Where to have your fingerprints taken in Cuenca

And now for the angry rant,

The reason I needed to have my fingerprints taken here in Cuenca is because I relied on the advise of noted female attorney here in Cuenca who promotes her law firm in a blog post on a website run by a Canadian couple (hint: they are recognized authorities on what constitutes an "ugly American").  This attorney even responded to questions submitted by readers from time to time in the comment section.

So, while in the U.S., I went through the process of getting the required police reports from my state police department, and even went above and beyond that to get one from the FBI. Then, I get to Cuenca and learn that I needed to have them APOSTILLIZED!  But in order to learn this fact, I had to come to Cuenca first and pay the $40 consultation fee to the noted attorney, who would refund it if I hire them to do my visa.

To make a long story short, my police reports are worthless and I am having to repeat the process. And yes, I blame the attorney who failed to mention that the police report needed to be apostillized, even though she had number opportunities to do so, and was using the blog and comment section to promote her firm.

Needless to say, I will not be using the noted attorney now or ever for any legal problem. In fact I hope to complete the visa process by myself since there is now a Visa office in Cuenca and everyone says it can be done without an attorney.

However, when and if I need an attorney in the future, I will be following the advise of Cuenca resident and fine American Deke Castleman (sometime writer of articles for Cuenca Highlife and other web publications) who recommended the law firm of Coloaustro Abogados - coloaustro.net. They have an English language legal assistant who is very responsive to emails and phone calls, which I can attest to.

Here is her contact information:

Jane Becker
English Language Legal Assistant
Coloaustro Abogados
Telephone: (593)(07) 4103647
Cell Phone: 091253576
Email: legalassistance@coloaustro.net
Website: coloaustro.net
Skype: coloaustro.abogados

Are Australians required to have there fingerprints taken if trying to get residency in Ecuador..??

What is one has a criminal record in Australia, will one get residency..?

I can't speak for Australia, but I do know this.  They are asking for a police report from the jurisdiction you last lived in. If you lived in the U.S. and you committed a crime in Nevada 20 years ago, but your last residence is in New York, then they (immigration) won't know about the crime in Nevada, if you provide them a police report from New York.  Personally, it would make more sense to me if immigration asked for a report from the FBI, since it would be more comprehensive.

Hello Nards Barley.

I invite you to recommend this law firm into the Cuenca Business Directory.

Thank you,
Aurélie

How / whom do i find out  from as to whether one is required to get a police report from Australia..

And whether or not they except one if he /she has a criminal record..

Everyone applying for residency is required to get a police report from their home jurisdiction, regardless of the country they are from. As for whether they will accept it, my guess is that is not something you can find out in advance. You need to apply for the Visa and see what happens.

I am in the process of getting a 9-1 visa, trying to get back ground check for FBI been fun niño all over Cuenca trying to find a way to down load and print a fingerprint form, need some help wanting a cup of cocee, i will buy. Bobmurdock456@gmail.com

The new las of Ecuador, requires FBI back ground check. An63680

I really would like to see, and learn where exactly in the law is talking about FBI bakcground check as requirement.

My VISA was approved without fingerprints a few days ago. I just used the basic state police report. Mine is the 9-VI type immigrant visa. But yeah, apostille all documents that come from your home country.

You can ask Migration i had my state back ground noterized and appostiled. But the lady said the las were changed about 2months ago. You now must have FBI check,  and my God i wish i would have known that When i was having all this done,  if you can please call Migration and tell me that my state police check will work. I will

An63680 wrote:

You can ask Migration i had my state back ground noterized and appostiled. But the lady said the las were changed about 2months ago. You now must have FBI check,  and my God i wish i would have known that When i was having all this done,  if you can please call Migration and tell me that my state police check will work. I will

There has been no end to the conflicting and incorrect information I've been told by various government offices. No, I won't be calling the Migration office for you. As many folks on these forums have pointed out, the process varies not only from city to city, but from clerk to clerk. Maybe I got really lucky, or maybe you were just unlucky.

Glad to see this thread getting some traction.

While I don´t take the following statement as gold, the Gringo Post a couple weeks ago had a lengthy Q&A email that included the following, for what it is worth

Immigration FAQ

GrintoPost has received answers from the Cuenca immigration office for the following questions which will become part of the "Visa FAQ" section of GringoPost.com:

_________

Q. Police report requirements - If a US state has a state police entity, will a report issued by that entity for the past 5 years duly executed, notarized and apostilled be acceptable, or is the requirement now a standard FBI Criminal background check?

A: If you have a state criminal background check, apostilled, it's completely acceptable.

I have NO ideaa what having something aplostilled means. I have never heard this term before.

I cant type today either.

Thats what i thought, until i was there 3 day ago, applying for my visa 9-1 i was told the state police check is no longer , you must have a FBI back ground check, so i must find out how to get a fingerprint form to get my prints sent to the FBI electronicly to get the back ground check. I need a helipuerto that is good with a computer ,  scanaand send??.  Bobmurdock456@gmail.com

janet119 wrote:

I have NO ideaa what having something aplostilled means. I have never heard this term before.

Basically, it is a document affixed to the document which was notarized/certified. The apostille is generated by the Secretary of State, of the State which issued and notarized/certified the document.

Sort of like the Secretary of State of say Oregon, certifying that the notary that signed my Oregon police report is in fact a notary and their commission is active in the state of Oregon.

For more in-depth background see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apostille_Convention

symo

EDIT: Whoops... I see you're from Canada. Canada is not signatory to the Hague Convention. I will now withdraw my answer and button my lip :-) in hopes someone from Canada can give more guidance.

I understood we just had to have the Ecuadoriam Embassy here sign it, then I believe DFAIT sign is as well....probably same thing, different words.

Hi

Not sure I understand your post. It sounds like the police report that was done in the US was not valid because it was not aposilized. When you had the work redone in Cuenca was this work aposilized?

dour224

dour224 wrote:

Hi

Not sure I understand your post. It sounds like the police report that was done in the US was not valid because it was not aposilized. When you had the work redone in Cuenca was this work aposilized?

dour224

The only work redone in Cuenca was getting the fingerprints taken. Everything else was handled via correspondence and FedEx. And yes my police report was apostiled in the U.S. by the secretary of Oregon.

Hi there,
Sorry to hear bout your troubles but for me you've only got yourself to blame...!!!
I'm planning to move to Ecuador next year and just by doing a little bit of homework in searching the net apart from others using the blog you are trying to dispute one of the first things I found out is that if you are planning on obtaining residency visas you have to come prepared and all paperwork needs to be notarized and apostilled...
Sorry again but I just think your angry rant should be redirected at yourself rather then blaming and denigrating the rest of the world...
Hope all is good for you in future...
Peace and Love...
Tomas...

Sponytom wrote:

Hi there,
Sorry to hear bout your troubles but for me you've only got yourself to blame...!!!
I'm planning to move to Ecuador next year and just by doing a little bit of homework in searching the net apart from others using the blog you are trying to dispute one of the first things I found out is that if you are planning on obtaining residency visas you have to come prepared and all paperwork needs to be notarized and apostilled...
Sorry again but I just think your angry rant should be redirected at yourself rather then blaming and denigrating the rest of the world...
Hope all is good for you in future...
Peace and Love...
Tomas...

Who are you addressing Tomas? If it is me, I will hand you your butt with a rant worthy of your  idiocy.

Nards Barley wrote:

Sponytom wrote:

Hi there,
Sorry to hear bout your troubles but for me you've only got yourself to blame...!!!
I'm planning to move to Ecuador next year and just by doing a little bit of homework in searching the net apart from others using the blog you are trying to dispute one of the first things I found out is that if you are planning on obtaining residency visas you have to come prepared and all paperwork needs to be notarized and apostilled...
Sorry again but I just think your angry rant should be redirected at yourself rather then blaming and denigrating the rest of the world...
Hope all is good for you in future...
Peace and Love...
Tomas...

Who are you addressing Tomas? If it is me, I will hand you your butt with a rant worthy of your  idiocy.

Oh yea, sorry it was addressed to you...! But I must have missed something cos from my understanding you came unprepared which was what I said... I find it incredible you wouldn't get your stuff apostilled which is why I reacted the way I did... I only started looking at visa situation in Ecuador few weeks ago and words "apostilled" and "notarized" are everywhere I look...!!! I must say though that your reaction made me laugh a lot and I read it after a long day at work so thanks very much for that. I like when people do that to me... Anyway I'll keep on being an Idiot and you keep on being Awesome... 
I wish you all the best in Amazing Ecuador and I can't wait to get going as well...
Peace and Love 
Tomas

I was just at the Cuenca immigration office yesterday and was told I could submit a State Police report (Apostilled of course) or an FBI report (again needs to be Apostilled).

They will NOT accept any reports from county Sheriff's department or anything that you can have printed online like the State of Michigan ichat website which give Michigan background checks.

While I believe the Form 258 can be downloaded, printed and accepted, I have a few extra of the official stiffer versions that I had ordered from EBAY and had mailed over here, in case someone needs one.

For anyone doing this... this post was done in 2012.  The fingerprinting is now done at the Criminalistica police station on the road to Naranjal.  They have limited hours in which they do the fingerprinting (like between 3:00pm and 5:00pm). Something like that.  Bring your own fingerprinting cards printed on cardstock which you can have done at any printing/internet place.  Just ask them to print something up from the internet and go to the FBI website to find the cards. 

There is no charge for fingerprinting done at Criminalistica.

xoie wrote:

For anyone doing this... this post was done in 2012.  The fingerprinting is now done at the Criminalistica police station on the road to Naranjal.  They have limited hours in which they do the fingerprinting (like between 1:00pm and 3:00pm). Something like that.  Bring your own fingerprinting cards printed on cardstock which you can have done at any printing/internet place.  Just ask them to print something up from the internet and go to the FBI website to find the cards. 

There is no charge for fingerprinting done at Criminalistica.

2012? Wow. Time flies. Some threads are like a good wine. They get better with time.

So are you in the home stretch for your residency visa Xoie?

Yep... all done with our residency!  Yay!!!

A person on this blog posted that they had some heavier paper for fingerprinting. Do you still have some available?

hi,
do you still have some?
I need to have my fingerprints taken..
Please advise..
Thank you
cici

Is this still the only place in Cuenca to get fingerprinted?  It looks like we need to start our FBI background checks again due to mail issues with the original reports.

Important information for any of your members on the Ecuador Forum who may require a background check from the California Department of Justice.

I just went through this issue on the Brazil Forum and the California DoJ WILL NOT accept the downloaded version of the FD-258 Fingerprint Card on regular paper stock. They will only accept the original "hard card" that they will provide by mail if need be. They advise that the FBI will accept the downloaded version of the FD-258.

Just remember that the fingerprints must be taken by an "on duty" police officer who must sign and stamp the form or it will not be accepted in any event.

The following is a copy of the e-mail I received from the California Department of Justice regarding my enquiry about the form and why it wouldn't be available at all US Embassies and Consulates:


General information about FD-258 card

RecordReview (recordreview@doj.ca.gov)
02/02/2015

Para: James Woodward
recordreview@doj.ca.gov

Hello,

1.       The FD-258 fingerprint card is the FBI card, they will accept a downloaded paper copy of the card, but unless you have the proper “card stock” the BCIA cannot accept paper copies.
2.       Your would have to ask the FBI your question on why embassy or consulates do not have the card, but again it is on line.
3.       I cannot tell where to get the card in Brazil, but if the individual needs to do a “visa/immigration” type background with the BCIA, provide an address and the card and instructions for a BCIA “visa/immigration” background will be mailed to them, yes to  Brazil.

My wife and I just had our fingerprints retaken....it appears that the US government isn't too concerned with something as simple as taking, reading and reporting on them....and found a few things that appear to have changed lately.  The Criminalista at the airport will NO LONGER take your prints, but will direct you to their office on Enrique Arizaga Toral, the road to Naranjal.  Their hours there are from 6:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.  There is no cost to you, other than the cost of getting there and back, but you do need to take your own cards, the FD-258 and a BLACK pen to fill out all the personal information.  Oh, and make sure, if you download the card, print it out on heavy stock paper.  Regular bond paper won't hold up to the machines they use to read the prints, so heavy stock!!
When you do get them, I'd recommend using an FBI Channeler, list available on the FBI.gov site, to expedite the process of getting your report back.  Sending the report via Fedex is going to cost you about $50.00, but that's a small price to pay to get this process out of the way.
Good luck with this...and with the rest of the Visa process.

i live here in guayaquil and i need my fbi fingerprints.you say it´s on the way to naranjal and it´s open from 6am to 6pm.how far outside of guayaquil is it?i was told and read that a person has to notarize the document as well.is this true?thank you r graham

This office is located in Cuenca, which might be a bit of a drive.  I'm sure you could stop in any police station and they will direct you to the nearest Criminalista location where they can take your prints.

Yes, you do need to have the FBI Report notarized, but since the examiner who prints you will sign the card and will apply their stamp to it, you don't need to have the cards notarized, just the report.  Then comes the delay, as far as I've seen, which is getting the report apostilled.  The State Department can be very slow in responding to requests that come from outside the states.

Good luck with this.

thank you very much for the info.when you say delay what kind of time frame are we looking at?i have my passport extended until september.r graham

Well, I've been waiting since January, so working on my fourth month.  That's why I decided to start the process again, using a channeler to expedite the Bureau's work.  Then I'll send my report to State using Fedex so I have a record of everything, including when and who receives it.

They say the usual turnaround is two weeks, but in my case, its been a lot longer.  I don't know what other people are seeing, but that's my experience.

on the fbi card where it says residence did you put your address here or of the 1 you had in the usa?do they send it to the ecuador immigration(fbi) after they do a check of it?did you fill it out before you went or while you were at the fingerprint office?sorry for asking so many questions.every time i read something it´s 1 thing of this and 1 thing of that.i only need 2 pieces of papers(sheriff apostille and the fbi card).everything else has been done.some lady from cuenca wants to charge me $1200 to get these.is this what you call a chaneller?thanks again r graham