How to Get an Apostilled Criminal Record Check for Your Spain Visa (US, UK, Canada)

How to get an apostilled criminal record check for Spain's Digital Nomad or Non-Lucrative Visa from the US (FBI), UK (ACRO) and Canada (RCMP): steps, apostille, translation and timing.

Both the Digital Nomad Visa and the Non-Lucrative Visa ask for a criminal record certificate, and it is one of the easiest documents to get wrong. It needs an apostille, a sworn Spanish translation, and it has to be recent enough on the day you file. The slow part is not the certificate itself, it is the apostille, so the order and timing matter more than anything else.

What Spain asks for

  • An original criminal record certificate from every country where you lived for more than 6 months (180 days) in the last 2 years
  • The Hague apostille on the original certificate, which certifies the signature of the issuing authority
  • A sworn (certified) translation into Spanish; translating the apostille page as well is usually optional, but check your consulate
  • Issue date inside the window your consulate accepts: consulate pages commonly say within 6 months before you submit, while some guides quote about 90 days, so confirm yours

United States: FBI check, then a federal apostille

  • Request an FBI Identity History Summary online and give your fingerprints, either electronically at a participating location or on a fingerprint card. The electronic report usually arrives within a few days
  • Print the signed report. The apostille needs a physical document, and a notary stamp can cause a rejection, so do not notarize it
  • Send it to the US Department of State, Office of Authentications, for the apostille. The FBI report is a federal document, so a state apostille is not accepted
  • Allow several weeks for the State Department. Check their current processing times before you plan, because they change
  • Then get the sworn Spanish translation of the report

Do not remove staples or separate the pages once the apostille is attached. A document that looks tampered with can be refused.

United Kingdom: ACRO, then the FCDO

  • Apply for an ACRO police certificate online. A DBS check is not accepted for this purpose
  • Send the original to the FCDO, or to a commercial apostille agent, for the apostille. Express agents cost more but are much faster
  • Get the sworn Spanish translation last, once the apostille is attached

Canada: RCMP, then the apostille

  • Consulates in Canada accept only the RCMP-certified criminal record check with fingerprints. Local police certificates are not accepted
  • Canada joined the Apostille Convention in 2024, so the certificate now gets a Hague apostille instead of the older legalization chain
  • Then the sworn Spanish translation

Fees and turnaround times change. Check the issuing authority's current instructions before you order.

Lived in more than one country?

If you spent more than 180 days in another country during the last 2 years, you need a certificate from that country too, each with its own apostille and translation. This is the most common reason a file comes back incomplete, and it is the slowest to fix because every country has its own process. Make a list of every country you lived in during the last 2 years before you order anything.

Common mistakes

  • Ordering it too early and letting it go out of date before you file
  • Ordering it too late and running into the apostille wait
  • Apostilling a copy instead of the original
  • Notarizing a federal document, or taking apart an apostilled document
  • Forgetting certificates from other countries you have lived in
  • Using a translator who is not a sworn translator, or translating before the apostille is attached

The safest order and timing

Gather your other documents first, such as your income proof and health insurance. Then order the criminal record certificate about 2 to 3 months before your filing date. That leaves time for the apostille and the translation, and it still keeps the issue date inside the window your consulate accepts. Check the dates once more before you submit. For the translation step see our guide to sworn translations, and for the full list see the Digital Nomad Visa document checklist.

Want someone to check your apostilles, translations and dates before you file? Our Document Readiness Review does exactly that.

This article reflects general guidance and is not legal advice. Requirements, fees and processing times vary by consulate and change over time, so confirm the details for your case. Segundo Hogar provides administrative document preparation support, not legal representation.

Guides