Criminal record certificate from Gambia for a Spanish nationality file: who issues it and how long it stays valid
What the official pages of Gambia 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: We found no Gambian page naming who issues the criminal record certificate: the Foreign Ministry lists a Certificate of Character, the Madrid honorary consulate gives that as the Gambian title of the certificate it translates and legalises, and the consulate also lists a consular good conduct certificate for Spanish nationality that we cannot say is the one Spain means; the Foreign Ministry's table gives 200 dalasi per page for authenticating a Certificate of Character, but we found no fee for issuing it and no validity, so the clock uses six months.
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Last checked: 20 October 2026. Check the official page: sede.mjusticia.gob.es.
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1. Criminal record certificate
The Gambian Foreign Ministry's page on authentication of documents has a table whose cost column is headed "Cost (Dalasi) per page".[1] The table lists a "Certificate of Character" at 200[2] and, as a separate line, a "Police Report (lost document etc.)" at 250.[3] The page does not say which body issues either document, or whether the Certificate of Character is the criminal record certificate.
The page of the Honorary Consulate of The Gambia in Madrid says that at the consulate it is possible to obtain the translation into Spanish and legalisation, for use in Spain, of documents issued in Gambia.[4] Its list includes a "Certificado de antecentes penales" (the page's spelling), which it says is called "Certificate of Character" in Gambia.[5] We found no Gambian page that names the body issuing the Certificate of Character, says how a person living in Spain requests it (online, through the consulate or by power of attorney) or gives a fee for issuing it (the 200 dalasi above is the Ministry's authentication fee per page): ask the consulate.
Consular certificate of conduct. The same consulate's page says consular certificates can be requested at the consulate[6] and lists among them a "Certificado de inscripción Consular y buena conducta para obtención de nacionalidad española" (Consular Registration and Good Conduct Certificate for the purpose of obtaining Spanish nationality).[7] It says that for these certificates you must in all cases provide a Gambian passport or, failing that, another official Gambian document proving the applicant's identity.[8] It adds that, depending on each case, the applicant will be asked for specific documents, witnesses and one or more personal interviews,[9] and that in most cases the consular certificate must be legalised by Spain's Foreign Ministry to take effect before the Spanish authorities.[10] Spain's order says the criminal record certificate may be replaced by the Certificado Consular de Conducta, as established by the Foreign Ministry, translated and legalised.[11] Spain's Foreign Ministry lists certificados de buena conducta among its examples of consular documents,[12] and says documents issued by foreign representations in Spain about facts within their consular district must be legalised by its Legalisation Service to be valid in Spain.[13] We found no page saying that this Gambian certificate is the one Spain's order means, that it is accepted for a nationality file, or what it costs and how long it takes: ask the consulate and the registry.
Validity. We found no Gambian page that states a validity for the Certificate of Character or for the consular certificate. Spain's order says all documents must be in force when you apply,[14] that the validity of certificates follows the term printed on the document itself,[15] and that a criminal record certificate with no stated validity counts as valid for six months from issue.[16] The clock below therefore uses six months, and only if your certificate states no validity.
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.[17][18]
Sources (18)
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