Certified Translation Services for Detroit, Michigan

For Detroit residents, Apostille Authentications translates and certifies documents from $65 per page, and most orders are done within 1 to 2 business days. Every translation includes a signed certificate of accuracy. The service is remote: our office is in the Portland, Oregon area, you send documents through the online quote form, and the finished translation comes back electronically or by mail. Below are the Wayne County, court, consular and apostille details that affect translated documents in Detroit.

Upload your document below as a PDF, JPEG, PNG or Word file, or call (971) 514-3743 for a quote.

Upload Your Documents For Translation

First Name *

Last Name

Phone Number *

Email *

Upload Documents To Translation

Message

Submission source

Wayne County Clerk: marriage licenses and foreign birth certificates

The Wayne County Clerk publishes one of the most specific translation rules in the area. On its marriage license page it states that all foreign birth certificates must be translated into English by a certified translator, and that a notary other than the translator must notarize the translator’s signature. Passports and birth certificates of foreign-born applicants must be in English or come with a certified and notarized English translation, and certificates must show the full date of birth.

The clerk lists the marriage license fee as $30 when one or both applicants live in Wayne County and $40 when neither does. Read the clerk’s current instructions before you apply, since the clerk decides what it will accept.

Birth, death and marriage records in Detroit

Certified copies of Wayne County vital records come from the County Clerk’s vital records office at 400 Monroe Street, Detroit, MI 48226. The clerk’s birth certificate page sends requests for Detroit births to Suite 605 and births elsewhere in the county to Suite 610. In-person service is by appointment, and orders can also be placed by mail or online.

Certified copy	$24 for the first, $7 for each additional copy ordered at the same time
Age 65 and over (birth record)	$2 for the first copy, $3 for each additional
Clerk’s main office	2 Woodward Avenue, Suite 201, Detroit, MI 48226
Phone	(313) 967-6938
ID	Valid identification such as a driver’s license or state ID

Getting a Michigan apostille from Detroit

Michigan apostilles are issued by the Department of State’s Office of the Great Seal. You do not have to travel to Lansing: the department lists a Detroit Secretary of State office on West Grand Boulevard among the locations that take document authentication appointments on Mondays and Wednesdays, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Book online or call (888) 767-6424.

The other route is mail to Michigan Department of State, Office of the Great Seal, 7064 Crowner Drive, Lansing, MI 48918, with the signed Authentication Request Form, $1 per document and a stamped return envelope. The office gives 1 to 2 weeks for mail and offers no rush service.

Vital records must be certified copies from the county clerk or State Registrar. The office also authenticates city clerk signatures in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties. Foreign-text documents need the notarization entirely in English plus a written English translation. If a translation must be notarized for Michigan, we hire a notary commissioned in Michigan to notarize the translator’s statement.

Courts in downtown Detroit

The 36th District Court, Detroit’s district court, is at 421 Madison Street, Detroit, MI 48226. Its website has an online form to request an interpreter and lists an Interpreting Services department. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan sits in the Theodore Levin Courthouse, 231 W. Lafayette Blvd., Detroit, MI 48226.

Court interpreters handle spoken proceedings. For written evidence or records in another language, ask the court or your attorney what form of translation it expects.

Consulates in Detroit

Three consulates confirm Detroit addresses on their own government websites. Each sets its own rules on translations for the documents it handles, so check with the consulate before ordering.

Mexico. Consulate of Mexico, 645 Griswold Ave., Suite 830, Detroit, MI 48226. Services include passports, consular registration and notarial acts.
Japan. Consulate General of Japan, 1000 Woodward Avenue, Suite 620, Detroit, MI 48226. It serves Michigan and Ohio.
Canada. Consulate General of Canada, 600 Renaissance Center, Suite 1100, Detroit, MI 48243. It assists Canadians in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and most of Indiana.

USCIS filings and notary limits

Any foreign-language document filed with USCIS must include a full English translation that the translator certifies as complete and accurate, together with a certification of the translator’s competence, under 8 CFR 103.2(b)(3). The regulation does not require notarization.

Be careful with anyone in Detroit who offers immigration help under the title ‘notario publico’. MCL 55.291 prohibits Michigan notaries from using that term in advertising and from claiming power to counsel on immigration matters. A notary who is not an attorney and advertises in another language must say so in that language.

How Detroit customers order

Send your document through the quote form as a PDF, JPEG, PNG or Word file. You get a price and a delivery date, then the certified translation by email or by mail. Tell us up front if you need the translator’s statement notarized, as the Wayne County Clerk requires for foreign birth certificates, or an apostille.

Census Reporter’s ACS 2024 one-year profile puts Detroit’s population at 645,702, with about 8.3 percent born outside the United States. We offer 100 languages, most often Spanish, Russian, Hindi, Urdu, Chinese, Vietnamese, Arabic and Czech. Ask about any other. Phone (971) 514-3743, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Related services for Detroit

Michigan document translation services: the statewide rules for courts, notaries, vital records and driver licensing
Michigan apostille service
All document translation services

Detroit translation questions

How much do certified translation services cost in Detroit?

Apostille Authentications charges from $65 per page and finishes most translations in 1 to 2 business days. Service is remote from the Portland, Oregon area, with delivery electronically or by mail.

Does the Wayne County Clerk in Detroit require translated birth certificates for a marriage license?

Yes. The clerk states that foreign birth certificates must be translated into English by a certified translator and that a notary other than the translator must notarize the translator’s signature.

Where do I get a certified birth certificate in Detroit?

The Wayne County Clerk issues them at 400 Monroe Street, Detroit, MI 48226, with Detroit births handled in Suite 605. The fee is $24 for the first copy and $7 for each additional copy, and visits are by appointment.

Can I get a Michigan apostille in Detroit without going to Lansing?

The Michigan Department of State lists a Detroit Secretary of State office on West Grand Boulevard that takes document authentication appointments on Mondays and Wednesdays. You can also mail the request to the Office of the Great Seal in Lansing for $1 per document.

Is a notario publico in Detroit allowed to give immigration advice?

No. Michigan law bars notaries from advertising as a ‘notario publico’ and from claiming authority to counsel on immigration matters unless they are attorneys.

Which foreign consulates are in Detroit?

Mexico, Japan and Canada each publish a Detroit consulate address on their government websites. Other countries may also have offices, so confirm with the country’s foreign ministry.