general rule; that translation is a separate document on your order. Alternatively, a Colombian official translator in Colombia can translate after the apostille, and that translation needs no apostille. The Cancillería recommends apostilling the original before translating, and the Ministry of Education doesn't require apostilled translations for convalidación.
For visas, the Cancillería requires documents other than passports to be issued no more than three months before the application. Notarías and other entities set their own limits, and many also want recent civil-status documents.
Consular office serving Florida: Consulate General of Colombia in Miami.
Four steps, one week
Order online
Pick the document and destination country on the order form and pay by card. After we review your documents, FedEx emails you a prepaid label.
Send your document
Drop the envelope at any FedEx location.
We file in person
We review it, then walk it to the Florida Department of State in Tallahassee for the apostille.
Returned to you
Back in 5–7 business days — anywhere in the U.S., or abroad for a flat $100.
Why court recordss get rejected
- Docket printout, attorney copy or conformed copy
- Notarized photocopy of the court record
- Missing pages, such as the judge's signature page
- Order from another state's court
What it costs for Colombia
$220 per document, $380 for two and $160 each for three or more — the state fee, request form, in-person filing in Tallahassee and FedEx shipping inside the U.S. are included. Shipping the finished apostille to Colombia is a flat $100 per order.
Not included: whatever the issuing office charges for the certified copy or certificate, and notarization (online notarization is $40 for the first document — $10 notarization fee + $30 technology platform fee — and $20 for each additional one).