Criminal records for Spain: apostille or legalisation?

For almost any residence permit you will need a criminal record certificate from your country, and it is only valid in Spain if it is apostilled or legalised and, when not in Spanish, comes with a sworn translation. It is the document that takes longest: request it first.

Here is which countries you need it from, which stamp it carries depending on the country, and the mistakes that trigger most requests for documents.

Which countries

For arraigo, the Immigration Regulation (articles 126.d and 130.2 of Royal Decree 1155/2024) requires no criminal record in Spain or in the countries where you lived during the five years before entering Spain. It is not only your country of nationality: if you spent three of those years in another State, you need that one too.

Convictions count where the conduct is also an offence under Spanish law.

Three useful points:

• You do not provide the Spanish record. The Immigration Office checks the central registry itself and requests a police report.
• Children below the age of criminal responsibility are not asked for the certificate.
• Exemption through stay. For arraigo, you need not provide another country's record if you have stayed continuously in Spain for the five years before applying, or if you already provided it in an earlier application within those five years and have not left since.

In other procedures — nationality, initial residence, long-term residence in some cases — the requirement differs; check the list on your procedure page.

Apostille or legalisation: it depends on the country

A foreign public document needs an authority to certify that the signature and seal are genuine. There are two systems:

Hague apostille

If your country is a party to the 1961 Hague Convention, the apostille suffices: a single stamp or certificate issued by your country's competent authority. With it the document is valid directly in Spain, with no consulate involved.

Many countries now issue it electronically, with a verification code.

Diplomatic legalisation

If your country is not a party, the document follows a chain of stamps: first the foreign ministry of the country of origin and then the Spanish consulate there. Alternatively, your country's embassy in Spain may legalise it, followed by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Our country guides state, for the most common countries of origin, which system applies and where to request the certificate.

The right order

1. Request the certificate from your country's authority. More and more countries issue it online; elsewhere you must request it in person or through a relative with power of attorney.
2. Have it apostilled or legalised in the issuing country. The apostille is always issued by the country of origin, never by Spain.
3. Have it translated by a sworn translator if not in Spanish. The translation must cover the apostille too. See sworn translation of foreign documents.
4. Submit it while valid.

How long it is valid

Criminal record certificates are accepted up to about three months old, unless the document itself states otherwise. Since apostille and translation also take time, the prudent course is:

• Do not request it too early.
• Have the rest of the file ready to submit as soon as it arrives.
• If expiry approaches and another document is missing, consider requesting a new one rather than risking a request.

If you cannot obtain the certificate

It happens: countries in conflict, consulates without service, delays of months. Keep proof that you requested it — receipt, emails, consulate slip — and explain it in the application. The Administration decides case by case and there is no guarantee, but a file showing diligence goes further than one that simply omits the document.

If you have a record

A record does not always close the door:

• Only conduct that is an offence in Spain counts.
• For several permits, the Administration must assess individually whether the person poses a threat to public order, with no automatic refusal.
• In Spain, records can be cancelled once the legal period since serving the sentence has passed.

If this is your case, have it examined before filing, in a video call with an immigration lawyer from our team.

Common mistakes

• Providing only the certificate from your country of nationality when you lived elsewhere.
• No apostille or legalisation, or an apostille from the wrong authority.
• A translation by someone who is not a sworn translator.
• Translating the certificate but not the apostille.
• A document expired on the filing date.
• Name or date of birth different from the passport: have it corrected at source.

Frequently asked questions

Can I request my country's record from Spain?

Often yes: online, through your consulate or via a relative with power of attorney at home. Our country guides give the details.

Can the apostille be issued in Spain?

No. It is always issued by the authority of the country that issued the document.

Must I translate a certificate that is in Spanish?

No. Sworn translation is only required for documents not in Spanish.

Is a digital certificate with a verification code valid?

More and more countries issue electronic certificates and apostilles verifiable online, and they are valid. Print the document with its code visible.

I have been in Spain eight years. Is it still required?

For arraigo, if you have stayed here continuously for the last five years, the rule exempts you.

Your next step

The free test tells you which certificates you need for your country and procedure. To find out where to request yours and which stamp it carries, ask Resi.