Criminal record certificates for citizenship from Spain and abroad

Key rules

• Countries: You need certificates from your country of origin or nationality and from any other country where you lived for a significant period as an adult.
• Validity: A foreign certificate must be issued no more than three months before you file, unless it states a shorter validity.
• Spanish record: The Ministry checks your Spanish record itself unless you refuse consent in the application form.
• Conduct: Pending proceedings, convictions or serious violations can lead to refusal.

Which countries you need records from

You need a criminal record certificate from your country of origin or nationality. You also need one from every other country where you lived for a significant period since you reached adult age.

A short stay, such as a few weeks or a brief posting, normally does not need a certificate. If you are unsure whether a stay counts as significant, ask the Ministry of Justice before you order anything.

The list of documents below shows what to bring for each country.

What each certificate must show

Each foreign certificate must state that you have no convictions. It should be a current certificate, not a historical one. It should cover your time of residence in that country since you became an adult.

The Ministry does not give one fixed lookback outside its own instructions. Check the current requirement with the Ministry of Justice before you order.

How recent it must be

A foreign criminal record certificate must have been issued no more than three months before you file, unless it states a shorter validity. If it does state a shorter validity, that shorter period applies.

Order certificates close to your filing date. Certificates from some countries take weeks, so start early, but do not order so early that they expire before you file.

If a certificate is not in Spanish, plan for a legalised or apostilled copy and a sworn translation. Ask the issuing country's authority which legalisation it uses.

Your Spanish record

You normally do not need to get your Spanish record yourself. The Ministry of Justice checks it through the Central Registry of Convicted Persons, using the consent you give in the application form.

If you refuse that consent, you must supply the Spanish certificate yourself.

Good civic conduct

You must prove good civic conduct. Criminal records, Spanish and foreign, are one part of this. The Ministry also looks at police reports, pending proceedings or convictions, administrative sanctions and public-order conduct. It may ask police authorities for reports.

Pending criminal proceedings, convictions or serious violations can lead to refusal. If you have anything of this kind in your history, get advice before you file.

Documents you need

• Criminal record certificate from your country of origin or nationality, showing no convictions and issued no more than three months before you file, unless it states a shorter validity.

• Criminal record certificate from every other country where you lived for a significant period since you came of legal age, covering your time there, showing no convictions and issued no more than three months before you file, unless it states a shorter validity.

• Spanish criminal record certificate, only if you refuse consent in the application form for the Ministry of Justice to check your Spanish record itself.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a certificate from a country where I only lived briefly?

Usually you need one only for countries where you lived for a significant period since you came of legal age, plus your country of origin or nationality. If a stay was short, ask the Ministry of Justice whether it can be skipped.

Do I have to get my Spanish criminal record certificate myself?

No, you normally do not, because the Ministry of Justice checks your Spanish record itself when you give consent in the application form.

Does the Ministry look at anything besides criminal records for good civic conduct?

Yes, the Ministry also looks at police reports, pending proceedings and administrative sanctions, not only at criminal records. Pending criminal proceedings, convictions or serious violations can lead to refusal, and the Ministry may ask police authorities for reports.

What period must a foreign certificate cover?

A foreign certificate should generally cover your period of residence in that country since you reached adulthood, and it must show no convictions.