What a single status affidavit does
A single status affidavit is your sworn statement that you aren't currently married and are legally free to marry. Registries abroad call what they want by many names: constancia de soltería, declaración jurada de soltería, certificate of no impediment, certificate of freedom to marry, nulla osta, certificate of legal capacity to marry. The substance is the same.
The affidavit becomes a document a foreign registry can rely on in three steps: you swear to it before a Florida notary, the notary completes a jurat, and the Florida Department of State apostilles the notary's signature. The apostille confirms the notary, not your marital status; the oath is what gives the statement its weight.
Before you write anything, get the registry's own requirements, from the registry, the officiant or your wedding planner. Some registries provide a template, some insist on a document from a government office or consulate, and many set a maximum age for it.
The affidavit and Florida's no-record statement
Florida's Bureau of Vital Statistics also offers something many people don't know about: a single status statement. On application form DH261SS, linked from the Department of Health's apostille page, the Bureau searches Florida's marriage records for your name and, if it finds nothing, issues a certified "No Record Found" statement for the years searched.
| Sworn single status affidavit | Bureau of Vital Statistics single status statement | |
|---|---|---|
| What it says | You swear you're unmarried and free to marry, anywhere | No Florida marriage record was found for you in the years searched |
| Coverage | Your whole history, by your own oath | Florida only, from June 6, 1927, excluding the most recent 60 days |
| State fee | None; notary fee only | $5 for the first statement, $4 each extra, $2 per extra year searched (max $50) |
| Processing | Same day you sign | 5–7 business days at the Bureau, plus mail |
| Apostille fee at the state | $10 | $10 |
Fees and processing are as listed on the form dated June 2023; check the current form before ordering. The form also says to confirm the statement's requirements with the destination country's consulate or embassy first.
Which to use? The affidavit covers more and is the document most registries ask for. The Bureau's statement only proves you didn't marry in Florida, but some registries like an official record alongside your oath. If a registry asks for a "certificate from a government authority," the Bureau's statement may be the closer fit. Ask. Our rule that vital records must be certified in 2014 or later is easy to meet here, since the statement is issued fresh.
What to include in the affidavit
Use the registry's template if it has one. Otherwise, include:
- Title, such as "Affidavit of Single Status"
- Your full legal name exactly as in your passport, plus any former names
- Date and place of birth, nationality, passport number and issuing country
- Current residential address
- Your status: never married, or divorced or widowed, with the date, place and court or record that ended each marriage
- A statement that you are legally free to marry
- If the registry asks: your intended spouse's full name and the country and city of the wedding
- A statement that you understand you are making it under oath
- Your signature, made in front of the notary, followed by a Florida jurat in English
Sample wording
Here's a plain structure you can adapt. It's an illustration, not legal advice; replace every bracketed item, and follow the registry's template if it has one.
AFFIDAVIT OF SINGLE STATUS
I, [full legal name], being first duly sworn, state:
1. I was born on [date] in [city, country]. I am a citizen of [country] and hold passport number [number], issued by [country].
2. I reside at [full address].
3. I have never been married. [Or: I was previously married to [name]. That marriage was dissolved by final judgment of the [court], [county], [state], on [date], case number [number]. I have not remarried.]
4. I am legally free to marry. I intend to marry [name of intended spouse] in [city, country].
5. I make this affidavit for presentation to the civil registry of [country] and declare that the foregoing is true and correct.
[Signature]
[Printed name]
The statement can be bilingual, for example English and Spanish side by side. A bilingual affidavit can save a translation step if the registry accepts it. The jurat below it must be in English.
Swear to it: the notarial certificate you need
An affidavit is sworn, so it needs a jurat, not an acknowledgment. An acknowledgment only confirms you signed; a registry relying on your statement wants it sworn. The jurat should be substantially in the statutory form on the Florida Department of State's sample notarial certificates page, with every blank filled: county, the physical presence or online notarization box, date, your name, and how the notary identified you.
Don't sign before you meet the notary. You sign after taking the oath.
COUNTY OF ____________
Sworn to (or affirmed) and subscribed before me by means of [ ] physical presence or [ ] online notarization, this ____ day of ____________, (year) ____, by (name of person making statement).
(NOTARY SEAL)
______________________________
(Signature of Notary Public - State of Florida)
(Print, Type, or Stamp Commissioned Name of Notary Public)
Personally Known ____ OR Produced Identification ____
Type of Identification Produced ____________
Signing in person or online
Any Florida notary with an active commission can administer the oath. If you're not in Florida, or you're already abroad, our online notarization add-on lets you swear to the affidavit over video with a Florida online notary after identity verification. We print the notarized affidavit with a Florida attested-copy certificate and file it for the apostille. The add-on is $40 for the first document ($10 notarization fee plus $30 technology platform fee) and $20 for each additional one, which is handy when both partners sign.
Near one of our appointment offices? Bring the unsigned affidavit and your photo ID to an appointment at either office, Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; in-office notarization is charged separately. A notary from another state can notarize your affidavit, but only that state can apostille it.
When to sign
Registries often accept the statement only within a set period before the wedding. Find out the limit, then work backward: our 5–7 business days, international shipping, and any translation the registry requires. Signing months early can mean signing twice.
If you were married before, order the proof at the same time: usually a clerk-certified divorce judgment (see how to get a certified copy of a Florida divorce decree) or a death certificate. Registries compare the dates in your affidavit with those records.
Why single status affidavits get refused
- A prior marriage left out, or mentioned without the date and place it ended. Registries cross-check it against your divorce or death record.
- A name that doesn't match the passport. If you've used another name, list both and say why.
- An acknowledgment instead of a jurat, so the statement was never sworn.
- Too old by the time it reaches the registry.
- A notary from another state, so Florida can't apostille it.
- The wrong kind of document. The registry wanted a statement from a government office or a consulate, not a notarized affidavit. Read its requirement carefully, and consider adding the Bureau's no-record statement.
More on notarial defects in notarized documents for apostille.
Apostilling the affidavit
We file in person in Tallahassee and return the apostilled affidavit in 5–7 business days. Pricing is $220 for one document, $380 for two (one for each partner, or the affidavit plus a birth certificate) and $160 each for three or more, including the state fee, the request form and FedEx inside the U.S. Notarization is separate. International delivery is a flat $100 per order. Order online, or see single status affidavit apostille. For a non-Hague wedding country, read non-Hague authentication first.