How do you translate a Venezuelan marriage certificate (acta de matrimonio) for USCIS?

What the Venezuelan acta de matrimonio is

A civil marriage in Venezuela is recorded by the Civil Registry (Registro Civil) where it took place, or by the National Electoral Council (CNE). The official on the record is the district civil authority (Jefe Civil), a parish judge (Juez de Parroquia) or a communal council (Junta Comunal). Copies come from the registry office or the SAREN online service (U.S. Department of State (opens in a new tab)).

The acta has no special security features, because it is a copy of the registry book. Each copy must carry the note es copia fiel del original, stamped or as part of the standard wording toward the end, and the stamp and signature of the registry’s authority (same source). We translate the note and the stamp along with the text.

What the translation includes

We translate the acta in full, as USCIS requires (8 CFR 103.2(b)(3) (opens in a new tab)). Besides the record number, date and place, a marriage record under Venezuela’s Civil Registry Law must contain (Ley Orgánica de Registro Civil, arts. 81 and 104 (opens in a new tab)):

• full identification of both spouses and of anyone whose consent was required;
• children the couple recognized at the ceremony, with their identity numbers and birth record details;
• a power of attorney, if a spouse married through a representative, and the registration data of a prenuptial agreement, if there is one;
• each spouse’s express consent;
• the signatures of the official, the spouses and the witnesses.

A divorce or annulment ruling is later inserted in the registry with a marginal note on the original acta (art. 152 (opens in a new tab)); we translate every marginal note.

Divorce decree

A Venezuelan divorce is not a registry certificate: it is the judge’s ruling (sentencia de divorcio) from a civil court of first instance, with the court’s stamp and the judge’s signature. The Department of State points out that the document must show a divorce (divorcio), not a legal separation (separación de cuerpos). We translate the decree in full, and the two terms stay distinct in English, as they are in the original.

Registered de facto unions

Venezuela registers stable de facto unions (uniones estables de hecho) in the Civil Registry (Ley Orgánica de Registro Civil, arts. 117⁠–⁠118 (opens in a new tab)). The Department of State calls them registered de facto marriages (concubinato) (U.S. Department of State (opens in a new tab)). We translate that record the same way as a marriage acta. We spell every name as in your passport, the same way in each document of the order.

Where the translation goes

• USCIS: for Form I-⁠130, the marriage certificate and proof that any earlier marriage legally ended, each with a full translation and the translator’s signed certification (Form I-⁠130 instructions (opens in a new tab)). What USCIS accepts
• NVC and US consulates: the Department of State doesn’t ask for a translation of a certificate in Spanish if you are applying for your visa in Colombia or another country where Spanish is an official language (civil documents (opens in a new tab)). Since November 1, 2025, immigrant visas for Venezuelans are processed at the US Embassy in Bogotá (U.S. Department of State (opens in a new tab)). What NVC accepts
• Immigration court: a typed certification with the translator’s address and phone. What the court accepts

Our Spanish documents are translated and certified by a native Spanish speaker. What to file in your case is for you or your attorney to decide.