Register a US marriage with Peru: free at the Peruvian consulate

If a Peruvian citizen married in the United States, the marriage can be registered in the Marriage Registry of a Peruvian consulate in the US. The Consulate General in Washington, D.C. registers marriages performed in its jurisdiction and, for a marriage performed in another state, first requires the original certificate to be legalized by the corresponding Peruvian consulate. Registration costs nothing, and neither does the first copy of the Peruvian record (Consulate General in Washington, D.C., checked October 3, 2026). As that consulate explains, registration “does not mean a new marriage ceremony”: it is Peru’s recognition of a marriage entered into before a foreign authority. The key rule is civil status: no one shown as married on their DNI or in RENIEC can register a marriage.

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Key facts

ItemDetail (checked October 3, 2026)
Where to registerA Peruvian consulate in the US; Washington, D.C. registers marriages from its jurisdiction and, after legalization by the corresponding consulate, from other states
CostFree, including the first copy of the record (Washington, D.C. consulate; Tarifa Consular)
Who must attendOne spouse, who must be Peruvian (Washington, D.C. consulate)
US certificateThe original stays at the consulate
Deadline“At any time” (Washington, D.C. consulate)
Time at the windowAbout one hour (Washington, D.C. consulate’s Civil Registry page)
AppointmentRecommended in Washington, D.C.; each consulate runs its own booking channel
Certificates issued outside the USNot registered at the Washington, D.C. consulate

Which consulate covers you

The Consulate General in Washington, D.C. registers marriages performed in its jurisdiction, which covers Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Delaware and the District of Columbia. If the marriage took place in another state, that consulate says “the original marriage certificate must be legalized by the corresponding Peruvian Consulate as a step prior to its registration in D.C.”

Appointments are also per consulate: on the consulate pages we read, each consulate uses its own booking channel. The Washington, D.C. consulate recommends booking “for better service and to reduce waiting times” and answers civil registry questions at registros@conperdc.org. Find yours under Peruvian consulates in the US or in the consulate appointment tracker.

Requirements (Washington, D.C. consulate)

The Consulate General in Washington, D.C. lists five requirements:

  1. Forms downloaded from its page, completed and printed.
  2. Presence of the Peruvian spouse, who gives their DNI number. One spouse is enough, and that spouse must be Peruvian.
  3. Original marriage certificate, which stays at the consulate.
  4. The other spouse’s details: their DNI number if Peruvian, or a copy of their passport or driver’s license if a foreign national. The names on that document must match those on the marriage certificate.
  5. Civil status: if both are Peruvian, both must appear as single, widowed or divorced on their DNI or in RENIEC’s database. If the foreign spouse was married before, bring a copy of the US divorce decree.

What the consulate will not register

The same consulate lists two limits:

  • People shown as married. “Under no circumstances will the marriage of a person who appears as married on their DNI or in the Reniec database be registered.”
  • Certificates issued outside the US. “In no case can a person whose marriage certificate was issued outside the United States be registered.”

The alternative: registering it at a RENIEC office in Peru

RENIEC’s FAQ page says registration “must be done at the Peruvian consulate of the country where it took place” and that, failing that, it can be done at any RENIEC office with:

  • An application signed by the spouse (form provided by RENIEC, under Article 48 of D.S. 015-98-PCM).
  • The marriage certificate from the foreign authority, apostilled or legalized by the Peruvian consulate, translated into Spanish and legalized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
  • The Peruvian spouse’s original DNI.
  • Registration within 90 days of entering the country, with the marital residence established in Peru, proving the last entry with the passport. According to RENIEC, otherwise the matter goes through the courts.

For the apostille on the US certificate, see apostilling US documents; for legalization at the Foreign Ministry, see apostilling and legalizing Peruvian documents.

After registration

  • Copies of the record. The Washington, D.C. consulate issues copies only of records registered at that office, charges US$6.00 per record and notes that, to use the copy in Peru, it must be legalized at the Foreign Ministry’s Legalization Offices. From Lima, the Foreign Ministry issues copies of consular records for US$7.50. More in Peru birth certificate and record copies.
  • Civil status on the DNI. RENIEC’s FAQ page says changing civil status from single to married can be done online “as long as the marriage record is in the Reniec database.” The RENIEC and consulate pages we read do not say whether a marriage registered at a consulate appears in that database; confirm with RENIEC.
  • Later divorce. The Foreign Ministry says a notarial, municipal or court divorce of a marriage registered at a consulate ends with an annotation on the consular record, and lists US$10.00 per textual or marginal annotation (Foreign Ministry Consular Civil Registry page).

Your US immigration status

The Washington, D.C. consulate’s requirements ask for the Peruvian spouse’s DNI and, for a foreign spouse, a passport or driver’s license. They do not ask for US immigration documents.

Official sources

Last verified: 2026-10-03. General procedural information for educational purposes. Requirements and jurisdiction differ from one consulate to another. Verify directly with the Peruvian consulate that covers the state where you married. Not legal advice.