Guidance

Nicaragua: Knowledge Base profile

Updated 5 September 2025

About: Nicaragua

This document contains useful information about Nicaragua which will assist His Majesty’s Passport Office staff process passport applications.

Contacts

If you have any questions about the document and your line manager or senior caseworker cannot help you or you think that the document has factual errors then email the Guidance team.

If you notice any formatting errors in this document (broken links, spelling mistakes and so on) or have any comments about the layout or navigability of the document then you can email the Guidance team.

Publication

Below is information on when this version of the document was published:

• version 2.0
• published for Home Office staff on 2 September 2025

Changes from last version of this document

This document has been updated with formatting changes.

Nicaragua: names

This section give HM Passport Office operational staff information about names in Nicaragua.

Names in Nicaragua follow a Hispanic naming convention.

Names in Nicaragua usually consist of:

• up to 2 forenames or given names
• father’s surname, followed by mother’s surname

Change of name

Married women normally retain their own surname. In some cases, they add their husband’s first surname to their first surname using the word ‘de’, for example, Carmen Pérez Rodriguez marrying Juan García López, would become Carmen Pérez de García.

Nicaragua: nationality

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about nationality in Nicaragua.

Dual nationality is recognised in Nicaragua.

Nicaragua: legitimacy and parental responsibility

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about legitimacy and parental responsibility in Nicaragua.

Legitimacy

Since 1987, Nicaragua does not recognise a difference between legitimate and illegitimate births. This means all births since 1987 will be legitimate whether the parents are married or not.

Parental responsibility

Parental responsibility is shared equally between both parents.

Nicaragua: adoption

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about adoption in Nicaragua.

Adoption is legal in Nicaragua.

Nicaragua: civil partnerships and marriage

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about civil partnerships and marriage in Nicaragua.

Civil partnerships and same sex marriages are not recognised in Nicaragua.

Civil marriages are legally recognised in Nicaragua and must be performed by a Nicaragua judge or notary.

Religious marriages are recognised in Nicaragua and can be made legal if a marriage contract is registered by a Nicaragua judge or notary.

In Nicaragua, opposite sex couples who have lived together for at least 2 continuous years can register for a stable de facto union (union de hecho estable). This type of union grants the couple the same legal rights and responsibilities as a married couple and is officially recognised if it is declared before a notary or registered by one or both partners.

Nicaragua: documents

This section tells HM Passport Office staff about documents in Nicaragua.

Documents issued in Nicaragua must be legalised by an official before they are legitimised by the Nicaragua authorities. When a document has been legitimised by the authorities, it will contain an apostille from the Nicaragua government.

All birth, marriage and death certificates must be requested by applying to the Nicaragua civil registry office where the event took place, or at the Central Registry in Managua.

Birth certificates

All births in Nicaragua must be registered within 60 days of the date of birth. Late registration is allowed.