This Is an Apostille

Six weeks ago today I mailed off my FBI background check to the Department of State in Washington DC to obtain an apostille. An apostille certifies documents so they can be recognized in foreign countries that are members of the 1961 Hague Convention Treaty. It is like a worldwide notary verification, but it only applies to government issued documents and can only be issued by a country's state department. 

 

Here is the one I received today for my Ecuadorian background check. I got this apostille from the Ecuadorian consulate in Houston. You may notice the document was issued in Quito, which is the capital of Ecuador. When the consulate in Houston received my request and payment for the apostille of my Ecuadorian certificate of no criminal activity, aka a background check, they electronically transmit the certificate to the state department in Quito to verify that the certificate of a clean record was issued by the Ecuadorian government. (I was able to obtain the certificate on the Ecuadorian Investigations website by entering my passport number and answering a couple of questions.) The state department in Quito verified the authenticity of the certificate and issued the apostille document electronically back to the consulate in Houston which printed it out, affixed it to the certificate, and mailed it back to me. The whole process took two weeks by priority mail.

The US Department of State has a different process. The only details I have are from their website which lists the address to mail it in, the cost ($20 - cheaper than Ecuador!), instructions to include a self-addressed stamped envelope, and that the process takes about 8 weeks. As I said at the beginning, today starts week 6.

Last time I requested a visa appointment at the Spanish consulate in Chicago, I made a mistake to wait till I had all my paperwork, and then I didn't even get a reply for 6 weeks and then, the appointment was another month out. As I try to learn from my mistakes, this time I contacted the Spanish consulate 4 weeks after I'd sent off for my US apostille in Washington DC (I still had 4 weeks left according to the 8 week process). This time I received a reply the next day with an appointment for this past Tuesday. As you can imagine I was thrilled that they replied so quickly, but a bit ruffled that the timeline was so different. So, I wrote back to them and explained that because of the delay before, I had precipitated my request this time, but I didn't have all my documents yet. In fact, I wasn't expecting my US apostille until the middle of September, so could they give me a later appointment. Again, I received a reply a day later and my new appointment is September 5. I plan to write to them again tomorrow and, again, request an appointment for after the 15th of the month. 

As to the other documentation, I have received the letters from Spain. The required medical insurance has already been contracted and is covering my medical needs even in my absence. I have my lovely passport photos. The wellness letter from my physician is still valid. I just lack getting copies of every single page of my passport and I'll need to find an "official" translator once I get the documents from DC. I'll need to get the background check and the apostille translated, and to that I need to attach a notarized affidavit from the translator declaring he or she did the translation to the best of their ability.

Ugh. I'm so tired of talking about documents. So, let me share some news from the island of Tenerife. The prayer group that meets on Friday evenings is growing in spite of lots of obstacles.

(The map above is not oriented to North. The Tenerife church is several miles off the pictures area to the left.)

The fire (affected area is shaded green) that was destroying the national forest in the middle to Northeast was contained by the efforts of the firefighters and then put out by rains from a nearby hurricane. Tisk. Come on, we know that the power of prayer put out those fires and we are thankful to God for providing the means through brave men and women and through rain from a hurricane.

You may remember that my vehicle was towed away due to imminent catastrophic engine failure (yes, that's a real thing) just a few days before my visa appointment. I was not concerned about being car-less because I was moving to Spain. Well, the reality of being car-less is a pain. My dear brother-in-law is a mobile mechanic and one of his callings is to ensure everyone in his family and a functional vehicle. Last week, he flew to Kalamazoo, Michigan to pick up a car and drive it down to Carl Junction, Missouri so I now have a car to drive as long as I need it or till Christmas when he hopes to drive it to LA. His preference would be to sell it before then. So, let me know if you or someone you know would be interested in a 2005 Jeep Liberty (diesel).

It was good to see Stuart even if only for a few waking hours.

"...for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

Matthew 6:8 NIV

Praise to the Father who knows our needs before I even think to ask. It is a blessing to have a car again!

Until next time...

Peace 

Erin

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