Police & residence certificates

Apostille for a police clearance certificate

Work permits, residence visas, adoption and licensing abroad ask for a police clearance certificate with an apostille. The certificate is issued centrally in most countries, is only accepted for a few months, and every detail has to be right the first time.

130+ issuing countries Apostille on the public documentEU ↔ EU: no apostille needed

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1
Upload a scan
We pre-check it and confirm the route
2
Verify with your phone
ID + selfie, ~3 minutes, then your quote
3
We obtain the apostille
Competent authority + sworn translation
4
Delivered
Courier worldwide or protected download

Police clearance certificates – the FBI Identity History Summary in the US, the ACRO certificate in the UK, the Führungszeugnis in Germany, the certificado de antecedentes penales in Spain and Latin America, the casier judiciaire in France, the NBI clearance in the Philippines, the adli sicil kaydı in Türkiye – are issued by a national authority and apostilled by the authority responsible for that issuer: the US Department of State for FBI results, the FCDO for ACRO, the Federal Office for Foreign Affairs for the German certificate.

Timing matters because most destinations accept a certificate that is no older than three to six months. Several countries now issue the certificate electronically with an e-apostille (Spain, Colombia, Türkiye via e-Devlet, Ukraine via Diia), which shortens the process to days.

For non-EU destinations we add a sworn translation; between EU member states we tell you whether the exemption under Regulation (EU) 2016/1191 applies to you – it does only for a certificate issued by the country of your own nationality.

Between EU member states: Exempt between EU member states only for citizens presenting a certificate from their own member state. Third-country nationals still need the apostille for EU destinations.

Also known as: Führungszeugnis (DE) · extrait de casier judiciaire (FR) · certificado de antecedentes penales (ES) · casellario giudiziale (IT) · certidão de antecedentes criminais (PT) · adli sicil kaydı (TR) · zaświadczenie o niekaralności (PL) · VOG (NL)

Who issues it, who apostilles it – by country

An apostille is always issued in the country that issued the document. The most frequent issuing countries for a police clearance certificate:

Issued in	Issued by	Apostille by
Germany	Bundesamt für Justiz (Führungszeugnis); Bürgeramt (Meldebescheinigung)	Federal Office for Foreign Affairs (BfAA) for the Führungszeugnis; state office for registration certificates
United States	FBI Identity History Summary (federal) or state police	US Department of State for FBI checks; Secretary of State for state police recordsFBI results can be ordered with the apostille through approved channelers.
United Kingdom	ACRO Police Certificate; DBS certificate	FCDO (ACRO certificates are apostilled directly)
France	Casier judiciaire national (bulletin n°3), Nantes	Chambers of notariesBulletin n°3 is issued online and free of charge.
Spain	Ministerio de Justicia – certificado de antecedentes penales	Ministerio de Justicia (often issued with the apostille in one step)
Italy	Procura della Repubblica – casellario giudiziale / carichi pendenti	Procura della Repubblica (judicial documents)
Netherlands	Justis – VOG (Verklaring Omtrent het Gedrag)	Rechtbank
Türkiye	Adli sicil kaydı via e-Devlet or courthouse	Kaymakamlık/Valilik; e-Apostil availableThe e-Devlet document with barcode can be apostilled electronically.
India	Police Clearance Certificate from the Regional Passport Office or state police	MEA after state Home Department attestation
Philippines	NBI Clearance	DFA
Pakistan	Police Character Certificate (district police / SSP office)	MOFA after Home Department attestation
Ukraine	Ministry of Internal Affairs – certificate of no criminal record	Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine
Poland	Krajowy Rejestr Karny (KRK)	MSZ
Canada	RCMP certified criminal record check	Global Affairs Canada
Australia	AFP National Police Check	DFAT
Brazil	Polícia Federal – certidão de antecedentes	Any authorised cartório
Mexico	Carta de no antecedentes penales (state or federal)	State government or Secretaría de Gobernación
Colombia	Policía Nacional – certificado de antecedentes (online)	Cancillería (e-apostille)
China	Public Security Bureau – no criminal record certificate, notarised	MFA / provincial FAO
Russia	Ministry of Internal Affairs – certificate of no criminal record	Ministry of Internal Affairs regional offices

Show all 20 countries

Other countries: see the issuing-country guides for all 130+ Contracting States.

Who needs it

Work & residence permits

The UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the US, Canada, Australia, Germany and most of Latin America require an apostilled police certificate.

Citizenship & long-term visas

Naturalisation, golden visas and retirement visas.

Adoption & child-related roles

International adoption procedures and jobs with minors.

Professional licensing

Medical boards, teaching councils and financial regulators.

What we need from you

The original certificate, issued within the last three months (we guide you through the application, or apply on your behalf where the country allows it)
Destination country and purpose
Optional: sworn translation language

Who issues, who apostilles

Issued by: National or federal police / justice authority (FBI, ACRO, Bundesamt für Justiz, Ministerio de Justicia, casier judiciaire national, NBI …).
Apostille by: The authority responsible for federal or national documents in the issuing country – see the table below.
Translation: Most recipients require a sworn translation; Gulf states often want Arabic, Latin America Spanish or Portuguese.

Where this document usually goes

The route depends on the country pair. Popular destinations for a police clearance certificate – change the issuing country in the checker below:

Check your country pair for a police clearance certificate

Apostille, EU exemption or embassy legalisation – the answer per destination.

Issued inUsed inDocument

Choose the destination to see the exact route for a police clearance certificate issued in Germany.

Frequently asked: police clearance certificate apostille

It depends on the country. Some (Spain, Türkiye, Colombia, the UK ACRO service) allow applications by an authorised representative or online with your consent; others (the German Führungszeugnis, FBI) require you to apply personally. We guide you through the form, have the certificate sent to us, and take it to the apostille from there.

Immigration authorities generally want the national or federal certificate (FBI rather than a state police check in the US; ACRO rather than a DBS check in the UK). We tell you which one the destination lists.

The apostille does not expire, but recipients apply their own age limits – three months for many Gulf employers, six months for most immigration authorities. Order it as close to the submission as possible.

Yes. The EU exemption only covers certificates issued by the member state of the person’s own nationality. As a Turkish, Indian or US citizen you still need the apostille.

Your quote at a glance

Notaryzer service fee

Quoted before you pay

Review, submission, tracking and return shipping. You see the exact amount in a written quote – nothing is charged before you accept.

Express available. 2× faster. Priority handling at every step and same-day dispatch as soon as the result is ready. The surcharge is shown in your quote.

Notary and authority fees

Statutory fee of the issuing country’s competent authority

Fixed by that authority’s tariff; passed through 1:1 and shown as a separate line in your quote.

Turnaround: Certificate issue one day to three weeks depending on the country; apostille days to three weeks. We can combine both steps.
Competent authority: Designated authority of the issuing country (Art. 6) – see the country table
Route: Apostille on the public document

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If your document cannot be processed for reasons not attributable to you, our service fee is refunded.