Criminal record certificate from Chile for a Spanish nationality file: who issues it and how long it stays valid
What the official pages of Chile and of Spain say about the criminal record certificate: who issues it, how to ask for it from Spain, cost and time where they are stated, and how long it counts for your file, with a source under every line. Reading this page is free.
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In short
- Criminal record: The Registro Civil's Certificado de antecedentes is free if you download it from its website with a ClaveÚnica, and the Madrid and Barcelona consulates describe an online route that gives an apostilled certificate; the Foreign Ministry's page gives a validity of 30 to 60 calendar days without saying which applies for Spain, and the clock below uses 30 days.
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Last checked: 19 October 2026. Check the official page: sede.mjusticia.gob.es.
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1. Criminal record certificate
The Chilean civil registry's (Registro Civil) page on ChileAtiende about the Certificado de antecedentes says it lets you find out officially whether a person has a criminal record or is free of one.[1] The page says there are two types: one for special purposes, which serves for procedures at a public or private institution, and one for particular purposes, which it says is requested, for example, to look for work.[2] We found no official page saying which of the two Spain's registry wants: ask the Spanish registry.
Among the places to ask for it, the page lists the Registro Civil website, with a ClaveÚnica.[3] It says the certificate is free if you download it from the Registro Civil website and at the ChileAtiende Express modules.[4] For a person who is Chilean and abroad, it says to get the certificate through the consulates or online.[5]
The Foreign Ministry's page for Chileans abroad says Chilean people who are abroad can get the certificate that shows whether they have a criminal record in Chile.[6] It says to ask for it at the respective Chilean consulate or on the Registro Civil website,[7] and lists a valid identity card or passport, plus a notarial authorisation if a third party submits the request.[8] The page does not say whether a notarial authorisation made in Spain is accepted. It says the cost at the consulate depends on each consulate,[9] and that you can also get the certificate free of charge on the Registro Civil website.[10] It adds that the validation of the document depends on the certification requirements of the receiving State (consular visa, legalisation or apostille).[11]
Two Chilean consulates in Spain describe the online route. The Madrid consulate's page on Registro Civil procedures lists birth, criminal record and marriage certificates among those you can download directly from the Registro Civil website as an apostilled registry certificate,[12] and says this is a procedure that is 100% online, with an apostille that carries no consular stamp or signature.[13] The Barcelona consulate's page says these certificates can be downloaded apostilled without going to or writing to the consulate.[14] It says the online request needs a valid identity card, and also a Clave Única for criminal record certificates.[15]
If you have no valid identity card or Clave Única, the Barcelona page says the certificate can be requested through the consulate by sending a request.[16] It says the request must state the procedure, full name, RUN number, address in Spain and contact telephone, and that the consulate then downloads the certificate and sends it to the person as a PDF, so that the person then requests the apostille on the site the page links to.[17][18] The Madrid page says that if you could not get a Clave Única, even online, you should send the documents it lists,[19] among them a simple authorisation signed by you that authorises the consulate to request the certificate in your name.[20]
Validity. The Foreign Ministry's page says the criminal record certificate has a validity of between 30 and 60 calendar days, depending on the requirements of the country where you are.[21] It does not say which figure applies for Spain. The same page says you can verify the certificate's authenticity up to 60 days after purchase, using the folio number and verification code.[22] Spain's order says all documents must be in force when you apply, and that a criminal record with no stated validity counts for six months from issue.[23][24] It also says the validity printed on the certificate itself is what counts.[25] The clock below uses the shorter Chilean figure, 30 days. We could not open the Registro Civil's own website, so we did not read what the certificate itself prints: ask the registry before you rely on any date.
Written for Chileans. The ChileAtiende page addresses a person who is Chilean and abroad.[26] We found no official page for someone born in Chile who does not hold Chilean identity documents: ask the Registro Civil or the consulate.
Spain asks for the criminal record certificate of the country of origin, legalised and translated, and says that as a rule it must be issued by the competent body of that country.[27][28]
Sources (28)
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Where is my Spanish nationality file? The official ways to check it
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Years, exams and fee for Spanish nationality by country of origin: open data
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