Spanish Visa Translations

Since Brexit came into force, visas unfortunately became a requirement for Britons moving to Spain for work, study or residence.

There are different types of Spanish long-stay visas, and you would need to seek advice on the one you need based on your personal circumstances. A general overview can be found here:

As part of the visa application process, you are normally required to have certain documents officially translated by a Spanish sworn translator. These include criminal records certificates, health certificates and proof of financial means, among others.

Whether you are applying for a non-lucrative visa, a student visa or any other Spanish visa, I can assist with the sworn translations. Apart from being a sworn translator approved by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and with over 16 years of experience, I am an approved translator registered at the Spanish consulates in London and Manchester.

Apostille Legalisation

You would normally be asked to have your original English documents legalised with an apostille stamp (commonly referred to as “apostilled”) and translated by a registered sworn translator.

Usually, it is best to have the documents legalised first before translating them so that the Apostille stamp can be reflected on the translation. However, as the Apostille is multilingual and includes Spanish, some consulate officials don’t mind if it is not on the translation. My advice; however, is to include it on the translation; better safe than sorry!

You would need to post your documents directly to the Legalisation Office at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and they will post them back to you with the Apostille stamp at the back of your documents. Recently, they have also started issuing electronic or e-Apostilles for certain types of documents For information on how to do this, please visit https://www.gov.uk/get-document-legalised.

Alternatively, if you are using a solicitor or Notary Public to deal with the process, they are often able to handle the legalisation aspect too. Thanks to a trusted network of legal professionals I work with, I would be very happy to recommend a local Notary Public if you prefer them to deal with everything.

What does the translation process involve?

Once you have received your legalised documents back, you can e-mail me a scanned copy or legible edge-to-edge photo of the documents that require translation.

I would then confirm the price and turnaround time (2-5 working days depending on the amount of text) and we can get started.

I can either provide digitally signed sworn translations by email, which you can then print for the consulate, or manually certified ones sent by recorded post (as well as a scanned copy by e-mail). Both options are legally valid and accepted.

Why not get in touch to discuss your requirements?