How a Florida marriage certificate is used in Dominican Republic
Two Dominican offices care about a Florida marriage. The Junta Central Electoral records it in the Dominican civil registry when one spouse is Dominican, usually through the consulate in Miami or Orlando, so the Dominican civil status matches. The Dirección General de Migración uses it when the foreign spouse applies for residence, and its checklist accepts an apostilled copy of a foreign marriage. The certificate must be signed by the State Registrar or a Clerk of the County Court. Expect a Spanish translation, which Dominican offices usually want apostilled as a separate document.
Translation for Dominican Republic
Dominican offices usually want the Spanish translation to carry its own apostille. The translator certifies the translation of the original and its apostille, a separate Florida notary notarizes that certification (the translator can't be the notary), and we apostille the notarized translation as a second document, so an original plus translation is our two-document price of $380. Some Dominican offices may instead want the translation made in the Dominican Republic; ask the office that will receive your file.
What your Florida marriage certificate must look like
Two versions can be apostilled: a certified copy from the Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics (signed by the State Registrar; the $10 state apostille fee applies) or a certified copy from the Clerk of Court in the county that issued the license (the $20 state fee applies). The decorative certificate from the ceremony and church certificates cannot be apostilled. Vital Statistics copies certified before 2014 must be replaced; order a new one through VitalChek or the county clerk. The state fee is included in our price either way.
Step by step: marriage certificate apostille for the Dominican Republic
- Order online — pick "Marriage certificate" and "Dominican Republic" 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 the Dominican Republic with international return shipping (+$100).
One Florida apostille is all the U.S. side needs for the Dominican Republic. Whatever the office there asks for after that — a translation, a filing deadline — is covered above.