Affidavit of residency: free, fillable, sworn proof of your address.

An affidavit of residency (also called an affidavit of residence or of domicile) is your sworn statement of where you live. Institutions ask for it when ordinary proof of address is not enough or does not exist:

• Consulates and foreign registries — for dual nationality files, consular registration, passport renewals for a child, pension or benefit claims, or proof that you live outside the home country (Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela and Honduras all ask for it in some procedures).
• Banks abroad — opening or maintaining an account as a non-resident.
• Schools and scholarships — proof of a family's residence when enrolling a child or applying for aid.
• Family and immigration paperwork — proof of cohabitation or of where a relative lives.
• Florida situations — when you live with family and have no bill in your name, a landlord or relative can sign to confirm you live at their address.

Most institutions want the affidavit and a supporting document: a lease, utility bill, bank statement or driver's license at the same address. The affidavit gives the sworn statement; the bill gives the paper trail.

The affidavit uses a Florida jurat: you swear or affirm before the notary that the statement is true, then sign. Bring a current government-issued photo ID; if the ID shows a different address than the one you are swearing to, bring a supporting document for the new address as well — the notary does not verify your address, but the institution will compare the two.

The oath can be taken in person at one of our Florida offices by appointment, or by video with a Florida online notary from anywhere.

Any affidavit going to a foreign authority needs an apostille so that authority can verify the notary. Domestic uses (a Florida school, a U.S. bank) do not. We file in Tallahassee and return the apostilled affidavit in 5–7 business days; see affidavit apostille. For a non-Hague country, Florida issues an authentication instead.

If the authority asked for a government-issued certificate of residence (a constancia de residencia from a municipality, for example), be aware that a sworn affidavit may not replace it. Ask what they accept from U.S. residents before you pay for the apostille; a notarized and apostilled affidavit is the usual answer, but not the only one.

• Mexico — consulates and the SAT, IMSS and civil registries ask for comprobante de domicilio; when a Florida resident cannot produce a Mexican one, an apostilled Spanish affidavit of residence plus a utility bill is the usual substitute. Mexico.
• Colombia and Venezuela — used for consular registration, pension claims and residencia procedures; include the purpose and the consulate's name. Colombia · Venezuela.
• Peru, Honduras, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic — accepted for consular and banking matters when apostilled; the Spanish version avoids a translation. Peru · Dominican Republic.
• Italy and Spain — citizenship-by-descent and residency files sometimes ask for proof of the applicant's residence abroad; the apostilled affidavit is accepted with a translation. Italy · Spain.