Getting documents notarized in Mexico

[Vazquez520 8]

My husband needs to get 2 forms notarized in Mexico for the lawyer to be able to get his police record form here (Tucson, AZ).  I don't know if anyone on here know the procedure in Mexico because first they wanted to charge him 1000 pesos for each form and when he said yes ok lets do it and when he went back to pick them up the wanted to charge 3200 pesos because they have to get it translated from english to spanish and have a notarizer from California notarize it.  I wanted to know if he can go to the consulate in Tijuana to get it notarized?

[Ryan H 3,812]

Moved from IR-/1CR-1 Progress Reports to Mexico, Latin & South America regional forum.

[Jorge V 195]

That seems to depend on the lawyer and/or Tucson, not so much the embassy. In general, a notarized document is recognized as notarized around the world. So it doesn't matter where or how it gets notarized, only that the notary is licensed. So if the notary in Mexico is charging too much, get a quote from another notary. In my experience business in Mexico will overcharge the minute they know you're paying in dollars. Don't tell them what it is or who you are, just that you want it notarized. If Tucson requires that the documents be translated, then get quotes from other translators. I've had some documents translated in Mexico and it was typically $100-$200 pesos per page ($5-$10 USD).

[Vazquez520 8]

1 minute ago, Jorge V said:

That seems to depend on the lawyer and/or Tucson, not so much the embassy. In general, a notarized document is recognized as notarized around the world. So it doesn't matter where or how it gets notarized, only that the notary is licensed. So if the notary in Mexico is charging too much, get a quote from another notary. In my experience business in Mexico will overcharge the minute they know you're paying in dollars. Don't tell them what it is or who you are, just that you want it notarized. If Tucson requires that the documents be translated, then get quotes from other translators. I've had some documents translated in Mexico and it was typically $100-$200 pesos per page ($5-$10 USD).

The lawyers just want the forms notarized to get his police record here in Tucson but in Mexicali they want to translate it and than have it notarized from a notary from California.  Yeah I know that is what they do but the third person we spoke to was a lawyer and he spoke to me in English and asked me exactly what he needed notarized which he has the forms and told us that it would be 1000 pesos each and to go back in a couple days and when my husband went back the price went up 3200 pesos.  Then he said all of this other stuff but I did look up the consulate in Mexico and called the one in Tijuana and asked them if he can go get a affidavit notarized that he isn't a US citizen and if he can still get it notarized and they told me yes and to make him appt online which I did.

[Jorge V 195]

I guess I'm just confused as to who needs what. So in short, you need his police record from Tucson, right? What documents does Tucson need to fulfill that request?

[Vazquez520 8]

The lawyers need Julian's permission to get his police records.  Since he isn't here to get them himself.  Julian just needs to get the form that the lawyer provided notarized giving them permission to get his records. 

[Jorge V 195]

Ah ok, I'm understanding more. So he essentially has a form from the Tucson government that allows the lawyer to go in Julian's place, and Julian is currently in Mexico. It seems that the notary in Mexico is not comfortable notarizing something that he does not understand, or at the very least, is not in his official language. I actually had this happen to me, too. I had to get a letter notarized while I was living in Mexico. My predicament was that I needed it done quickly, but the two notaries I called said it would be 2-3 days because it would have to be translated.

 

My suggestion is to find one that specializes in documents that are in English. Or, you can do what I did and use https://notarize.com/ . They notarize documents via a video call. It's done entirely online and only costs $25 I think. Maybe that works for you.

Edited February 20, 2018 by Jorge V

[Vazquez520 8]

I looked up notarize.com and that is so neat.  Thank you very much for sharing I would have never known.  So they notarized the letter for you while you were in Mexico and they accepted the letter like that here in the US?

[Jorge V 195]

17 hours ago, Vazquez520 said:

I looked up notarize.com and that is so neat.  Thank you very much for sharing I would have never known.  So they notarized the letter for you while you were in Mexico and they accepted the letter like that here in the US?

Yea they did. It goes back to the fact that a document notarized anywhere should be recognized as notarized in most other places, as long as the notary is licensed and proper procedures were followed. That said, different states do have different requirements so it's always best to ask. Notarize.com has this map that shows where in the US a document notarized with them is acceptable: https://notarize.com/availability/ . Seems that everywhere but Iowa.

 

I would double check with both the people from Notarize and possibly your lawyer or the government office in Tucson, but I think it would be allowed.

[Vazquez520 8]

I reached out to them https://notarize.com/availability they can't notarize if you don't have a social security number but they did say that they are working on it to be able to notarize if you don't live in the US.  That won't be available for a couple of months