Licensed Salvadoran attorney & notario — an attorney-notary under Salvadoran law · San Salvador
Buy property or get residency in El Salvador — without getting burned.
We are a Salvadoran law firm, not an agency. Flat fees published below, a direct WhatsApp line to the lawyers who do the work, and every closing signed by a Salvadoran notario — an attorney authorized to give public faith, not a U.S. notary public.
Services & prices — published, flat, no surprises
Most law firms here hide their fees. We publish ours. Government costs (registry certifications, taxes, stamps) are always itemized separately, with receipts.
Turn-Key Real Estate Closing
$650 – $1,100 flat fee + itemized official costs
- Full escrituración (deed) signed by our notario — a licensed attorney-notary
- Registry filing and follow-up until the title is in your name
- Payment-instruction fraud check on every wire
- Works remotely — apostilled power of attorney if you can't travel
Title Guard — property title check
$199 scan · full study $1,950 – $2,500
- Scan: registry status of the property before you commit
- Full study: liens, encumbrances, ownership chain, red flags
- Written report you can show your bank or seller
- Credited toward your closing if you hire us for it
El Salvador Residency
from $1,995 flat fee + official costs itemized
- Residency in El Salvador only — we do not handle U.S. immigration or visas
- New since March 31, 2026: temporary residents only need 90 days per year in the country — down from nine months (Decree 531)
- Rentista route: proof of ≈$1,635/month passive income · pensioner route: ≈$1,226/month (4 and 3 minimum wages — we confirm your route before you pay)
- Document checklist, apostilles, filings and follow-up handled by the firm
How it works
Tell us your case
One WhatsApp message. A Salvadoran lawyer — not a bot — replies with the questions that matter.
Fixed quote in writing
Flat fee + itemized official costs. You know the total before paying anything.
We do the work
Deeds, filings, registry follow-up. You get updates at every stage, in English.
Proof, not promises
You receive the registered documents and official receipts. Done means documented.
The firm behind the counter
LegalSV is the client desk of Pérez Lex, the practice of attorney Nelson Pérez and notario María Isabel Morales, licensed in El Salvador, with a real office in San Benito, San Salvador.
In El Salvador a notario is a licensed attorney authorized by the Supreme Court to give public faith to a deed — a different and far more senior figure than a U.S. notary public. That signature — not software, not an agency — is what actually protects your purchase.
Why clients trust us
Honest answers first
Can I do this without a lawyer?
Some of it, yes. You can request registry certifications yourself, and any Salvadoran notario can sign a deed — a U.S. notary public cannot, and neither can a notario for a matter outside El Salvador. What you're paying us for is knowing which questions to ask before your money moves, and being accountable if something is missed. If your case doesn't need us, we'll say so in the first conversation.
Are you US attorneys?
No. We are licensed in El Salvador and advise exclusively on Salvadoran law. For US legal or tax questions you need a professional licensed in your state — and we'll tell you when that's the case.
How do I know this isn't a scam?
Fair question — wire fraud is real in cross-border real estate. We are a physical firm you can visit and video-call. Payment instructions only come from verified channels, we warn you never to wire on the basis of an email alone, and every quote and receipt is in writing. Verify us independently before sending anyone money — including us.
Do I have to travel to El Salvador?
Usually no. You grant a special power of attorney — before our Salvadoran notario (Salvadoran law, Art. 3 of the Notary Act, lets a Salvadoran notario authorize instruments abroad for use in El Salvador) or before the nearest Salvadoran consulate (Art. 69: consular instruments have exactly the same force as one signed in San Salvador). With it we sign the deed for you, register it, and send you the registered title.
A warning we give you even though it costs us nothing to skip: the route most websites suggest — a U.S. notary public plus an apostille — is the weakest one. A U.S. notary public certifies signatures; it does not produce a Salvadoran public instrument, and the U.S. is not a party to the Inter-American convention on powers of attorney. That route can cost you a registry observation and weeks of delay. We use the Salvadoran route.
Before you hire anyone, read these
Written by the firm. General information, not advice for your case.
Legal representation in El Salvador: three things that share one name
A company's registered representante legal, a power of attorney, and a lawyer appearing in court are three different things — and only the last one requires a licensed attorney. Includes how legal advisory differs from representation, why they are priced differently, and the three reasons powers granted abroad get rejected.
Lawyers in El Salvador: how to choose one and check the licence
Why a notario here is a licensed attorney and not a U.S. notary public, how legal fees work when no official tariff fixes them, and the five mistakes that cost foreigners the most — paying before the title is checked, a power of attorney in the wrong form, using the seller's lawyer, trusting a promised government deadline, and inheriting the debts along with the house. Includes how to check a licence in the Supreme Court's public search before you sign or wire anything.
Notaría en El Salvador (español)
Qué actos se hacen ante notario —escrituras de compraventa, poderes, aceptación de herencia, declaraciones juradas y auténticas—, qué te van a pedir y cómo resolverlo sin viajar.
Documentos desde el exterior (español)
Partidas de nacimiento, matrimonio y defunción, apostillas, solvencias y antecedentes penales, certificaciones del registro y recuperación de fondos de AFP, gestionados desde San Salvador mientras vos seguís afuera.