Quick answer
A name-change order is occasional, but it solves a common Venezuelan problem: your cédula and Venezuelan records show one name, and your U.S. 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 name change was granted, as a certified copy of the final judgment of change of name (section 68.07…
- Florida state fee
- $20 — included in $220
- Route
- Apostille only — Hague member since 1999
- Online notarization
- Not applicable — needs a certified copy
- Translation
- Our standard for a translation is a translator's certification, notarized by a different notary, with its own Florida apostille.
- Turnaround
- 5–7 business days, filed in person
How a Florida name change order is used in Venezuela
A name-change order is occasional, but it solves a common Venezuelan problem: your cédula and Venezuelan records show one name, and your U.S. passport or naturalization papers show another. A SAREN notary, a registro civil or a bank will stop a transaction if nothing links the two. The Florida court order, certified by the Clerk of Court and apostilled, is that link. File it alongside the poder or record it explains. The copy the judge gave you at the hearing is usually not certified, so order a certified copy from the clerk.
Getting a name change order Florida will apostille
A certified copy of the final judgment of change of name with the clerk's original certification and seal or official e-certification, complete with the judge's signature page. The former and new names must match your other records exactly. The state fee is $20, included in our price.
Request it from the clerk of the county that granted the change, online, by mail or at the counter. If you were born in Florida, the change is reported to Vital Statistics, and many foreign offices also want an updated certified birth certificate from VitalChek or the Bureau. 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 name change order apostille page.
Who receives it in Venezuela — and translation
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.
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 name change orders get rejected
- Hearing copy, scan or attorney copy instead of the clerk-certified judgment
- Notarized photocopy of the judgment
- Missing pages
- Wrong document: a name restored in a divorce is shown by the divorce judgment
What it costs for Venezuela
$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).