Last Updated on May 2, 2026 by Bruno Bianchi
Question
Hey everyone, just got a quick question about the apostille/sworn translation of police report for the Spain Digital Nomad Visa – if I need 2 (lived in both UK and UAE in the past 2 years), would I need to get the police report apostilled in both countries, and then once again by the Spanish embassy before I get a sworn translation?
Answers
These are the answers of Spainguru’s Spain Digital Nomad Visa group members:
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Start the Moving to Spain Hub →“You do need both, the UK one needs the apostille and the UAE one needs legalization.”
“Hi. U.K. is part of The Hague apostille agreement. So you get the ACRO plus apostille. The UAE isn’t part of The Hague apostille agreement. So you’ll need the police report then to get it legalised by MOFA and then the Spanish embassy. Then both need sworn translation.”
“Would you know if it would be possible to run the paperwork for the UAE from Spain? i.e. get the police clearance through the UAE embassy, and then have it verified by the Spanish authority somewhere in Spain? Thanks.”
“For UAE you can apply Police clearance through Dubai police application then you can apply for MOFA online after you can book appointment for legalisation for Spain embassy Abu-Dhabi.”
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Explore Cities →“Thank you – would you happen to know if it would be possible to get the police clearance if we are not currently in Dubai? i.e. getting the police clearance via the UAE embassy in either Spain or UK as it would be quite a hassle to return to Dubai just for the police clearance.”
“Download Dubai Police application and apply police clearance as outside of Dubai and you will get easily.”
Conclusion
According to Spainguru community members, if you’re applying for the Spain Digital Nomad Visa and have lived in both the UK and UAE within the past two years, you will need two police clearance certificates, each authenticated differently:
- The UK police certificate (ACRO) must be apostilled, as the UK is a member of The Hague Apostille Convention.
- The UAE police clearance must go through legalization, including verification by MOFA (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) and the Spanish embassy in the UAE, since the UAE is not part of the Hague Convention.
After obtaining both certificates, sworn Spanish translations are required. Fortunately, you do not need to return to Dubai to obtain the UAE clearance; it can be requested online via the Dubai Police app, and then legalized remotely.
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