Criminal record certificate from China for a Spanish nationality file: who issues it and how long it stays valid
What the official pages of China 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: For Chinese citizens the rules of the Ministry of Public Security say the police station of the place of household registration or of residence receives the request for the Certificate of No Criminal Record, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' FAQ says facts that occurred in China go to a notary office in China, the Hunan police page says the certificate states its own validity without giving a number, the Qingdao city page says 3 months, and the clock below uses Spain's six months only if yours states none.
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.
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1. Criminal record certificate
The rules of the Ministry of Public Security on criminal-record queries, as published on the website of the Guangdong Provincial Public Security Department, say that a Chinese citizen's request is received by the police station (派出所) of the place of household registration or of residence.[1] They say that an individual can query their own record or authorise someone else, who must have full civil capacity,[2] and that a person acting for the applicant must also submit a power of attorney and their own valid identity document.[3]
The rules say that, when a request cannot be dealt with on the spot, the office gives a receipt and finishes within 3 working days.[4] They say that, where no criminal record is found, the office issues the Certificate of No Criminal Record (无犯罪记录证明), and that, where one is found, it issues a notice that the certificate will not be issued.[5]
A page of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Justice (31 May 2024) says that the no-criminal-record certificate is mainly issued by the public security organs and that you can choose an online self-service application.[6] For that route it says the applicant must apply personally.[7] It also says the form has a certification period that defaults to the last five years, which can be changed to start at your date of birth so that the certificate covers the record from birth to the date of application.[8]
Online route, period and fee. We found no official page that says whether a person living outside China can use the online route, which period Spain expects the certificate to cover, or what fee applies to the certificate itself: ask the police station or the registry. We also found no page of the Embassy of China in Madrid or of the Consulate General in Barcelona saying that they issue the certificate.
For a Chinese citizen living abroad, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs' consular FAQ says that, when the birth, kinship or absence of a criminal record occurred in China, the person asks a notary office in China for a notarial certificate for use abroad and then obtains the apostille or consular legalisation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or of the local foreign affairs office it entrusts.[9] It says that, if the applicant cannot go back in person, another person can act for them.[10] The Embassy of China in Spain's notary page says that facts such as birth, death and absence of a criminal record that occurred in China are dealt with by notary offices in China, and those that occurred in Spain by the competent local bodies.[11] The Consulate General in Barcelona's page says the same.[12]
Which certificate Spain wants. 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.[13][14] The Spanish Consulate General in Shanghai says that, for a Chinese document to be valid before a Spanish body, it must be notarised before a Chinese notary; it speaks of Chinese documents in general.[15] We found no Spanish page saying whether the registry wants the police certificate on its own or the notarial certificate made from it: ask the registry.
Validity. The Hunan Provincial Public Security Department's page says that criminal-record certificates issued by the public security organs always state a validity period and that once it has passed the certificate has no legal effect.[16] It gives no number. A page of the Qingdao municipal government's website (questions and answers of the Municipal Public Security Bureau, 22 March 2024) says that certificates issued by the public security organs always state a validity period of 3 months and that once it has passed the certificate has no legal effect.[17] The Hunan and Qingdao pages are local, and we found no national page that states a period. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs' FAQ says that for some kinds of notarial certificate, including those on marital status and absence of a criminal record, the validity is generally 6 months and that the validity of the consular legalisation certificate corresponds to it; the sentence speaks of notarial certificates and consular legalisation and does not name the apostille.[18] The Embassy of China in Spain's notary FAQ says that notarial certificates for use in Spain generally have a validity of 3 months and that the specific validity can be asked of Spanish bodies; it speaks of notarial certificates in general and does not say whether it covers certificates notarised in China.[19] Spain's order says all documents must be in force when you apply,[20] that for certificates the validity stated in the document counts,[21] and that a criminal record certificate with no stated validity counts as valid for six months from issue.[22] The clock below uses the six months only if your certificate states no validity.[23][24]
Sources (24)
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