legal papers needed to get married in the DR

[DRBride2009]

Thanks so much ethrondson.

I too emailed the tourism board for info but haven't heard back. I'm glad they got back to you. And Yes, I'm definitely going to deal directly with the consulate!

[Riu Mambo Bride to be]

DO both of us have to fill out the declaration Can someone please help me with filling this FN thing out... Im so frustrated.

[DanielleNDerek]

the single declaration? you both have to fill out your own.

[SSNM]

Thanks for the postings! Really helpful!

[SSNM]

So I called the Dominican Republic Embassy in Canada who told me that:

 

1. If you have never been married, divorced, widowed, or had a name change, you only need your birth certifricate, passport, and sworn affidavit stating you are single. Only the birth certifricate and the affidavit needs to be translated.

 

2. One can send their copies to the embassy to do the legalization and the translation for $360 CAD. If you send it by mail, make sure that (a) it is notarized and ( you include a postage-prepaid envelop for them to send the copies back. If you walk it in personally (they are in Ottawa) then there is someone there who can notarize it for you. I am unsure if there is a fee.

 

3. There is a consulate in Toronto who can also provide the above service although I do not know what their fees are. I believe a couple of BDW'ers are looking into that and I will do the same and post it when I get the information.

 

4. DRSI and WEDO are private businesses who basically take care of the paper work for you and charge a fee that seems to be a lot higher than if you deal with the embassy directly. Both of these companies must send your documents to the embassy in your country anyway for legalization. I believe a previous poster already confirmed this with the Toronto consulate.

 

So in short, the paper work does not seem as daunting as it initially did, but it is a bit more work than if you wanted to get married in, say, Jamaica.

 

Hope that helps someone.

[karenk77]

Or what you can do thats MUCH easier...is get legally married in your hometown, and then just have a symbolic ceremony down there and then all you have to do is have your marriage license translated..like go to city hall do it there and then you have one document to translate and then they do a ceremony there which looks real to the guests but much less of a headache for you

[SSNM]

Or you can do that...personally I would prefer to have the ceremony be the real deal if I am asking people to pay out to see the ceremony...but that is a personal choice.

 

To add to my previous post, the $360 charge is for the translation and legalization of both you and your future spouse's documents. I am not sure if it includes notarization if you go to the embassy directly.

[eloping789]

We opted for the legal ceremony at home after I figured out all the costs and potential paperwork headaches involved. I know a lot of brides have used WEDO and said it was very simple and hassle free, but in the end it was just simpler and almost $1000 cheaper to head for the local courthouse. Now, as soon as we get back we have a few days before we head back to work and I'm going to do all the legal name change stuff then so I'll have everything done and nothing left to worry about (other than the AHR) when I head back to work.

[natashakc]

Gosh, I just sent all my docs and $300USD to WEDO, so I hoep to God that they are legitimate. I guess I'll soon find out:)

[SSNM]

Quote:

Originally Posted by natashakc Gosh, I just sent all my docs and $300USD to WEDO, so I hoep to God that they are legitimate. I guess I'll soon find out:)

Should be as long as they get them legalized by the D.R. embassy in the country that you live. From what I understand, they basically do the paperwork for you and get them legalized by the embassy (again it has to be where you live or that is where the "invalidness" comes in).

Just to clarify an earlier post, the $360 fee I quote seems to be in USD not CAD (why I am being quoted USD from a D.R. embassy in Canada is beyond me...even the D.R.'s currency is in pesos). Anyway, I will post an info pack they sent me.

 

 

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC WEDDING INFORMATION (REQUIREMENTS FOR CANADIANS).doc