How do you translate a Russian death certificate for USCIS?

What the certificate shows

A Russian death certificate (svidetelstvo o smerti) is issued by the civil registry office (ZAGS) that keeps the record and is signed by the head of that office. The current form is brown, with security features; older forms differ depending on when they were issued (U.S. Department of State (opens in a new tab)).

The civil registry law lists what the certificate gives (Federal Law No. 143-FZ, art. 68 (opens in a new tab)):

• the deceased’s surname, first name and patronymic, date and place of birth and citizenship;
• the date, the time (if it was established) and the place of death;
• the date and number of the death record and the office that registered the death;
• the date and place of issue.

The cause of death goes into the death record, not onto the current certificate (art. 67 (opens in a new tab)). If your document states a cause, the translation states it too.

We translate the whole certificate, as USCIS requires (8 CFR 103.2(b)(3) (opens in a new tab)): every field, the seal, the signature and any stamp or note on the back.

Replacement copies and Soviet certificates

When a certificate is lost, damaged or can no longer be read, ZAGS issues a replacement (povtornoe svidetelstvo) from the record. After a death, a relative of the deceased or another interested person can request it, or someone holding a notarized power of attorney from them (art. 9 (opens in a new tab)). The same article lets ZAGS issue other documents confirming that the death was registered. If you have a spravka from ZAGS rather than the certificate, we translate it the same way.

From the United States, Russian civil documents can be requested through the Russian Embassy in Washington, DC, or the consulates general in New York and Seattle, and the process often takes several months (U.S. Department of State (opens in a new tab)).

Handwritten Soviet certificates and faded seals are routine for us. If a word can’t be read, the translation marks it [illegible] instead of guessing.

The deceased’s name

We spell the name as in the deceased’s international passport, if they had one, or as in your other case documents. Tell us the spelling when you order.

Where the translation goes

• USCIS: a full translation and the translator’s signed certificate, filed with a copy of the death certificate. What USCIS accepts
• NVC and US consulates: if the applicant or the petitioning spouse was married before, the Department of State asks for proof that each earlier marriage ended, and a death certificate is one of the documents it names (9 FAM 504.4-⁠4(A) (opens in a new tab)). You upload the translation in one file with the certificate. A translation isn’t needed if your visa interview is in a country where Russian is an official language. What NVC accepts
• Immigration court: a typed certificate with the translator’s address and phone. What the court accepts

What to file in your case is for you or your attorney to decide.