Notarial Services

Citizens of the United States, El Salvador and other nations requiring notarization of their signature on a document to be used in the United States may come to the American Citizen Services unit between 8:15 and 11:30 a.m. any workday, with the exception of American and Salvadoran holidays, and the first Wednesday of each month. An appointment is not necessary, but the American Citizen Services unit treats all clients on a first come--first served basis. The fee is USD 50 for each notarization.

To a very limited extent, the staff of the American Citizen Services unit can assist individuals prepare powers of attorney for several of the most common and routine purposes. The fee to notarize a power of attorney is USD 50.

U.S. consular officers do not have the authority to authenticate U.S. or Salvadoran public documents such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, death certificates, court decrees, and school transcripts.

However, the United States and El Salvador both are parties to the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement for Legalization of Foreign Public Documents. This international convention establishes a streamlined procedure for authenticating public documents originating in one country and required for use in another. Member countries recognize the officials designated by other member country to authenticate public documents. This authentication is called APOSTILLE. In El Salvador, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs prepares apostille for Salvadoran documents that are to be used abroad.

The section of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs which performs this service is the Sección Auténticas y Apostillado, located at Plan Maestro Centro de Gobierno, 17 Avenida Norte, Edificio 4, 1er Piso, San Salvador, telephone 2222-4447, 2231-1339.

In the United States, each state has designated an apostille authority, usually the Office of the Secretary of State or Lieutenant Governor.

The American Citizen Services unit can provide title and addresses for the designated apostille authorities in the United States. You are welcome to stop by the American Citizen Services unit to obtain this information, or you may wish to search the Internet for the official site of the U.S. state in which the document was issued and then look for "authentication" or "apostille".

Check for the most recent information under Messages for U.S. Citizens