Many foreigners and Dominicans living abroad have the necessity of requesting documents in the Dominican Republic to carry out personal or legal processes in their country. Among the documents that are requested most frequently are civil status records such as birth, marriage, divorce and death certificates; divorce decrees; certificates of good standing; certifications from the General Migration Department, and university records. Below you will find a brief summary of the required steps to obtain each of these documents and the requirements for these to be valid abroad.

Civil Status Records
When requesting Civil Status Records, it will become quite handy to have as much information as you possibly may have regarding the record of interest. Information such as the certificate, folio and book number, as well as the names of the person(s) involved, date of the event and the Civil Registry Office where the same was registered and issued are essential. If you own a copy of the certificate, this will be ideal, since this will facilitate the location of such record. However, if the copy or original has been misplaced, the information on the records expedite the process and ensure the accuracy of the search.

Once you have the record details, the same is requested at the Civil Registry Office with the payment of an issuance fee. Generally, the records are issued the same day they are solicited, but this will vary depending on the Civil Registry Office’s workload and pending request which may delay the process one or two more days. After having the record it must be legalized by the Central Electoral Board, as is the institution that overlooks the Civil Registry Offices of the country and gives validity to the document once it has the stamp on the back of the same.

In order for the record to be valid abroad the same must obtain a so-called “visa” or legalization either by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the Apostille Legalization, if the country is member or signatory of the Hague Convention, or by the Consulate of the country where the document will be presented. Additionally, depending on the language of the country where the document will be presented it might be necessary to translate and legalize the translation at the Attorney General's Office.

Divorce Decree
Just as for Civil Status Records, it is very important to have basic information or a copy of the document when requesting certified copies of divorce decrees in court. It is important to have the date of the divorce and the civil court number or province in order to determine where the decree was dictated.

Firstly, in order to request a certified copy of a divorce decree with the stamp and signature of the courtroom secretary, a required fee must be paid. This process takes approximately 1 to 5 days depending on the information provided for the search and how old the divorce file is. Then, the decree must be legalized at the Attorney General's Office to validate and authorize the signature of the secretary. As a final step the divorce decree must be apostilled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or legalized by the corresponding consulate and translated if required.

Certificate of Good Standing
The certificate of good standing is issued for Dominican citizens and foreigners that are residents or are former residents of the Dominican Republic. Generally, the certificates of good standing are requested by those who are filing for residence permits in other countries. This document certifies that the individual does not have open cases, lawsuits or judgments in the country.

If the certificate of good standing was requested with a copy of the foreigner’s passport, if he/ she does not have a Dominican cedula (Dominican Id), the document will be ready in seven business days. For those who apply with a Dominican cedula, the certificate will be ready on the same day it was solicited. Once the document has been issued, it will be valid for thirty days.

This document is issued by the Attorney General's Office reason why it does not need to be legalized by such institution, but must be apostilled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or Consulate depending on the case and can be translated if required.

General Migration Department Certification
There are different types of certifications issued by the General Migration Department. There are certifications for customs, consular or residence matters.

They are usually required to demonstrate that there is a migration process being carried out in the country and avoiding complications when entering or leaving the Dominican Republic. These certifications are issued in three or four days and when applied with a VIP service they are issued the same day they were requested.

The legalizations by the Attorney General’s Office, Ministry of Foreign Affairs or Consulate are not required, since these type of certificates are used only for travel and are presented at the airport when leaving and entering the Dominican Republic.

University Records
University records issued by Dominican universities are required for those who have completed a career or have taken complementary courses in our country. When requesting such records the name of the university, full name of the title holder, the title holder’s registration number, the career name and the year of graduation is required. Presenting a power of authorization may be required in some universities as well.

Since a university record is an academic document the same must be legalized at the (SEESCYT) Secretary of Higher Education, Science and Technology, where all academic records of the country are archived, in order for the document to be valid abroad. For such legalization a power of authorization is also required. In addition to the before mentioned, the legalization by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or Consulate and the translation of the same is also required.

Overall, in order to expedite and facilitate the location of any of the documents mentioned above for those residing abroad, it is extremely important and handy to provide the most information possible since many government institutions have not yet digitalized their files.


Bibliography
• www.seescyt.gov.do
• www.serex.gov.do
• www.dgm.gov.do
• Law No.659 Civil Status Records