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Apostled & Translated: Which comes first?

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nondescripthalfbaloon
  9/21/2022 11:17 EST

For documents that must be apostilled and translated: which comes first? The translation or the apostille? More generally: does the translation itself need to be aposilled?

I'm reading though guides on how to prepare documents to apply for a residency visa, and I've read that a lot of these documents need to be notarized, apostilled, and translated. But many of these guides neglect to say: what's the order of these?

For example, do I translate them first, then take them to the notary, then get it aposilled?

Or do I get it notarized first, then take it to get apostilled, then get it translated?

Or is the notary unnecessary if getting aposilled? And I only need to translate first then get apostilled? Or get apostilled first then translated?

kmoriarty45
  9/21/2022 11:43 EST

It's been quite a few years ago, but when I needed documentation to be apostilled and translated, that was the order in which I did it. Logically, when you receive your document from the State - ie. police background investigation certificate - you will request that it is apostilled before you receive it. Then go to an authorized document translator and have the apostilled document translated and NOTARIZED.

Since I lived in Florida at the time I was getting my docs. I was able to go to the Ecuadoran Consulate in Miami and have the apostilled docs. and notarized translations stamped and certified. When I returned to Ecuador, all I had to do was turn everything in with the proper application forms, pay the fees and receive my permanent visa. Ten days later, I was able to apply for and receive my cedula.

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nondescripthalfbaloon
  9/21/2022 11:48 EST

Thanks!

> Then go to an authorized document translator

I've also read this is a myth. Is there actually a license to become an "authorized document translator"?

Where did you find your translator? How do I assess their credibility before I hire them?

soccergirl2020
  9/21/2022 18:36 EST

1. Get document
2. Get it apostilled
3. Bring to Ecuador or send to Ecuador to agent
4. Get it translated, including apostille , by certified translator whose credentials are accepted by the Ecuadorian government.
5. Translator has to get translation notarized in Ecuador.


HINT get several copies of original documents. Translator can provide additional notarized translations as needed but it is expensive and time consuming to get additional original documents from USA.

soccergirl2020
  9/21/2022 18:38 EST

1. Get document
2. Get it apostilled
3. Bring to Ecuador or send to Ecuador to agent
4. Get it translated, including apostille , by certified translator whose credentials are accepted by the Ecuadorian government.
5. Translator has to get translation notarized in Ecuador.


HINT get several copies of original documents. Translator can provide additional notarized translations as needed but it is expensive and time consuming to get additional original documents from USA.

soccergirl2020
  9/21/2022 18:38 EST

1. Get document
2. Get it apostilled
3. Bring to Ecuador or send to Ecuador to agent
4. Get it translated, including apostille , by certified translator whose credentials are accepted by the Ecuadorian government.
5. Translator has to get translation notarized in Ecuador.


HINT get several copies of original documents. Translator can provide additional notarized translations as needed but it is expensive and time consuming to get additional original documents from USA.

Ecuador Visas - Law office of Attorney Sara ChacaEcuador Visas - Law office of Attorney Sara Chaca
Connect

With Offices in BOTH Ecuador and the US, Ecuador Visas with Attorney Sara Chaca is the No. 1 Visa Law Firm for Your Move! Specializing in Ecuador Residency Visas plus converting from Temporary to Permanent Residency, Containers, Real Estate Closings, Wills and Estate Planning, Driver Licenses, Opening Businesses & Citizenship!

Click connect to have our partner contact you via e-mail and/or phone.

Ecuador Visas - Law office of Attorney Sara ChacaEcuador Visas - Law office of Attorney Sara Chaca

With Offices in BOTH Ecuador and the US, Ecuador Visas with Attorney Sara Chaca is the No. 1 Visa Law Firm for Your Move! Specializing in Ecuador Residency Visas plus converting from Temporary to Permanent Residency, Containers, Real Estate Closings, Wills and Estate Planning, Driver Licenses, Opening Businesses & Citizenship!
Connect

Click connect to have our partner contact you via e-mail and/or phone.

soccergirl2020
  9/21/2022 18:38 EST

1. Get document
2. Get it apostilled
3. Bring to Ecuador or send to Ecuador to agent
4. Get it translated, including apostille , by certified translator whose credentials are accepted by the Ecuadorian government.
5. Translator has to get translation notarized in Ecuador.


HINT get several copies of original documents. Translator can provide additional notarized translations as needed but it is expensive and time consuming to get additional original documents from USA.

soccergirl2020
  9/21/2022 18:38 EST

1. Get document
2. Get it apostilled
3. Bring to Ecuador or send to Ecuador to agent
4. Get it translated, including apostille , by certified translator whose credentials are accepted by the Ecuadorian government.
5. Translator has to get translation notarized in Ecuador.


HINT get several copies of original documents. Translator can provide additional notarized translations as needed but it is expensive and time consuming to get additional original documents from USA.

soccergirl2020
  9/21/2022 18:38 EST

1. Get document
2. Get it apostilled
3. Bring to Ecuador or send to Ecuador to agent
4. Get it translated, including apostille , by certified translator whose credentials are accepted by the Ecuadorian government.
5. Translator has to get translation notarized in Ecuador.


HINT get several copies of original documents. Translator can provide additional notarized translations as needed but it is expensive and time consuming to get additional original documents from USA.

5toesDragons
  9/22/2022 02:11 EST

I was approved today for my visa through the nearest Consulate to where I live in the U.S. Follows is the path the documents had to take:
By the way, I highly recommend paying for the services of an attorney who specializes in Visa Applications. Unless one has nothing else to do but pay attention to which document is where and why it was rejected and not the other doc, etc, it is worth the money to have a person familiar with the legal requirements and cultural expectations to support you.
Follows is the process I had to take. All total not counting time out sick for a while the process took about 6 months:
(1) Apply for State Police criminal record at a State Policy station by virtue of requesting the report and paying a small fee. A staff person signs the report in ink and stamps it with their official stamp. Keep the report safe until time to Notarize all documents.
(2) Apply for the FBI criminal record online by filing out the form online and paying a fee with a credit or debit card and requesting it be delivered via USPS mail. This is important because the State office that handles Apostilles must have an original printed report. The FBI report can take up to a month to receive - I had mine within 2 weeks.
(3) Proof of income - you'll need past 3 or 6 months bank statements that show where your monthly income is deposited into your account or 3-6 months wage earnings statements to demonstrate you will bring in the minimum dollar value monthly, depending on the type of visa you are applying for.
(4) When you have all three document sets in hand then go to your bank to have them notarized free of charge. Each report must be notarized separately.
(5) Double check you have the address correct and send the notarized documents to your State Office to create an Apostille for each report (State Police, FBI, Proof of Income ). Most likely you can pay per document via personal check, cashier's check or debit or credit card. In my state it is the Lt Governor's office. They will return to you 3 Apostilles, each attached to the appropriate report and stapled to it with a brass ring.
(6) Now you arrange for the 3 document sets to be translated. I highly recommend someone who is familiar with the bureaucratic language of law and politics because the translation may not be accepted at the Consulate if it reads like a High School report.
(7) After translation the documents are scanned and sent to the Consulate of choice for preliminary approval along with the Visa Application form. This form is where the type and description of visa is selected and signed by the applicant. An attorney familiar with this document will know.
(8) After preliminary approval the Consulate will need the fee and 2 passport photos - digitized is fine - the photos need to meet the requirements set forth on the U.S. government web page about passport photos. Be careful with measurements. I read while researching this that the most common rejection of visa is problems with the photo.
(9) When the Consulate has all required items in hand it emails directly the applicant [and attorney if one is involved] with a suggested appointment date & time for an interview via Zoom.
(10) The applicant replies to the online invitation for a meeting.
(11) The applicant logs in for the Zoom meeting with the Consulate and the Consulate interviews the applicant, asks a variety of questions and determines if the application is approved or rejected.
(12) If approved, the digitized Visa is delivered electronically usually within 24 hours and should be saved to one's computer, external storage, and in print to accompany one's passport.

soccergirl2020
  9/22/2022 08:37 EST

I used Nexo translators, owner David Sierra has mom who is from USA so speaks English.

https://www.nexotraducciones.ec

Ecuador Visas - Law office of Attorney Sara ChacaEcuador Visas - Law office of Attorney Sara Chaca
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With Offices in BOTH Ecuador and the US, Ecuador Visas with Attorney Sara Chaca is the No. 1 Visa Law Firm for Your Move! Specializing in Ecuador Residency Visas plus converting from Temporary to Permanent Residency, Containers, Real Estate Closings, Wills and Estate Planning, Driver Licenses, Opening Businesses & Citizenship!

Click connect to have our partner contact you via e-mail and/or phone.

Ecuador Visas - Law office of Attorney Sara ChacaEcuador Visas - Law office of Attorney Sara Chaca

With Offices in BOTH Ecuador and the US, Ecuador Visas with Attorney Sara Chaca is the No. 1 Visa Law Firm for Your Move! Specializing in Ecuador Residency Visas plus converting from Temporary to Permanent Residency, Containers, Real Estate Closings, Wills and Estate Planning, Driver Licenses, Opening Businesses & Citizenship!
Connect

Click connect to have our partner contact you via e-mail and/or phone.

kmoriarty45
  9/22/2022 11:26 EST

Because I was in Florida at the time I needed the docs. translated, I found a court translator in Gainsborough who was approved by the Florida and Federal courts to translate documents. She not only did the English-Spanish translations, had them notarized, and made copies for me, but was a heck of a lot cheaper than what I was charged here in Ecuador to have some documentation translated prior. I had no problems whatsoever presenting them to the Ecuadoran Embassy in Miami for certification.

Ecuador Visas - Law office of Attorney Sara Chaca
Ecuador Visas - Law office of Attorney Sara Chaca

Ecuador Visas with Attorney Sara Chaca is the No. 1 Visa Law Firm for Your Move!
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Ecuador Visas - Law office of Attorney Sara ChacaEcuador Visas - Law office of Attorney Sara Chaca

Ecuador Visas with Attorney Sara Chaca is the No. 1 Visa Law Firm for Your Move!
Learn More

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