Canadian brides getting married in Mexico-Legal wedding info

Hi girls! I know there is a lot of confusion out there with regards to what needs to be done to have a legal wedding in Mexico so I thought I'd start a thread with the information that I have so far. My information comes through talking with the department of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of Mexico but if you have different information please post it! I don't know why this is so complicated and it's near impossible to find the process anywhere so I figured we could start a thread and figure things out once and for all!

Here it goes:

1. You need the long version of your birth certificate (not the credit card size one)

2. Then you need to find an official translator who can translate the documents into Spanish

3. Once it is translated you need to have it notarized (by a commissioner of oath or a notary public) before you can send it off to the Department of Foreign Affairs

4. Once notarized, you send it to be authenticated by Foreign Affairs. You need to include a cover letter indicating that you want the documents to be authenticated and a pre-paid return addressed envelope. (I will try to attach a copy of my letter-just have to figure out how to attach the document!)

Authentication and Service of Documents

Department of Foreign Affairs

125 Sussex Drive

Ottawa Ontario K1A 0G2

5. It is then sent to the Mexican Embassy to be legalized

(Foreign Affairs will forward the documents to the Mexican Embassy for you if you include a money order and a pre-paid courier return envelope-You need to contact the Mexican Embassy to find out what the fee is before you send it off)

Consular Section

Embassy of Mexico

45 O’Conner, Suite 1000

Ottawa, Ontario K1P 1A4

Here are the phone numbers for both the department of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of Mexico

Foreign Affairs 1-613-995-0119

Embassy of Mexico 1-612-233-8988

I have spent a lot of time talking to these 2 departments and trying to clarify things and this is the process as far as I understand it. Is there anyone who has been told something different

I know that some resorts only require that you bring down your long version of you birth certificate and then they translate it for you so this is something that doesn't apply to all brides getting married in Mexico (check with your wedding coordinator)

I am just getting requests from my resort for this stuff so this is REALLY helpful...Thanks....How do i go about getting the long version of my birth certificate though...?? And how long does this whole process take...my WC wants this from me in a couple weeks?

Ryan'sgirl - that's awesome, thanks for putting that together for all of us confused brides! I'm starting to think IB* Del Mar/Beach must have some sort of a service that does all this for us. I'm just waiting to hear from my TA on Monday to confirm it.

jennyFTB - I'm not sure if it's the same process as ON as it is for AB, but FI and I filled out a birth certificate application form and brought it down the Alberta Registry by our house.

Here's a link to some info I found on getting your birth certificate in Ontario, hope it helps!

Ontario Birth Certificate Information -School & Work - Gateway for Individuals- Government of Ontario (Canada)

Thanks ladies...I will put a rush on it...The resort wants us to have it translated...I will make some calls tomorrow....

Um, that information is completely contrary to what myself and many others have done.

I got married 6 months ago in the Mayan Riviera, and all I had to do was bring our passports (didn't even need birth certificate never mind the long version) and have a blood test done in mexico (was done at the resort, the resort organized it all), and be in the area for 4 days before our ceremony.

We signed a legal marriage certificate and had 4 witnesses sign (if you don't have witnesses that have been there for 4 days the resort will provide them).

I contacted the gov't of Ontario and they confirmed that my marriage is legal seeing as it's considered legal in Mexico. There is no registry for out of province or out of country marriages, so I don't have to do anything extra to make my marriage legal here.

Once again, the only documentation I needed was my passport, and I did not need to have anything translated.

Hi Ladies!

Here's what my TA told me after her Spanish-speaking coworker spoke to Gabriela Palacios (wc at Iberostar Del Mar/Beach) about required documents for civil ceremonies at the resort:

"Hi Kathy,

Karen just had a call back from Gabriela. She has reconfirmed that you just need to bring your original birth certificate, no translation, no certifying required. Just as they are is fine. She was not able to tell us why the requirements for the Lindo resort are different, just that they are considered separate resorts and all resorts have different requirements due to management and staff requirements. I trust this completely, as all of our documents with Gabriela and the resort indicate no translation is required."

So I guess, for whatever reason, the Lindo/Maya do their civil ceremonies a bit different than Del Mar/Beach. I guess I'm going the same route as SunBride. I'm very relieved that I've gotten verbal confirmation from my wc that this is what the resort is asking for. Too bad they don't really go in to detail as to why they are different, just that they are. Hope this helps some other confused brides out there.

I wish I had know it was different everywhere...I would have picked an easier resort!