Translation by jury in Spain: how to order and check it yourself

juror translation: 15-step scheme

1. Decide if you need a juror's translation.

   Spanish authorities work castellan: article 15 Ley 39/2015 refers to it as the language of public administration procedures and allows for a second official language for bodies located in the autonomous community. Conditions.

   • Has written down the department and the procedure by which I file the documents.
   • Checked translation language in the agency ’s requirements (tradección jurada, tradección official)
   • Split documents in Spanish and Catalan: not needed or required by a separate rule

   Where: page of the agency procedure, Hoja 61Duration: pending collection of documentsCost: free of charge

   When you need help, you can get a document from Catalan to an authority outside Catalonia or to UGE in Madrid, and you can check with the agency or the lawyer in advance.

2. First the apostille, then the translation.

   The apostille confirms the original, the translation confirms the accuracy of the text. The translator translates the entire document with stamp marks and the apostille itself, so the order is: correct the original, put the apostille, send it to the translation. The translator cannot change, sign or seal the original: this is the direct word on the MFA's legalization page.

   • Checked that the original wasn't wrong with the names and dates.
   • Apostille or legalized in the country of extradition
   • I'm gonna get the document with the apostille and all the sheets.

   Where: authority of the country of issueDuration: before transfer orderValue: duties of the country of issue

   When assistance is needed, it is not clear whether apostille is required in a specific document. Do you need apostille?.

3. Make a list of translation documents

   The whole list depends on the procedure: collect it before the first letter to the interpreter to obtain one estimate for the entire package.

   • Checked the checklist of his procedure
   • Noted documents with short validity periods (e.g. certificate of non-judiciality)
   • Checked out any bilingual documents

   Where: Agency requirementsDuration: pending request for estimatesCost: free of charge

   When assistance is needed: a package of large and varied grounds for residence permits requires different documents. The Board of Auditors has also reviewed the status of the claim for residence permits..

4. Find an interpreter on the MFA's list in a couple of languages

   The Officiala de Interpretación de Lenguas publishes a list of Translators with the languages they are admitted to (article 14 of RD 724/2020). Search is available on exteriores.gob.es: Buscador de tradeors e interpretes jurados. Select the original language; contact information is available only for those who have informed them themselves.

   • Opened Buscador on exteriores.gob.es and chose the language
   • I've written several contacts
   • The Generalitat (llengua.gencat.cat) registry was opened for Catalan.

   Where: exteriores.gob.es, Buscador STijDuration: on search dayCost: free of charge

   When you need help, you can work with a translator from another province, and you can work with a translator from another province, and the translation is available throughout Spain.

5. Check the number and the interpreter's details.

   Each juror is entered into a single register and has a number (art. 13 RD 724/2020) and the law indicates the name, language or language and number (art. 18). If you order through an agency, ask who will sign and seal the person and check the list.

   • Found the interpreter's name on the MFA's list.
   • I made sure the tolerance language matched my document.
   • Asked me to give you the number of the interpreter before the payment.

   Where: Buscador STijDuration: until paymentCost: free of charge

6. Request estimates

   The jury appoints the fee freely (art. 16 RD 724/2020), the Official de Interpretación de Lenguas does not intercede in orders, the price depends on the language, volume, reading, urgency and format of the extradition, and the amount is not given by the official source, so compare the estimates by the same set.

   • Sended the same list to two or three translators
   • Clarify unit of calculation and what is included in the price: copies, electronic version, delivery
   • Received estimate and time in writing

   Where: e-mail interpreterDuration: before orderCost: estimated by interpreter

7. Consider the text: scan or original

   A copy of the original, sealed and dated on each page (article 18 RD 724/2020), is attached to the translation. The translator usually works in a scanner and, as he prepares the copy, decides himself. Whether he needs the original in his hands, specify before ordering.

   • I did a reading scan of all pages, revolutions, seals and apostilles.
   • Asked if you needed the original for the reconciliation.
   • Send only those documents that need translation

   Where: by agreement with the interpreterDuration: OrderCost: normally included in the estimates

8. Agree on a time frame

   There is no official deadline for the translation of the jury: it is called an interpreter; plan from the date of delivery back and take into account documents with limited validity so that they are not obsolete while the apostille and the translation are in progress.

   • I know the date of the cita or the deadline for delivery.
   • Got a date from the translator.
   • Left a margin for error correction.

   Where: Agreement with the interpreterDuration: Name of interpreterCost: urgency may cost more

9. Select format: paper or electronic signature

   Since March 8, 2025, Orden AUC/213/025 has been in operation: the translator can certify the translation with a qualified electronic signature, which covers the original and the translation together, usually in PDF (PadES) format. The signature is checked on valide.redsara.es. A paper translation with a live signature and a stamp is not cancelled.

   • I figured I'd give it online through the sede or personally on paper.
   • For online download, he ordered an electronic transfer to PDF
   • For application to the extrandjería or consulate, specify whether it accepts an electronic translation or orders a paper

   Where: Orden AUC/213/025, valide.redsara.esDuration: OrderCost: estimated

   When you need help, you send it to the Spanish Consulate abroad, the requirements of the consulate are different, check it on the page of the consulate.

10. Check out the translation

    The translator is responsible for the accuracy of the text, but a typing in the name or date is easier to catch than the agency. Check the translation with the original and passport before delivery, while the correction takes a day, not requerimiento.

    • The names of the Latin woman match the foreign passport.
    • The dates, document numbers and amounts match the original
    • There's a signature, a stamp with a number, a guarantee and a copy of the original on every page.
    • Apostilles, stamps and negotiable sheets translated

    Where: at home, before deliveryDuration: Immediately after receiptCost: free of charge

11. Translation made abroad

    Article 17 of RD 724/2020 recognizes official translations made or accepted as their Spanish embassy or consulate and transfers of the consulate of a foreign State in Spain.

    • I found out who made the translation: Spanish Consulate, my country Consulate or local interpreter.
    • Checked Hoja 61 for his option.
    • If I doubt it, I'll order a translation from a juror in Spain.

    Where: Consulate, MFA of the country of transferDuration: pending submissionValue: Consulate and MFA duties

    When you need help, you already have a transfer from abroad, and the Spanish agency doesn't take it.

12. Russian and Ukrainian: names and transliteration

    The same name may be written differently by a Latin woman in a foreign passport, old passport, diploma and bank certificate. The translator transmits the original text rather than choosing the correct option. Give him a copy of the passport page and ask for the use of the writing from it.

    • Passed the Latin-language page of the foreign passport to the translator
    • He warned me about changing my last name or patronymic and attached the change of name document.
    • Checked that NIE and TIE (if any) match the translation

    Where: When ordering a transferDuration: before translation beginsCost: free of charge

    When you need help, the family has different transliterations or family names, and it's better to decide with a lawyer or a gestator before you file.

13. How many translations are in effect

    The Ministry of Science, on the website on translation for homologation, explicitly states that translations have no expiry date; if the document itself is "old" for the agency (injustice certificate, income certificate), the new document will require a new translation.

    • Checked the validity of each document in the requirements of the procedure
    • I'm storing paper translations and PDF for the following procedures

    Where: Agency requirementsDuration: DocumentCost: free of charge

    When you need help, see the following: Certificate of indignity for residence.

14. Give me the translation along with the original.

    Translation does not replace document: the agency looks at the original with the apostille and the translation together. When you personally present the originals and copies in Barcelona, download the originals and translations online unless the procedure requires otherwise.

    • Added the original, apostille and a single set
    • I've got copies in case the original gets back in the wrong place.
    • Saved an electronic signature PDF for online distribution.

    Where: extranjería, UGE, Registro Civil, ConsulateDuration: on the date of submissionCost: procedure duty

    When you need help, see the following: Document reception authorities in Barcelona.

15. Final check before delivery

    Most of the claims are repeated for translation. Follow this list for the last time before the cata or shipping.

    • Apostille is delivered before translation and translated itself
    • The translator is on the MFA's list with the right language.
    • Translation made with a current version of the document
    • E-translation not printed or re-saved: signature only lives in original PDF

    Where: at homeDuration: days before deliveryCost: free of charge

    When assistance is needed, the agency has already sent a request for translation. How to Answer Requerimiento.