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Documents from Bangladesh 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.

Validity clock: your dates, worked out

Type a date you already have and read the date it leads to, with the official rule beside it. Nothing is stored or sent: the calculation runs in your browser. Add a date to your calendar with a reminder.

Sources (1)
Orden JUS/1625/2016, anexo, 4. Validez de los documentosOfficial wordingEn el caso de certificados de antecedentes penales en los que no conste plazo de validez, se entenderá que tienen una vigencia de seis meses a contar desde su expedición.
Sources (1)
sede.mjusticia.gob.es, página del trámiteOfficial wordingDispone de dos meses desde la fecha de creación para completar su solicitud, si pasado ese plazo no ha firmado y presentado su solicitud, se borrará de manera automática.
How we count

Months and years end on the same day number, or on the last day of the month if there is no such day; they start the day after the date you give. A deadline that ends on a weekend moves to the next working day. Document validity is not moved: the date shown is the last day it stays valid, even on a weekend. Days are working days unless a law says otherwise.

Ley 39/2015, art. 30.4Official wordingéstos se computarán a partir del día siguiente a aquel en que tenga lugar la notificación o publicación del acto de que se trate
Ley 39/2015, art. 30.4Official wordingo desde el siguiente a aquel en que se produzca la estimación o desestimación por silencio administrativo.
Ley 39/2015, art. 30.2Official wordingSiempre que por Ley o en el Derecho de la Unión Europea no se exprese otro cómputo, cuando los plazos se señalen por días, se entiende que éstos son hábiles
Ley 39/2015, art. 30.2Official wordingexcluyéndose del cómputo los sábados, los domingos y los declarados festivos.
Ley 39/2015, art. 30.4Official wordingEl plazo concluirá el mismo día en que se produjo la notificación, publicación o silencio administrativo en el mes o el año de vencimiento.
Ley 39/2015, art. 30.4Official wordingSi en el mes de vencimiento no hubiera día equivalente a aquel en que comienza el cómputo, se entenderá que el plazo expira el último día del mes.
Ley 39/2015, art. 30.5Official wordingCuando el último día del plazo sea inhábil, se entenderá prorrogado al primer día hábil siguiente.

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Your documents with their dates, the order to ask for them, every deadline in one calendar file, two letters already drafted and twenty-five checks before you file. It uses the same sourced rules as this page, organised for your own file.

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In short

  • Criminal record: The portal of Bangladesh Police says the certificate is issued from the District or Metropolitan Police for the applicant's present address (an embassy page says permanent address) and lists a fee of 1500 taka, while an embassy page gives 500 taka, and we do not know which applies to a person in Spain; we found no page stating a validity, so the clock below uses Spain's six months.
  • Birth and marriage: We could not read the Registrar General's site; the apostille portal's table lists the notary, the Law Ministry and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for birth certificates, and we found no page from the Embassy in Madrid in English on copies for people born in Bangladesh.
  • Apostille: Bangladesh is party to the Apostille Convention (entry into force 30 March 2025) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the competent authority, with a digital e-Apostille service; the HCCH page lists objections by other states, we did not see Spain among them, and the Embassy in Madrid's fee page says in Bengali that no verification or Embassy attestation is needed if the E-APOSTILLE was done online.
  • Translation: We found no official page saying which language a Bangladeshi certificate must be translated into for Spain, or whether it needs translation; Spain's order says "traducido" for the criminal record and "traducido en su caso" for the birth certificate.
  • Order: Our arithmetic, not an official rule: request first the documents that need an apostille and a sworn translation, then the criminal record certificate, so that you can finish its apostille and translation while it is still valid; the clock below gives the dates.

Each line sums up a section below. The sources are in that section.

Last checked: 20 October 2026. Check the official page: sede.mjusticia.gob.es.

CiviqPass is an independent service.

1. Criminal record certificate

The online Police Clearance Certificate portal of Bangladesh Police (pcc.police.gov.bd) says that Police Clearance is issued through that system to only Bangladeshi nationals going or residing abroad and foreign nationals returned abroad after their stay in Bangladesh.[1] Its application steps say the police clearance will be issued from the District or Metropolitan Police under which the applicant's present address belongs.[2] The Hague Embassy page says the certificate for Bangladeshi citizens residing abroad is issued by the concerned police station in Bangladesh corresponding to the applicant's permanent address.[3] The portal's terms say the applicant's present address must be under the same Metropolitan or District police jurisdiction as the permanent or emergency contact address mentioned in the applicant's passport.[4] We found no official page naming one national office that issues a single certificate for the whole country.

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

Sources (4)
  1. pcc.police.gov.bd, Terms and conditions, point 5Official wording5. Police Clearance is issued through this system to only Bangladeshi nationals going or residing abroad and foreign nationals returned abroad after their stay in Bangladesh.
  2. pcc.police.gov.bd, How to Apply, Step 3Official wordingThe police clearance will be issued from District or Metropolitan Police under which your present address belong to.
  3. hague.mofa.gov.bd, Police Clearance Certificate (PCC), introductionOfficial wordingis issued by the concerned Police Station in Bangladesh corresponding to the applicant’s permanent address
  4. pcc.police.gov.bd, Terms and conditions, point 2Official wording2. The present address of the applicant must be under the same Metropolitan/District police jurisdiction as permanent or emergency contact address mentioned in the applicant's passport.

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

We could not read the birth registration website of the Registrar General (bdris.gov.bd), which refused our request. We therefore found no page from the issuing office on ordering a copy from abroad for a person born in Bangladesh.

The Embassy of Bangladesh in The Hague says that a Birth Registration Certificate is an important official document issued by the Office of the Registrar of Births and Deaths.[1] It advises applicants to check whether a birth registration already exists with a 17-digit Birth Registration Number.[2] This is the page of an embassy in another country. The pages of the Madrid Embassy on birth certificates that we found are in Bengali and we did not quote them: ask the Embassy whether it can help a person born in Bangladesh to get a copy.

A notice on the page of the Embassy of Bangladesh in Ankara, dated 29 March 2023, lists in its fee table the issuance of a copy of the original certificate both in Bengali and English.[3] We found no page saying the same applies in Spain.

For the apostille, the e-Apostille portal's table has columns for the issuing or first verifying authority, the controlling ministry and the competent authority (MOFA).[4] For birth certificates its row names the notary, the Law Ministry and MOFA, with a different attestation for Cox's Bazar district.[5] For marriage certificates and nikahnama it lists the notary, the Law Ministry and MOFA.[6]

Spain asks for the birth certificate of the country of origin, legalised and translated where needed.[7] If you are married, it also asks for the marriage certificate of the country where the marriage took place.[8]

Validity. We found no official Bangladeshi page that states a validity for a birth or marriage certificate. Spain's order says all documents must be in force when you apply.[9]

Sources (9)
  1. hague.mofa.gov.bd, Birth Registration, Safekeeping of Birth CertificateOfficial wordingA Birth Registration Certificate is an important official document issued by the Office of the Registrar of Births and Deaths, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh .
  2. hague.mofa.gov.bd, Birth Registration, Important Notice Before ApplyingOfficial wordingapplicants are advised to check whether a birth registration already exists with a 17-digit Birth Registration Number (BRN) .
  3. ankara.mofa.gov.bd, Birth & Death Registration (English), fee table, row 7Official wording7. Issuance of copy of original certificate both in Bengali and English
  4. mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd, Document Certification Authorities, table headerOfficial wordingDocument/Certificate Issuing Authority/First Verifying Authority Controlling Authority or Ministry Competent Authority (MOFA)
  5. mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd, Document Certification Authorities, row 10Official wording10. Birth Certificates Notary Law Ministry (but in case of Cox’s Bazar district, the certificate must be attested from the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Cox’s Bazar) MOFA
  6. mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd, Document Certification Authorities, row 12Official wording12. Marriage Certificate/Nikahnama Notary Law Ministry MOFA
  7. Orden JUS/1625/2016, anexo 1.aOfficial wordingCertificado de nacimiento del país de origen debidamente legalizado y traducido en su caso, conforme los Convenios Internacionales.
  8. Orden JUS/1625/2016, anexo 1.aOfficial wordingEn el caso de personas casadas certificado de matrimonio del país de celebración, debidamente traducido y legalizado en su caso.
  9. Orden JUS/1625/2016, anexo, 4. Validez de los documentosOfficial wordingTodos los documentos deberán estar en vigor en el momento de la solicitud.

3. Apostille and legalisation

The status table of the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) lists Bangladesh with an accession dated 29 July 2024 and entry into force on 30 March 2025.[1] The HCCH notifications page for Bangladesh lists objections to the accession; for example, Germany's says it raises an objection in accordance with Article 12(2) of the Convention.[2] We did not see Spain among the states listed there when we read the page on 20 October 2026, and we do not say what an objection means for any state.

Bangladesh's e-Apostille page says that, with Bangladesh joining the Convention on 29 July 2024, the country offers a secure, fully digital system for apostillizing documents.[3] It says a Bangladesh apostille will be enforceable for the 114 countries on its list and that, of 127 signatory countries, 114 accepted Bangladesh's accession and apostilled documents from Bangladesh;[4] the numbered list includes Spain.[5] The page also says that some countries have raised concerns, including France, Germany and the Netherlands, and that Bangladesh continues to work on broader acceptance, especially for marriage certificates.[6]

The HCCH page lists the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Bangladesh as the designated competent authority[7] and gives the e-Register address mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd.[8] The e-Apostille page says citizens and organizations can access the service via the MyGov platform.[9] It says the process is completed within five days;[10] it does not say whether these are calendar or working days.

The same portal's table has a note that all documents require MOFA attestation.[11] Its row for character certificates, nationality certificates, experience certificates and National ID card documents lists the notary, the Law Ministry and MOFA.[12] The table has no row naming a police clearance certificate, and we found no official page saying which steps come before the apostille of a police clearance certificate or whether the table's steps come before the e-Apostille: ask the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The consular fee table of the Embassy of Bangladesh in Madrid, updated 2 June 2025, lists "Legalization" of documents including marriage, birth and death certificates and police clearance, at 20 euros (7 working days) or 30 euros (2 working days), the fee being for the first five pages.[13] A note on the same page says to send your Bangladeshi documents first to the Embassy's email for verification before legalisation.[14] The Bengali note printed before it on the same page adds that if the E-APOSTILLE was done online, the verification and the Embassy's attestation are not needed.[15]

The Spanish Embassy in Dhaka says on its English page that documents apostilled by the authorities of the issuing country do not require any additional procedure from the Consular Office and may be presented directly in Spain.[16] It adds that the apostille is the exclusive competence of the authorities of the country issuing the document.[17] It says the legalisation or apostille has no expiry date, but if the document has a time-limited validity, that of the legalisation or apostille is equally limited.[18] Spain's Foreign Ministry says, about its own diplomatic legalisation, that legalisation has no expiry date but, if the document has a validity period, legalisation does not extend it.[19]

Spain's Foreign Ministry says documents from countries that signed the Apostille Convention are not legalised.[20] The Ministry of Justice warning calls legalisation of foreign documents an essential requirement for accepting them.[21]

Dates. The Spanish Embassy in Dhaka's page is dated 28 September 2022, earlier than the accession dates above, and states general rules.[22] We found no Spanish page naming Bangladesh on the apostille: ask the registry or the Spanish consulate.

Sources (22)
  1. hcch.net, Status table, Convention 12, BangladeshOfficial wordingBangladesh 29-VII-2024 A** 30-III-2025
  2. hcch.net, Bangladesh, notifications of type ObjectionOfficial wordingthe Federal Republic of Germany raises an objection to the accession of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh in accordance with Article 12(2) of the Convention.
  3. mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd, e-Apostille, About e-ApostilleOfficial wordingWith Bangladesh joining the Apostille Convention on 29 July 2024, the country offers a secure, fully digital system for apostillizing documents.
  4. mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd, Recognized by 114 CountriesOfficial wordingBangladesh Apostille will be enforceable for the following 114 countries: As of now, among 127 countries that are signatories to the Hague Apostille Convention, 114 countries accepted Bangladesh accession and apostilled documents from Bangladesh.
  5. mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd, Recognized by 114 Countries, listOfficial wording99. Spain
  6. mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd, e-Apostille, Implementation and International AcceptanceOfficial wordingsome countries have raised concerns, including France, Germany, and the Netherlands. Bangladesh continues to work on gaining broader international acceptance, especially for marriage certificates.
  7. hcch.net, Bangladesh - Competent AuthorityOfficial wordingDesignated Competent Authority(ies): Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Bangladesh
  8. hcch.net, Bangladesh - Competent Authority, Useful LinksOfficial wordingE-Register: https://mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd
  9. mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd, e-Apostille, Access to e-Apostille ServicesOfficial wordingCitizens and organizations can access the e-Apostille services via the MyGov platform.
  10. mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd, e-Apostille, Key FeaturesOfficial wordingTime and Cost Efficiency: Process completed within five days.
  11. mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd, Document Certification Authorities, noteOfficial wording* All documents require MOFA attestation
  12. mofa-servicedirectory.apostille.mygov.bd, Document Certification Authorities, row 26Official wording26. Character Certificates/ Nationality Certificates/ Experience Certificates/National ID Card documents Notary Law Ministry MOFA
  13. madrid.mofa.gov.bd, Consular Fee, row 2Official wordingLegalization: (Marriage/Unmarried Certificate, Nika Namah, Birth/Death Certificate, Divorce Certificate Police Clearance, Academic Certificate, etc) 20€ (1st five pages) (7 working days) 30€ (1st five pages) (2 working days)
  14. madrid.mofa.gov.bd, Consular Fee, noteOfficial wordingBefore legalize your Bangladeshi documents please send it first to Embassy's email (bdembm01@gmail.com) for verification.
  15. madrid.mofa.gov.bd, Consular Fee, Bengali note before the English noteOfficial wording(অনলাইনে E-APOSTILLE করা থাকলে ভেরিফিকেশন ও দূতাবাসের সত্যায়ন প্রয়োজন নেই)
  16. exteriores.gob.es, Hague Apostille and Legalization, Obtaining an apostille for foreign documentsOfficial wordingDocuments apostilled by the authorities of the issuing country do not require any additional procedure from the Consular Office, and may be presented directly in Spain.
  17. exteriores.gob.es, Hague Apostille and LegalizationOfficial wordingThe Hague apostille is the exclusive competence of the authorities of the country issuing the document.
  18. exteriores.gob.es, Hague Apostille and LegalizationOfficial wordingThe legalization or apostille has no expiry date, but if the document has a time-limited validity, that of the legalization or apostille shall be equally limited.
  19. exteriores.gob.es, Legalización diplomática - 5. Práctica de la legalizaciónOfficial wordingLa legalización carece de fecha de caducidad. No obstante, si el documento tiene un plazo de validez, la legalización no implica su extensión.
  20. exteriores.gob.es, Legalización diplomática > Exenciones a la legalización diplomática > 2.1 ConvenOfficial wordingNo se legalizan documentos de países firmantes del Convenio de la Apostilla
  21. Advertencia legalización y apostilla (Ministerio de Justicia), advertenciaOfficial wordingLa legalización de los documentos extranjeros aportados a la solicitud de nacionalidad española por residencia constituye un requisito esencial para la aceptación de dicha documentación
  22. exteriores.gob.es, Hague Apostille and Legalization, Obtaining an apostille for foreign documentsOfficial wordingDocuments apostilled by the authorities of the issuing country do not require any additional procedure from the Consular Office, and may be presented directly in Spain.

4. Translation into Spanish

We found no official Bangladeshi or Spanish page saying which language a Bangladeshi certificate must be translated into for Spain, or whether it needs translation. Spain's order says "traducido" for the criminal record and "traducido en su caso" for the birth certificate.[1][2]

The Spanish Ministry of Justice warning says translation is done or checked at Spanish consulates abroad or at the consular offices in Spain of the document's country of origin, and that the documents must then be legalised. It adds that a sworn translator-interpreter named by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can do the translation or check.[3][4]

Sources (4)
  1. Orden JUS/1625/2016, anexo 1.aOfficial wordingCertificado de antecedentes penales del país de origen debidamente legalizado y traducido conforme a los Convenios Internacionales.
  2. Orden JUS/1625/2016, anexo 1.aOfficial wordingCertificado de nacimiento del país de origen debidamente legalizado y traducido en su caso, conforme los Convenios Internacionales.
  3. Advertencia legalización y apostilla (Ministerio de Justicia), advertenciaOfficial wordingha de realizarse o cotejarse en las Oficinas Consulares de España en el extranjero o en las del país de origen del documento en España y posteriormente deben legalizarse
  4. Advertencia legalización y apostilla (Ministerio de Justicia), advertenciaOfficial wordingExiste la posibilidad de que la traducción o cotejo de esta la lleve a cabo un intérprete-traductor jurado nombrado por el Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores

5. Consulates in Spain

The Embassy of Bangladesh in Madrid gives its address as Calle Manuel Marañon 13, 28043 Madrid, España.[1] It lists the emails mission.madrid@mofa.gov.bd and consularmadrid@gmail.com, the second marked for consular related communication.[2] Its consular service hour page, dated 3 February 2023, gives document submission from 10.00 am to 1.00 pm Monday to Friday, with delivery from 3.30 pm to 5.00 pm Monday to Thursday and from 4.00 pm to 5.00 pm on Friday.[3]

We could not read the Embassy's Barcelona consular service notice, which returned an error, and we found no official page in English listing consulates general or honorary consulates of Bangladesh in Spain: ask the Embassy.

Sources (3)
  1. madrid.mofa.gov.bd, Embassy Location & Phone NumberOfficial wordingEmbassy of Bangladesh Embajada de Bangladesh Calle Manuel Marañon 13 28043, Madrid, España.
  2. madrid.mofa.gov.bd, Embassy Location & Phone NumberOfficial wordingEmbajada: mission.madrid@mofa.gov.bd , consularmadrid@gmail.com (for consular related communication)
  3. madrid.mofa.gov.bd, Consular Service HourOfficial wordingMonday- Thursday Document Submit: 10.00 am - 1.00 pm Delivery: 3.30 pm - 5.00 pm Friday Document Submit: 10.00 am - 1.00pm Delivery: 4.00 pm - 5.00pm

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]

Our arithmetic, not an official rule. The sources above fix how long a document stays valid, not the order in which you request things. If the validity counts from the day of issue, and the apostille and a sworn translation take time afterwards, the request date matters most for the documents with the shortest validity. Type a date in the clock below to see when your criminal record certificate stops being valid, then count back the time the apostille and the translation take in your case.

  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.
Sources (5)
  1. Orden JUS/1625/2016, anexo, 4. Validez de los documentosOfficial wordingTodos los documentos deberán estar en vigor en el momento de la solicitud.
  2. Orden JUS/1625/2016, anexo, 4. Validez de los documentosOfficial wordingPara determinar la validez en el caso de los certificados se atenderá al plazo de vigencia que conste en el propio documento.
  3. Orden JUS/1625/2016, anexo, 4. Validez de los documentosOfficial wordingEn el caso de certificados de antecedentes penales en los que no conste plazo de validez, se entenderá que tienen una vigencia de seis meses a contar desde su expedición.
  4. exteriores.gob.es, Legalización diplomática - 5. Práctica de la legalizaciónOfficial wordingLa legalización carece de fecha de caducidad. No obstante, si el documento tiene un plazo de validez, la legalización no implica su extensión.
  5. sede.mjusticia.gob.es, página del trámiteOfficial wordingDispone de dos meses desde la fecha de creación para completar su solicitud, si pasado ese plazo no ha firmado y presentado su solicitud, se borrará de manera automática.

Next steps

When to see a lawyer

  • A document is refused and you do not know why.
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The nationality file, step by step

Your file silent after a year

Years to Spanish nationality by country

Criminal record certificate from Bangladesh: 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

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What is inside

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.