Marriage Certificate
MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE
GENERAL INFORMATION
· A marriage celebrated in the United States, in which one or both spouses are Brazilian, must be registered at a Brazilian Consulate in order to be legally recognized in Brazil.
· Marriage certificates are issued at the Consulate General of Brazil in Washington by appointment only. See the instructions below on how to request this service.
· If one spouse is Brazilian and the other is not, the Brazilian spouse must be the one to request this service via the e-consular system and subsequently report to the Consulate on the day of the appointment. The non-Brazilian spouse need not be present for the appointment.
· If both spouses are Brazilian, then both spouses must report to the Consulate on the day of the appointment.
· Consular marriage certificates must later be transcribed in Brazil, in the 1st Civil Registry office of the declarant’s residence (Cartório 1º Ofício de Registro Civil), or alternatively in the 1st Civil Registry office in Brasília (Cartório Marcelo Ribas).
o The marriage certificate issued by the 1st Civil Registry office in Brazil definitively replaces the marriage certificate issued by the Consulate, and should be presented for all future legal purposes, both in Brazil and in Brazilian Consulates abroad. Eventual requests for a second copy or annotation of the Brazilian marriage certificate must be made directly with the cartório.
· Questions may be sent via email to regist.cgwashington@itamaraty.gov.br
HOW TO REQUEST A CONSULAR MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE
1. Create a service request for “Registro de casamento/Marriage registration” via the e-consular system. You will need to create an account using your e-mail address if have not used the e-consular system before.
2. Upload the required documents (listed below).
3. Once your documents have been reviewed and approved*, choose an available appointment date via the e-consular system to appear at the Consulate. You must bring to your appointment all the original documents that you uploaded to the e-consular system, along with the money order.
* The documents you upload will be reviewed by the Consulate. If any documents are missing or incomplete, you will receive a notification via e-mail to re-submit the correct document(s). You will only be able to schedule an appointment via the e-consular system once you have uploaded all the correct documents, as verified by the Consulate.
REQUIRED DOCUMENTS
1) For spouse(s) of Brazilian nationality:
A) Proof of Brazilian Identity:
- Brazilian passport (even if it's expired); or
- Brazilian Identity Card (RG); or
- Valid Brazilian Driver License.
B) Proof of Brazilian Nationality:
- Brazilian Birth Certificate;or
- Valid Brazilian Passport.
C) Proof of Marital Status before the wedding:
- Official copy (“2a via”) of Birth Certificate issued in the past six (6) months; OR
- Birth Certificate issued at any time, AND testimony form filled and signed by two (2) witnesses, as confirmation that there was no impediment to your marriage. A notary public must notarize the signatures of both witnesses. Click here for the declaration document.
- Marriage Certificate with Divorce Certificate (“averbação de divórcio”). If the divorce did not take place in Brazil, the Divorce Certificate must be ratified by the Superior Tribune of Justice before the new marriage can be registered); OR
- Marriage Certificate with Death Certificate (“certidão de óbito”) of the deceased spouse; OR
2) For a spouse who is not a Brazilian citizen:
A) Proof of Identity/Nationality
- Valid Passport or Valid Driver License;
- Original Birth Certificate.
B) Proof of Marital Status before the wedding:
- Declaration of marital status signed by the spouse, who is not a Brazilian citizen, notarized by Notary Public of the Consulate jurisdiction. Click here for the declaration.
- In case of previous marriage, divorce documents or death certificate must be provided; and a declaration that the foreign spouse is neither currently nor was never married to a Brazilian citizen, signed in front of and duly notarized by a Notary Public within the jurisdiction of this Consulate. Click here for declaration.
- If the foreign spouse is divorced from a Brazilian citizen, it is mandatory to provide the the Divorce Certificate ratified by the Superior Tribune of Justice in Brazil.
IMPORTANT: If the spouse is not a United States citizen, the Birth Certificate and Divorce or Death Certificate of previous spouse(s), when applicable, must be notarized and apostilled by the pertinent authorities, as per the Hague Convention, where such documents were originally issued.
3) Local Marriage Certificate
4) Official proof of ID (US issued) with change of last name, if applicable: Social Security, Driver's License, Permanent Resident Card or Passport.
5) Prenuptial Agreement, if applicable, notarized and apostilled by the Secretary of State where such document was issued.
6) Postnuptial Agreement, if applicable.
7) Proof of local address
8) Consular Fee - to be presented when you report to the Consulate on the day of the appointment
- The cost of the Certificate of Marriage Registration is US$20.00.
- The cost of each additional copy is US$5.00.
- Payment must be made by U.S. Postal Money Orders payable to the "Consulate General of Brazil in Washington, DC".
- The Consulate will not accept any other form of payment, such as "money orders" from other banks or other institutions like CVS, Walgreens, etc. Furthermore, we do not accept payments in form of personal checks, business checks, cashier’s checks, credit cards, debit cards etc.