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Certified Colombian Name Change Document Translation
Certified translation of the documents that record a change of name in Colombia, including the marginal annotations and registry endorsements that carry the legal effect and that a reader unfamiliar with the system will otherwise skip.
$24.95/page
Flat rate per page, up to 250 words. No hidden fees.
100% USCIS acceptance
Every certified translation is guaranteed to be accepted by USCIS.
24-hour delivery
Most 1-3 page documents are delivered within 24 hours. Same-day available.
By escritura pública, once
Colombia is unusual: a change of name is made by escritura pública before a notary under Decreto 1260 of 1970, not by court order, and the right is exercised once. A further change requires a judicial route.
So the document you hold is a notarial deed, which a US reader may mistake for a self-declaration. It is a public instrument with legal effect, and the translation says so rather than calling it an affidavit.
The nota marginal on the registro civil
The deed is recorded as a nota marginal on the registro civil de nacimiento, and a copy issued afterwards carries the note with its date and the notary and deed number.
Colombian civil registry copies exist in more than one format — the full copia and shorter extracts — and the shorter ones sometimes omit the marginal notes entirely. If your copy shows no annotation, ask the registry for the full one before ordering a translation of the wrong document.
The NUIP, and the cédula
The NUIP assigned at registration stays with the person, and for people born from the 2000s it becomes the cédula number at adulthood. Older people have a separate cédula number unrelated to their birth registration.
A packet therefore mixes identifiers depending on the person's age, and we reproduce each as labelled rather than assuming they should match.
Registraduría, notaría, or consulate
Colombian civil registrations are made by the Registraduría Nacional del Estado Civil, by notaries, and by consulates abroad, and all three issue valid records. A registration made at a Colombian consulate in Miami is a Colombian civil registry entry.
We name the issuing office exactly as printed, including the consulate, because a reader expecting a single national authority will otherwise question a valid document. See our Colombian birth certificate page.
Ordering, and what the certification covers
Upload the document, choose certified translation at $24.95 per page of up to 250 words, and it comes back typically within 24 hours as a PDF formatted to mirror the original, with a signed certificate of translation accuracy on letterhead. Marginal annotations are translated in place, in the margin, so the reader can see that the change was recorded against the original entry rather than written into a fresh document. See how we translate and certified versus standard.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a judge in Colombia?
Not for the first change — it is done by escritura pública before a notary. A further change requires a judicial route.
My registry copy shows no annotation.
You may have a short extract. Ask the registry for the full copy, which carries the marginal notes.
Is the escritura just a declaration?
No. It is a public instrument with legal effect, and we translate it as one rather than as an affidavit.
My document was issued by a consulate.
Consular registrations are valid Colombian civil registry entries. We name the issuing office as printed.
Ready to get started?
Upload the order, the resolution or the annotated certificate and receive the certified translation, typically within 24 hours.