Quick answer
A couple who married in Florida, where one spouse is Taiwanese, must register the marriage at a household registration office in Taiwan for it to appear on the Taiwanese spouse's records. Florida issues an authentication certificate for Taiwan, not an apostille — $220, 5–7 business days.
- Issued by
- The Clerk of Court in the Florida county where the marriage license was issued, or the Florida Bureau of Vital Statistics (marriages from June 6, 1927 on)…
- Florida state fee
- $10 — included in $220
- Route
- Florida authentication → U.S. Department of State → Taiwan embassy
- Online notarization
- Not applicable — needs a certified copy
- Consulate serving Florida
- Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Miami (its district includes Florida)
- Translation
- Taiwanese agencies work in Chinese, and many ask for a Chinese translation of English documents.
How a Florida marriage certificate is used in Taiwan
A couple who married in Florida, where one spouse is Taiwanese, must register the marriage at a household registration office in Taiwan for it to appear on the Taiwanese spouse's records. That registration also starts the foreign spouse's path to a Taiwan residence permit. Order a certified copy from the Clerk of the County Court that issued the license or from the State Registrar, authenticate it, and plan for a Chinese translation the household registration office will accept.
Getting a marriage certificate Florida will authenticate
A certified copy signed by the State Registrar or a Clerk of the County Court, certified in 2014 or later. The state fee is $10 for a State Registrar signature and $20 for a clerk-certified copy ($10 apostille + $10 certificate of incumbency); either one is included in our price. Church certificates, ceremony keepsakes, photocopies and notarized copies are not accepted.
Order from the Clerk of Court in the county that issued the license: it is the only source for marriages before June 6, 1927, and the faster one for a recent wedding, since marriages take about 60 days to reach state records. Or order from the Bureau of Vital Statistics through VitalChek (vitalchek.com), by mail or in person. Clerk, Bureau and VitalChek fees are not included in our $220.
State fee for this document: $10 — included in our price. Full details on the marriage certificate page.
What happens after the Florida certificate — Taiwan
After we return your document with its Florida authentication certificate, it goes to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Miami, which covers Florida according to Taiwan's Bureau of Consular Affairs. Ask TECO Miami whether it also requires authentication by the U.S. Department of State first for your document type. In Taiwan, some agencies may also ask for the TECO seal to be verified by the Bureau of Consular Affairs, which offers that service. We don't handle, arrange or refer anyone for these steps.
We don't handle or arrange the U.S. Department of State or embassy steps. See how non-Hague authentication works.
Who receives it in Taiwan — and translation
Taiwan's representative offices in the U.S. are the Taipei Economic and Cultural Offices (TECO); according to Taiwan's Bureau of Consular Affairs, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Miami covers Florida. In Taiwan, authenticated Florida documents go to household registration offices for marriages and births, the National Immigration Agency for residence, the Ministry of Education and universities for degree recognition and admission, employers and labor authorities for work permits, and the courts.
Taiwanese agencies work in Chinese, and many ask for a Chinese translation of English documents. Requirements differ by agency: some accept a translation made abroad, others want one made or notarized in Taiwan. Ask the receiving agency first. If it accepts a Florida translation, the translator certifies it, a different notary notarizes it, and it is authenticated in Florida with the original.
We found no single published Taiwanese rule on document age. Household registration offices and employers may want recent single-status documents and police checks, so ask the receiving agency how recent each must be.
Consular office serving Florida: Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Miami (its district includes Florida).
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 authentication certificate.
Returned to you
Back in 5–7 business days — anywhere in the U.S., or abroad for a flat $100.
Why marriage certificates get rejected
- Certified before 2014
- Church or ceremony certificate instead of the civil record
- Notarized photocopy of the certificate
- Marriage recorded in another state
What it costs for Taiwan
$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 authentication to Taiwan 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).