Consular certificates
Legalize consular certificates at the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs
These are the consular certificates most often legalized at the Ministry's Legalization Service.
Criminal record certificate
Shows the criminal record held in the country of origin, or that there is none. Some countries call it a good conduct certificate.
Consular non-registration certificate
Also called a negative nationality certificate. Confirms that the person is not registered with the consulate as a national of that country. It is required, for example, for Spanish nationality by presumption. For a child born in Spain, the certificate must be issued once the child is at least 30 days old; if it is issued earlier, the application is refused.
Marital status certificate
Confirms whether the person is single, married, divorced or widowed.
Non-scholarship certificate
Confirms that the person has not held a scholarship from their government, when a Spanish authority asks for it.
Certificate of life
Confirms that the person is alive. It is required, for example, to collect a pension.
Certificate of capacity to marry
Confirms that the person can marry under the law of their country.
Certificate of law
Explains the law of that country on a specific matter.
Certificate of identity concordance
Confirms that details with minor differences belong to the same person.
Requirements for any consular certificate
The exact content of each certificate depends on the consulate. Before legalizing it, check the following.
- Original
- It is the original document. Photocopies are not legalized.
- Signature
- It has a handwritten signature and the signatory's name and position. Electronically signed documents are not legalized.
- Translation
- If it is not in Spanish, it comes with its official translation, also signed by hand.
- Condition
- It is not laminated, altered or damaged.
- Validity
- It is within the validity period required by the Spanish authority where you will present it.