Fortunately these days, if you don’t know the Spanish language, translating basic documents is relatively easy.  There are abundant translation apps such as the popular Google Translate which a quite accurate.  Of course, if you need to have a Spanish translation of a more detailed or official document, you’ll need to get someone to do the translation for you.

There are various types of official document translations and certifications that you might need when living in Spain or during the process of applying to do so.  E.g. for visa and residency applications.

Sworn Translations

These are translations done by an official translator who is legally authorised as a translator.  Sworn translations, are accompanied by a signed declaration from the translator attesting to the accuracy and authenticity of the translation. The translator appears on an official list of certified translators and interpreters approved by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  The translator will sign and certify any translations they complete.

Sworn translations have a formal status with authorities, so these are what you have to get when you need to translate documents for things like visas, residency applications, social security etc.

Certified Copies of Documents

Sometimes the authority that requires your translated documents, may also want to see the  original documents as well.  If you don’t want to send original documents,you can get certified copies of the original.  Certification of documents in Spain is done at the Notary.  You provide them with the original documents and they will make copies and attach their stamp and signature to make the copy official.

Sometimes you may need documents to be certified for use outside of Spain, such as your home country.  Notary certified copies will be accepted, and in some countries, for example the UK, copies certified by a licenced professional such as a lawyer or accountant may also be ok.

Legalisation of Documents

Documents in many countries, are legalised by the attachment of an apostille.   The apostille is an official stamp and certificate that verifies that an official document is authentic.  The word comes for the Hague Convention and the Apostille Treaty, which set in place an international model for certification of documents.

Documents can only be legalised by the country that issued the document.  For example a British birth certificate has to be ‘apostilled’ by the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office.

Sometimes a notarised declaration has to accompany the documents that are to be legalised confirming what they are, and attesting to their authenticity.

If documents that need to be translated also need to be legalised, you should get the legalisation done first and then translate the legalised document.

Official documents such as birth and marriage certificates issued in EU countries, don’t need to be legalised before being translated for formal use.

Legalisation of British Documents

In the UK documents legalisation is done by the Foreign & Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO).

https://www.gov.uk/get-document-legalised

There are two types of legalisations that they provide, electronic know as an e-Apostille and paper-based, where the Apostille certificate is attached to the physical document.  Spanish visa and residency procedure require paper-based legalised documents.

There are also two levels of service offered by the FCDO.  The standard (paper-based) service booked online.  You print off a cover sheet and post this to FCDO along with the original documents to be legalised.  The turnaround is stated on the website as ‘up to 15 working days’.  From experience, during busy periods it can take a lot longer, and at quite time a lot less, but the average time is around 4 weeks.

Fast track legalisation is available through businesses that are registered with, and approved by the FCDO to provide this service.   Registered businesses are allowed to take documents in person to the FCDO for legalisation and collect them the next working day.

We arrange certification, legalisation and Spanish translations of all types of British documents for our clients using our visa and residency services.

As we are an FCDO registered and approved business, our clients in the UK who are using our Spanish visa and residency application services, benefit from our fast track legalisation service with their documents, being legalised and translated ready for their application within a few days us receiving them.

We also assist our clients to get documents from other countries legalised, and arrange translation from other languages aside from English, into Spanish.

Find out more about our Spanish visa and residency services.