Document requirements

Please obtain original documents or certified copies from the appropriate authority for yourself and each family member who will accompany you to the United States. All documents that pertain to your application are required.

Birth certificates

Obtain the original, or certified copy, of the birth record of each family member (yourself, your spouse, and all unmarried children under the age of 21).
The certificate must contain the:
• Date of birth;
• Place of birth;
• Names of both parents, and
• Annotation by the appropriate authority indicating that it is an exact extract from official records

Unobtainable birth certificates
Your birth record may not be obtainable.
Some reasons are listed below.
• Your birth was never officially recorded.
• Your birth records have been destroyed.
• The appropriate government authority will not issue certificates.

If this is the case, please obtain a certified statement from the appropriate government authority stating the reason your birth record is not available.
Together with the certified statement you must obtain secondary evidence.
This may include for example:
• A baptismal certificate that contains the date and place of birth and both parent's names providing the baptism took place shortly after birth;
• An adoption decree for an adopted child, or
• An affidavit from a close relative, preferably the applicant's mother, stating the date and place of birth, both parent's names, and the mother's maiden name.

Note:

An affidavit must be executed before an official authorized to take oaths or affirmations.

Information regarding the procedures for obtaining birth certificates is usually available from the embassy or consulate of the country concerned.

Police certificates

Police certificates are required for each visa applicant aged 16 years or older.

 The table below shows how police certificates are required based on where each applicant lives and has lived previously.

Present and former residents of the United States need NOT obtain any police certificates covering the time of their residence in the U.S.

The police certificate must:
• Cover the entire period of the applicant's residence in that area, and
• State what the appropriate police authorities records include concerning each applicant, including all arrests, the reason for the arrest(s), and the disposition of each case for which there is a record.

Please Note: Police certificates are valid for only one year.

Passports

A Passport must be valid for travel to the United States and must have at least eight months validity beyond the issuance date of the visa.

Children may be included on a parent's passport, but if over the age of 16, they must have their photographs attached to the passport.

Deportation
Applicants who have previously been deported or removed at government expense from the United States must obtain Form I-212,

Permission to Reapply after Deportation, from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service, or from a U.S. Embassy or Consulate,

and follow the instructions included on that form.

Court and Prison Records

Persons who have been convicted of a crime must obtain a certified copy of each court record and any prison record,

regardless of the fact that he or she may have subsequently benefited from an amnesty, pardon or other act of clemency.

Court records should include:
• Complete information regarding the circumstance surrounding the crime of which the applicant was convicted, and
• The disposition of the case, including sentence or other penalty or fine imposed.

Military records

Persons who have served in the military forces of any country must obtain a copy of their military record.

Note: Military records from certain countries are unavailable. More specific information is available from the nearest United States immigrant visa processing post.

Marriage certificates

Married applicants must obtain an original marriage certificate, or a certified copy,

bearing the appropriate seal or stamp of the issuing authority.

Termination of prior marriages

Applicants who have been previously married must obtain evidence of the termination of EACH prior marriage. Evidence must be in the form of original documents issued by a competent authority, or certified copies bearing the appropriate seal or stamp of the issuing authority.
Acceptable evidence is a:
• FINAL divorce decree
• Death certificate, or
• Annulment.

Translations

All documents not in English, or in the official language of the country in which application for a visa is being made, must be accompanied by certified English translations, and notarized.
The translation must include a statement signed by the translator that states that the:
• Translation is accurate, and
• Translator is competent to translate.
• Notary stamp.