What is the ACRO Police Certificate?
The ACRO Police Certificate is the official document issued by the ACRO Criminal Records Office — a unit of the City of London Police — to evidence an individual's criminal record status held by UK police. It is the certificate used internationally when UK citizens or UK residents need to demonstrate their criminal record (or lack of it) to foreign authorities.
For Spain specifically, ACRO is the certificate the Spanish administration accepts to evidence your UK record. It is distinct from:
- The DBS check (Disclosure and Barring Service), used for UK employment vetting at Basic, Standard or Enhanced level. DBS checks are not designed for use abroad and Spain does not accept them.
- A Subject Access Request, which gives you a copy of personal data held about you under data-protection law. It is not a certified summary of your criminal record.
- A police caution letter or local police statement, which is not equivalent to a formal certificate and is rejected by Spanish authorities.
If you are unsure which document you have in hand, check whether it was issued by ACRO Criminal Records Office — that's the one Spain accepts.
When you need an ACRO certificate translated for Spain
The most common situations in which we receive ACRO certificates for translation:
- Spanish nationality by residency. Files submitted to the Spanish Ministry of Justice require a criminal record certificate from your country of origin and from any country where you've resided during the past five years. If you spent that period in the UK, the ACRO certificate covers the British evidence.
- Initial residency authorisations and NIE/TIE renewals for UK citizens regularising their status under the post-Brexit framework, or for those applying for non-lucrative, digital nomad, or work-based residency permits.
- Regulated professions in Spain: NHS-trained healthcare professionals, qualified teachers moving to Spanish schools or universities, lawyers crossing into Spanish practice, financial services and roles involving minors — all require evidence of clean record.
- International adoption procedures handled by Spanish Civil Registries when adopting parents are based in the UK.
- Public-sector competitive exams in Spain (oposiciones) when applicants have lived in the UK during the period the administration requires you to evidence.
- Real estate and corporate matters where Spanish notaries or registries request a clean-record declaration with supporting documentary evidence.
Ordering the right ACRO certificate
ACRO's online portal lets you request a Police Certificate as the primary product. When ordering specifically for use in Spain, keep in mind:
- The certificate is issued on paper. ACRO does not offer a digital apostille for this product (see below); the apostille is a separate, later step handled by the FCDO.
- Consider the standard vs premium turnaround. ACRO offers a standard service (typically around 10 working days from receipt of all supporting documents) and a premium service (typically around 2 working days). For time-sensitive Spanish procedures, the premium option is often worth the extra cost.
ACRO will require proof of identity and proof of your past UK address(es). The certificate is issued in your full legal name as held in their records, which is normally the name on your passport.
Apostille: the paper route through the FCDO — no e-Apostille shortcut
Unlike some other UK public documents, an ACRO certificate cannot be apostilled electronically. The UK government's own official guidance on getting documents legalised expressly excludes ACRO police certificates for England and Wales from the e-Apostille service, alongside General Register Office certificates and DBS checks.
The only valid route is sending the paper ACRO certificate to the FCDO Legalisation Office in Milton Keynes, which offers a standard postal service and a premium same-day service for in-person submissions. The result is a physical apostille stamp affixed to the original document — that's the version you should send us for the sworn translation.
Factor FCDO turnaround into your planning: add it to the ACRO certificate's own timeline and to the sworn translation's, to work out when your full file will be ready.
The sworn translation step
Once your ACRO certificate carries the paper apostille from the FCDO, we translate the entire document into Spanish: certificate content, apostille seal, all relevant codes and statements. Our sworn translation:
- Reproduces the full content of the original, including ACRO's seal, certificate number, date of issue, and the statement of record (the section that confirms whether or not entries are held against your name).
- Translates the apostille fully, since Spanish authorities expect both the underlying certificate and the apostille to be readable in Spanish.
- Adds the official sworn translator's certification: signed declaration, MAEC accreditation number, and qualified digital signature compliant with the MAEC Order AUC/213/2025 of 26 February 2025.
- Reflects any specific UK terminology (cautions, fixed penalty notices, spent convictions, conditional discharges) with a translator's note where Spanish administrative readers might otherwise struggle to interpret the local context.
Delivery format and timing
We deliver the translation as a PDF signed electronically with the sworn translator's qualified digital signature. This format has full legal validity before all Spanish administrations. If your specific procedure requires a paper copy with handwritten signature and stamp, we send it by registered mail after the digital delivery.
The standard turnaround for a single ACRO certificate (typically one page) is shown exactly in the quoter alongside the price, before payment. Urgent options are available with a specific tariff. All turnaround times are calculated against the Spanish working calendar and are guaranteed, not estimated.
Common pitfalls to avoid
- Spelling of names. If your name on the ACRO certificate doesn't match exactly your Spanish NIE or residence card — different name order, missing accents, hyphens treated differently, middle names dropped — we add a translator's note linking the two identities. This prevents the Spanish administration from rejecting the file over an apparent inconsistency between the certificate's name and your Spanish records.
- Validity expiring during the process. If your ACRO was issued more than two months ago and you're starting a multi-step procedure (apostille + translation + submission, often weeks total), request a fresh certificate now. Otherwise you may need to redo the whole flow mid-procedure when the Spanish administration rejects an expired document.
- Wrong document type. A DBS check is not an ACRO certificate. A police local-station letter is not an ACRO certificate. Make sure the source document is issued by ACRO Criminal Records Office — Spanish authorities are strict on this point.
- Apostille from the wrong issuer. Only the UK FCDO in Milton Keynes issues a Hague Apostille valid for Spain on an ACRO certificate. A notarised statement, a solicitor's certification, or a stamp from any other UK body is not an apostille and is not accepted by Spain.
Spanish bodies that accept our translation of an ACRO certificate
- Ministry of Justice (Spanish nationality by residency)
- Sub-delegation of the Government and Immigration Offices (NIE, TIE, residency authorisations including the post-Brexit framework)
- Civil Registry (international adoptions, registrations)
- Universities and regulated professional bodies (staff selection, professional registration)
- General State Administration (competitive exams, public-sector recruitment)
- Regional governments (healthcare, teaching and social-services posts requiring background check)
- Notaries (deeds with clean-record declarations)
Related pages
- Sworn translation of a criminal record certificate — the general page covering all foreign criminal record certificates beyond the UK ACRO (FBI, RCMP, Garda Vetting, etc.).
- Birth certificate — companion document for nationality and registration procedures.
- University degree — companion document for professional recognition (homologación).