Transcribing a Foreign Marriage Certificate

domilinguist

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Feb 22, 2008
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Hello,

I was just wondering if anyone else has been through this wonderful process. My work insisted that I get an 'Extracto de Acta de Matrimonio' for my husband to include him on my Social Security and insurance policy or something. Anyway, this process ended up being one obstacle after another and I thought I'd write a list to help other people if you ever have to go through this absolutely ludicrous rigmarole of D.R. bureaucracy to get this sorted.

The mistake we made was that we married in the U.K. but did not realise that we had to get our wedding certificate certified by the Dominican Embassy in London before returning here which is why everything was so complicated?

A lawyer told me that another option (in order to avoid all the steps below) would have been to remarry here under Dominican law?sounded like a great option until I was told that if I ever got divorced than this would also have to happen in two places?

Happy reading!

Step one: Take U.K. marriage certificate to the British Embassy and pay to get it stamped and signed.

Step two: Collect certificate a few days later from the embassy with stamp and signature.

Step three: Pay taxes at Ban Reservas to verify signature on certificate at the Canciller?a

Step four: Take certificate to the Canciller?a

Step five: Collect certificate and take it to a registered translators to be stamped and signed.

Step six: Take the translation of the marriage certificate to Centro de Atenci?n al Ciudadano (Procuradur?a) - which by the way I found out had moved ? to get a signature and stamp on the translation that certifies that the translator is certified and registered to translate documents.

Step seven: Go to the legal department of the Junta Central to deposit original U.K. marriage certificate and translation.

Step eight: Go to another section of the Junta Central to pay costs.

Step nine: Return to the legal department at the Junta Central to then wait for what seemed like an eternity (a few hours) to deposit the paperwork.

Step ten: Wait a few weeks.

Step eleven: Call Junta Central to check that documents are ready. Call again and again until finally they are ready to be collected (late, of course).

Step twelve: Go to Junta Central to collect paperwork. This includes two letters instructing me to deposit said paperwork at a JCE office in Gazcue.

Step thirteen: Go to office in Gazcue to deposit paperwork and pay yet another fee for my ?extracto de acta de matrimonio?.

Step fourteen: Wait two more days for document to be processed.

Step fifteen: Go and pick up document!