Apostille Korea obtains civil documents issued in Mexico and Latin America Immigration and visa screening asks for a criminal record certificate from countries of previous residence, yet obtaining one from the other side of the world is difficult alone.

Apostille Korea has said it handles the issuance of civil documents in Latin American countries including Mexico. Immigration and visa authorities require a criminal record certificate from any country where the applicant stayed beyond a certain period, and issuance is followed by local identity verification, notarisation and legalisation at the foreign ministry and the embassy. Enquiries have grown as more Koreans reside in the region.

Why immigration screening asks for records from a former country of residence

Immigration and visa authorities around the world, including those of the United States, require a criminal record certificate when foreign nationals apply for a visa, permanent residency, emigration or study. The purpose is to check criminal records in countries where the applicant stayed beyond a certain period. As the number of Koreans living or staying in Latin America has risen, so has the number of people running into difficulties over locally issued criminal record certificates. One applicant preparing to emigrate to the United States was asked by the immigration authority to submit a criminal record certificate covering a period of study in Mexico. She had an acquaintance in the country and asked repeatedly for help, but it proved unrealistic for a private individual without relevant knowledge to visit several institutions and act on her behalf. As the submission deadline approached she was unable to travel there herself and could not assemble the document in time.

Why appointing a proxy is not a simple solution either

There are two ways to obtain a criminal record certificate issued in Latin America: applying in person on site, or acting through a proxy. Latin America lies on the other side of the world, however, so the time and burden of travelling there purely to collect a document mean that almost no one goes in person. Appointing a proxy is not straightforward either. The proxy has to complete local identity verification papers and submit the application on the applicant's behalf, and after issuance the process continues through notarisation and legalisation at the foreign ministry and the embassy. Administrative procedures differ from one issuing body to another, so grasping them, and communicating smoothly with the applicant, is demanding for a proxy on the ground. In particular, if a required document is missing or does not match the stated purpose, the application is refused, and because the submitted papers cannot be recovered the whole preparation has to begin again. Apostille Korea uses its local network to handle both issuance and legalisation of Latin American civil documents.

Frequently asked questions

Source: 미래한국 · 2017-07-24