How do you translate a Romanian marriage certificate for USCIS?
For a marriage-based petition, USCIS asks for a copy of your marriage certificate, and one in Romanian needs a full English translation with the translator’s signed certification. We translate the certificat de căsătorie from Romania and Moldova in full, including a duplicate or Moldova’s new paper extract, with every stamp and signature. A marriage certificate is usually one page: $25, ready within 24 hours after payment.
Issued in Romania
A Romanian marriage certificate (certificat de căsătorie) is issued by the civil status officer (ofițer de stare civilă) of the local mayor’s office. The Department of State describes it as a pink A4 form with one ink stamp and the officer’s signature (U.S. Department of State (opens in a new tab)). Couples who married abroad must register the marriage in Romania, at the mayor’s office of the applicant’s last Romanian address.
Romanian town halls also issue multilingual extracts of marriage records (extras multilingv) (Hațeg town hall (opens in a new tab)). USCIS lists no exception for them: any document with foreign-language text comes with a full English translation (8 CFR 103.2(b)(3) (opens in a new tab)).
Issued in Moldova
The Moldovan certificate (certificat de căsătorie) comes from the civil status office. It is printed on a pink form with a red-brown border, 8.27 by 5.83 inches, with an ink stamp and the registrar’s signature, and certified copies are available from the Public Services Agency (Agenția Servicii Publice) (U.S. Department of State (opens in a new tab)). The United States doesn’t recognize documents from the de facto authorities in Transnistria.
Marriages registered in Moldova on or after November 1, 2025, are entered in an electronic register, and the documents are issued in digital form. On request, the office prints a paper extract without security features (Government of Moldova (opens in a new tab)). We translate an older certificate and a new extract the same way.
Surnames after the wedding
USCIS asks for the legal document behind a name change, such as a marriage certificate, when you or the person you are filing for uses a name different from the one on the relevant documents (Form I-130 instructions (opens in a new tab)). So spelling matters. Names keep their Romanian letters, such as ș, ț, ă and î, unless a passport spells them another way: then the passport spelling goes into the translation. If one of you took the other’s surname, tell us how each of you spells it today, and it will match across the marriage certificate, the birth certificates and every other document of your order.
Where the translation goes
- USCIS: for Form I-130, a copy of your marriage certificate and documents showing that any earlier marriage legally ended. What USCIS accepts
- NVC and US consulates: the Department of State doesn’t ask for a translation of a certificate in Romanian if you are applying for your visa in a country where Romanian is an official language. What NVC accepts
- An earlier marriage: a Romanian divorce certificate or court decision is translated in the same order. Romanian divorce certificate
Our Romanian documents are translated and certified by a native Romanian speaker. What to file in your case is for you or your attorney to decide.
Sample translations
2 samplesEach sample has the original, the translation and the signed certificate. Personal details are blurred.
Questions
We married outside Romania. Which certificate do we translate?
The one you file. The Department of State says a marriage that took place abroad must be registered in Romania, at the mayor’s office of the applicant’s last Romanian address. If your certificate is in Romanian, we translate it like any other. Which certificate to file is for you or your attorney to decide.
How much does it cost?
A marriage certificate is usually one page: $25. Each additional page in the same order is $20, so the marriage certificate and both spouses’ birth certificates are $65.
Do I need a notary or an apostille?
Not for USCIS or NVC: they ask for the translator’s signed certification, and it’s included. If your certificate carries an apostille, we translate it as well.
How long does it take?
1–4 documents: within 24 hours after payment; faster, within 12 hours (+$15 a page) or 3 hours (+$30 a page, paid between 8 am and 6 pm Pacific time). For 5 or more, we give you the date with the quote.
How we do it
- Full translation
every stamp, signature and handwritten line
- Signed certificate
with the translator’s name, address and phone
- A PDF, ready to file
original, translation and certificate, translation pages numbered
- Price
$25 for the first page up to 250 words, $20 for each additional page, in the same document or another one.
- Turnaround
1–4 documents: within 24 hours after payment; faster, within 12 hours (+$15 a page) or 3 hours (+$30 a page, paid between 8 am and 6 pm Pacific time). For 5 or more, we give you the date with the quote.
This is a summary of what the agency publishes, not legal advice.