How a Florida fdle background check is used in Mexico
Honestly, Mexico seldom asks for a Florida criminal record. The temporary-resident visa checklists we've reviewed at Mexican consulates focus on economic solvency, not police records. It still comes up now and then: a Mexican school hiring a foreign teacher, an adoption file handled through the DIF, or a state office with its own list. When it does, ask whether a state-level FDLE record is acceptable or whether they want the FBI check, which we don't handle. An FDLE record can only be apostilled if it was notarized when FDLE issued it.
Translation for Mexico
Our general rule is a translation certified by the translator, notarized by a different notary and apostilled in Florida. Mexico is the big exception: notarios, courts and Registros Civiles usually require a perito traductor authorized by a state Tribunal Superior de Justicia instead, done in Mexico after the apostille. Mexican consulates in the U.S. generally don't ask for a translation of English documents, and SEP revalidation accepts a simple translation.
What your FDLE criminal history check must look like
Order the certified, notarized criminal history from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement — the version FDLE notarizes at issuance. An online instant check or a printout without FDLE's notarial certificate cannot be apostilled. The notarized FDLE result is a Florida document, so it receives a Florida apostille; an FBI identity history summary is a federal document that goes to the U.S. Department of State instead and is not something we handle. If the receiving office asks for a "state police certificate", the notarized FDLE check is what they mean.
Step by step: FDLE background check apostille for Mexico
- Order online — pick "FDLE background check" and "Mexico" 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 Mexico with international return shipping (+$100).
One Florida apostille is all the U.S. side needs for Mexico. Whatever the office there asks for after that — a translation, a filing deadline — is covered above.