Birth Cert. Q

[Ecalos 0]

Hi all sorry about this. I'm at work and on the phone with various governmental agencies.

Question about birth certificate for beneficiary:

Certificate is to be large, long-form certificate including parents names, correct?

Question 1:

Does this certificate have to be notarized or marked in any way? Vital Statistics will just send me the original copies, but they aren't notarized, just on official paper and whatnot.

Question 2:

If I dont want to pay $25 per copy, can I like.. photocopy it and have the photocopies notarized?

Question 3:

The Hospital's Birth "registry" is a totally different thing?

Sorry again, I'm surprised to find they cost so much/take 4 weeks to process. Trying to find out if there's any way I can cut down on the time/cost.

If not, oh well, but it was worth a try

[Alhamdulillah 0]

When you get it from the county clerk's office it will have an offical seal.

[YuAndDan 153]

Certificate needs to be the large form, you only need one and it is just needed at the Visa, and AOS interview.

Info can be found here: http://travel.state.gov/visa/reciprocity/C...er/C/Canada.htm

The form has a seal and signature and it is not notarized and dose not need to be, because it is a government generated legal document.

Example from BC:

Yes hospital birth registry is different and not a birth certificate.

[lucyrich 19]

Certificate is to be large, long-form certificate including parents names, correct?

Correct. Not all places have short vs. long forms, but where there's a choice, you want a long form with parents names.

Question 1:

Does this certificate have to be notarized or marked in any way? Vital Statistics will just send me the original copies, but they aren't notarized, just on official paper and whatnot.

The certificate you get from the government should have some indication that it actually came from the government. Usually this means a raised or embossed seal of some sort, and perhaps a signature of a government clerk. If it has some indication that it came directly from the government agency that keeps records for your birthplace, then it's called a "certified copy" of your birth certificate.

Usually, it's not notarized by a notary public.

Question 2:

If I dont want to pay $25 per copy, can I like.. photocopy it and have the photocopies notarized?

Easier than that. When you submit any document with your petition to the USCIS, you can just send an ordinary photocopy, no notarization needed. However, at the interview, they will want to see the original certified copy from which you made that photocopy. You'll show them the copy that has that nice government seal on it, hand them yet another photocopy, and they'll keep the photocopy and return the $25.00 certified copy back to you so you can keep it.

In other words, during the entire process, you never need to give them one of those $25.00 copies, except for a moment during the interview, where they look at it and give it back. And you'll only need one official copy of your birth certificate to get through the whole process.

Question 3:

The Hospital's Birth "registry" is a totally different thing?

I'm not familiar with what your hospital maintains, but usually, the USCIS wants to see a birth certificate that came from a government agency.

[Ecalos 0]

Sweet thanks!

I thought I was going to have to end up with like 5 original copies

I'll just keep the original safe and sound and feed it to the photocopier every once in awhile.

Thanks so much!

Also thanks for the info on how it's official. When I looked at the Manitoba specimen online I couldn't for the life of me see an embossed seal or anything so I was a little worried.

Alrighty! Time to track down adoption certificate and criminal record check!

-stalks off-