Countries › El Salvador
Using a U.S. document in El Salvador
Step by step
- Get an original certified copy of the document from the issuing office (Salvadoran consulates ask for the original foreign certificate).
- Get an apostille from the competent authority of the U.S. state where the document was issued; federal documents (e.g., FBI background check) are apostilled by the U.S. Department of State.
- Present it at a Salvadoran consulate in the U.S. (consular officers act as family registrars) or at a regional office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in El Salvador.
Translation
The official pages reviewed do not state whether a Spanish translation is required for U.S. documents. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists notarial 'translations into Spanish or other languages' among notarized documents it can authenticate, but does not say when a translation is mandatory.
Common uses
- Register the birth of a child of Salvadorans born abroad
- Register a marriage celebrated abroad
- Register a death that occurred abroad
- Corrections (rectificaciones) of those family-status records
Important
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that a document issued in a Hague Convention member country needs the apostille issued by that country's designated authority to take effect in El Salvador. Registration within the legal term is free; after six months there is a US$5.00 fine, and consular family-registry certifications cost US$10.00. The service is offered at all 28 Salvadoran consulates in the U.S.
Which state issued your document?
Apostille fee and processing time in that state.
Sources
See the official sources (6)
- https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/status-table/?cid=41
- https://rree.gob.sv/autenticas-y-apostillas/
- https://rree.gob.sv/registro-estado-familiar/
- https://rree.gob.sv/cancilleria-realiza-jornadas-extraordinarias-para-el-registro-del-estado-familiar-dirigido-a-la-diaspora-en-estados-unidos/
- https://transparencia.gob.sv/institutions/rree/documents/299911/download
- https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/records-and-authentications/authenticate-your-document/apostille-requirements.html
Editor's note
HCCH: accession 1995-09-14, in force 1996-05-31; no objections or notes listed. The consular registration pages list the 'original foreign certificate' but do not explicitly say whether a U.S. certificate presented at a consulate in the U.S. must be apostilled; the apostille requirement is taken from the Ministry's general 'Auténticas y Apostillas' page. Translation requirements could not be confirmed (set to null). travel.state.gov country page could not be retrieved.