Adoption Documents Apostille for Venezuela

This is rare, and it usually surfaces at SAIME. A child adopted in Florida by a Venezuelan parent can only get a cédula once the registro civil has recorded the child, and the registry will want to see how the parent-child link was created. For an adopted child, that's the Florida final judgment of adoption, certified by the Clerk of Court, often with the amended birth certificate that names the adoptive parents. Expect a Venezuelan lawyer to raise whether the judgment needs exequátur first. Florida adoption files are sealed, so only the parties get certified copies.

The final judgment of adoption certified by the Florida Clerk of Court (wet-ink or official e-certification), with all pages attached; its state fee is $20. The new birth certificate must be a certified copy signed by the State Registrar and certified in 2014 or later; its state fee is $10. Both fees are included in our price.

Adoption records are confidential under section 63.162, Florida Statutes, and released only on court order. The easiest time to get certified copies is through your adoption attorney while the case is still open; for an older case, ask the clerk what they require, since you may need to file a request with the court. Clerk and Vital Statistics fees are not included in our $220.

State fee for this document: $20 — included in our price. Full details on the adoption documents apostille page.

Births and marriages that happened abroad are recorded at the municipal registro civil offices. SAIME issues cédulas and passports once the birth is registered. Powers of attorney, property and companies go through notaries and registries under SAREN (Servicio Autónomo de Registros y Notarías), and estates involve the succession declaration filed with SENIAT. Venezuelan consular services in the U.S. have been disrupted for years, so check current availability before relying on a consulate.

Our standard for a translation is a translator's certification, notarized by a different notary, with its own Florida apostille. Venezuela may instead require an intérprete público: under the Ley de Intérpretes Públicos (2022), official translations with public faith are made by titled translators registered in the national registry kept by the Ministry of Interior, Justice and Peace. Ask the registro civil, notary or registry which version it accepts, and translate after the apostille.

We could not verify a general age limit for Florida documents in Venezuela. The clock that matters most is birth registration: the Chacao registry, for example, sets 90 days after the birth before a late-registration letter is needed.

$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 Venezuela 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).