Police and medical certificates
You will know exactly which certificates to order, from whom, and how to avoid wording or scope errors.
Most Spanish residence visas ask for two documents that take time to get from abroad: a criminal-record certificate and a medical certificate. This topic shows you which ones to order, who issues them and what they must say, so the application is not rejected over a wording or scope error.
Pick the article that fits your situation
Which countries' police certificates you need and for how long
Explains how to work out which countries you need police certificates from: the countries where you have lived in the last 5 years, not places you visited. For adults applying for a Spanish long-stay visa from abroad or for a residence permit inside Spain.
How to get a criminal-record certificate from abroad
How to order a criminal-record certificate from the right authority in your home country, choose the route that fits your deadline, and avoid format problems. For anyone who must provide certificates from countries where they lived.
Police certificates you cannot get, and certificates for minors
What to do if your country issues no police certificate or you cannot get one, and what applies to children under 18. Read it before you apply if you hit either problem.
How a past conviction affects your Spanish residence application
For non-EU applicants, a past conviction does not automatically block a Spanish residence application. EU citizens, and UK citizens with Withdrawal Agreement rights, follow free-movement rules: a past conviction alone does not justify refusing their residence, and only a present, genuine and…
What the visa medical certificate must say
Explains which long-stay visa routes ask for a medical certificate and the exact health statement it must carry. For non-EU applicants who need to get the certificate from a doctor before booking a consulate appointment.
Who can sign your visa medical certificate and where
Explains who may sign the medical certificate for a long-stay Spanish visa, where to get it, what language it needs and what it costs. For anyone applying for a visa from abroad who needs to book the exam.
About this topic
Which countries' certificates you need depends on where you lived in the last 5 years, so settle that before you order anything.
Key rules
- Certificate age: A police certificate must not be more than 3 months old on the day you file your visa application.
- Medical statement: The medical certificate must state that you do not suffer from any disease that could have serious public health repercussions under the International Health Regulations (2005).
Police and medical certificates: the whole process, step by step
- Work out which countries need a police certificate: before you start; the certificates cover the last 5 years of residence
- Check which certificates your visa route needs, police and medical: before you order anything; short stays and student stays of 6 months (180 days) or less need neither certificate, digital nomad visas need only the police certificate, and the other long-stay routes need both
- Order each criminal-record certificate: allow 2 to 8 weeks in total, including apostille and sworn translation
- If a country issues no certificate, use a sworn statement: as soon as you know a certificate is unobtainable, and keep proof of your attempts
- Book the medical exam with a licensed doctor: close to filing
- Get a medical certificate with the required statement: issued within the 3 months before you file
- Check the issue date of every police certificate, then file your visa application: on the day you file
- If the visa is refused because of a conviction, choose reconsideration or a court appeal: they are alternatives, 1 month for reconsideration or 2 months for a court appeal from the refusal notice
Documents you may need
- Police certificates, one per country of residence: which countries, how to order
- Apostille or full legalisation on each police certificate issued outside the EU, and a sworn translation into Spanish unless it is in Spanish: How to get a criminal-record certificate from abroad
- Power of attorney for a representative who orders the certificate for you, only if your country requires you to apply in person: How to get a criminal-record certificate from abroad
- Spanish criminal-record certificate (form 790 code 006), only if the immigration office asks for it: How to get a criminal-record certificate from abroad
- Sworn declaration and official letter when no certificate exists: Police certificates you cannot get, and certificates for minors
- Medical certificate signed by a licensed doctor, with the required health statement, your name as in your passport, the date of issue, and the doctor's letterhead, name and registration number: What the visa medical certificate must say, Who can sign your visa medical certificate and where
- Apostille or legalisation of the medical certificate, by the country that issued it, and a sworn translation into Spanish unless it is in Spanish or English: What the visa medical certificate must say
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Always verify important information with the relevant official authority or a qualified adviser before acting. This website uses large language models together with various public data sources, official government documents and other established sources. Due to the amount of data on this website, some information might be wrong. Information may also be incomplete or outdated.