Documents from Argentina for a Spanish nationality file: criminal record, birth certificate, apostille and validity

Where each document comes from, who issues the apostille, how long each one stays valid and what Spain's own texts say about legalisation and translation, with a source under every line. Free.

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Last checked: 18 October 2026. Check the official page: sede.mjusticia.gob.es.

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• Criminal record
• Birth and marriage
• Apostille
• Translation
• Consulates
• Order
• Validity clock

1. Criminal record certificate

The Registro Nacional de Reincidencia (RNR, the national registry of criminal records) says on its page that it centralises the information on criminal proceedings in any jurisdiction of the country and certifies criminal records.^[1] Spain's order lists Argentina among the federal states for which the certificate must cover the whole country, not only one federated state.^[2]

Criminal record certificate from Argentina: who issues it and how long it stays valid

2. Birth certificate, and marriage certificate if you are married

The Madrid consulate's page says civil registry certificates (marriage, birth, death and others) cannot be requested or handled through Argentine consular offices.^[1] Another page of the same consulate says they are issued by the civil registries of each jurisdiction and that consulates take no part in obtaining them.^[2]

The consulate says the following provinces now issue them in electronic form with a digital signature: Buenos Aires, CABA, Chaco, Córdoba, Corrientes, Entre Ríos, Jujuy, Mendoza, Misiones, Río Negro, Salta and Santa Fe.^[3] The Foreign Ministry's page says only civil registry certificates in electronic form with a digital signature are legalised.^[4] It adds that a certificate issued without a digital signature, if it is up to date, must be digitised by its registry or legalised by the Ministry of the Interior.^[5]

For the other provinces, the consulate says you must contact the civil registry that corresponds to you and ask for the certificate, and that for the consulate to handle the apostille the certificate must be legalised by the Ministry of the Interior.^[6] Its page on documents by type adds that certificates on paper with a handwritten signature need the Interior Ministry's digital legalisation before they can be apostilled.^[7]

Spain asks for the birth certificate of the country of origin, legalised and translated where needed.^[8] We found no official Argentine page that states a validity for the birth certificate, and no official Spanish text saying whether an extract or a full copy is needed: ask the registry. Spain's order says all documents must be in force when you apply.^[9]

If you are married, Spain also asks for the marriage certificate of the country where the marriage took place.^[10] The consulate's page above names marriage among the civil registry certificates it does not handle.^[11]

3. Apostille and legalisation

HCCH's status table lists Argentina with the dates 8-V-1987 and 18-II-1988, which are its accession and entry-into-force columns.^[1]

HCCH's page for Argentina names the Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Culto as the designated competent authority.^[2] It adds that the ministry signed an agreement with the Federal Board of Notariat under which the bodies of Notaries Public have been authorised to authenticate signatures with the Apostille.^[3]

The Argentine consulate in Madrid names the Foreign Ministry and the Colegios de Escribanos y Notariales of the Consejo Federal del Notariado Argentino as the authorities that issue the apostille.^[4] The Foreign Ministry's own page says all the Colegios de Escribanos can issue apostilles and legalisations with international validity under an agreement with that council.^[5]

For the Foreign Ministry's online TAD (Trámites a Distancia) route, the page lists these requirements: being over 18 and having a Clave Fiscal of level 2 or above.^[6] It says anyone can start the procedure, even if they are not the holder of the document.^[7] It prints a fee of $ 4500 (four thousand five hundred pesos).^[8] For ordinary public documents it says the apostille is generated within 20 to 30 days once the file is started and the file number issued.^[9]

For people abroad, the Foreign Ministry's page says to contact the nearest Argentine consulate for advice and management, and that the consular route needs neither a Clave Fiscal nor an Argentine bank account.^[10] It says processing through a consulate takes up to 72 working hours after the request is approved.^[11]

The Madrid consulate says people abroad can ask the consular office that corresponds to them to process the apostille.^[12] It prints fees of EUR 30 for handling and ARS 4,500 for the apostille, collected in euros at the exchange rate of the day.^[13] It gives an estimate of 10 working days after the fees are paid.^[14] It says it is the applicant's responsibility to make sure the document has the full chain of legalisations needed to be apostilled.^[15] It lists acts and certificates issued by any Argentine civil registry among the documents it can process.^[16]

For the criminal record certificate, the Madrid consulate says it must be apostilled to be valid in Spanish territory.^[17] If you obtained it in person, you tell the operator at the appointment and pay the consular fees.^[18] If you obtained it online, you send the certificate you received by email.^[19] The Foreign Ministry says RNR certificates are issued entirely in electronic form with a digital signature and can therefore be apostilled or legalised with international validity.^[20]

The Madrid consulate says the Argentine electronic apostille meets all legal and international requirements and is therefore recognised by the Spanish authorities.^[24] That is the consulate's statement, and we found no Spanish official page on Argentine electronic apostilles: ask the registry. Spain's Ministry of Justice warning says the Hague Convention simplifies legalisation to a single stamp and signature,^[25] and calls legalisation an essential requirement.^[26]

4. Translation into Spanish

Spain asks for the birth certificate legalised and translated where needed ("traducido en su caso").^[1] We found no official text saying whether a document written in Spanish needs a translation: ask the registry.

The Spanish Ministry of Justice warning says translation is done or checked at Spanish consular offices abroad, or at the consulates in Spain of the document's country of origin, and that documents must then be legalised.^[2] It adds that a sworn translator-interpreter appointed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can do the translation.^[3] The Spanish Foreign Ministry says translations by sworn translators recognised by it do not need any further legalisation by the Ministry's Legalisation Service.^[4]

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs describes a sworn translator as a professional who can translate written documents from one language into another.^[5]

5. Consulates in Spain

The Madrid consulate's page says there are six Argentine consulates in Spain, each competent only in the Spanish territory under its jurisdiction.^[1]

It lists them in Madrid,^[2] Barcelona,^[3] Vigo,^[4] Cádiz,^[5] Tenerife^[6] and Palma de Mallorca.^[7] We read only the Madrid consulate's pages, so other consulates may work differently: ask yours.

6. Order of requests and validity

Spain's order says that all documents must be in force when you apply.^[1] For certificates, the validity stated on the certificate itself counts,^[2] and a criminal record certificate with no stated validity counts for six months from the day it was issued.^[3]

Legalisation does not make a document last longer. Spain's Foreign Ministry says legalisation has no expiry date but that, if the document has a validity period, legalisation does not extend it.^[4]

When you create the online application you have two months to complete and file it, or it is deleted.^[5]

1. Find out what validity, if any, each issuer prints on its certificate (the sections above say what we found).
2. Request first the documents that need an apostille and a sworn translation, since those steps come after issue.
3. Request the criminal record certificate when you can still finish its apostille and translation inside its validity.
4. Type its issue date in the clock below and file before the "valid until" date it shows.
5. Create the online application only when you are close to filing: from creation you have two months.

Next steps

The nationality file, step by step

Your file silent after a year

Years to Spanish nationality by country

Criminal record certificate from Argentina: who issues it and how long it stays valid

Where is my Spanish nationality file? The official ways to check it

The Spanish nationality oath (jura): what to bring and where to do it

Years, exams and fee for Spanish nationality by country of origin: open data

Explanation written with AI from the official source cited on this page.

CiviqPass is an independent service. Built from the texts linked beside each line; procedures change, so confirm on the official pages.