After the United Kingdom and the United States, India is the country I receive most enquiries from: students heading to a master's degree in Spain, engineers with a contract, families reuniting and, increasingly, remote workers applying for the digital nomad visa. They all meet the same chain of steps: attestation, MEA apostille and sworn translation into Spanish. This guide explains the chain in order and which documents go through it.
Which Indian documents does the Spanish consulate ask for?
It depends on the visa, but the list repeats itself:
- Birth certificate from the municipal corporation or the registrar, for family reunification, marriage and citizenship.
- Marriage certificate, with the registrar's stamps.
- Police clearance certificate (PCC) from the passport office or the state police, for almost every long-stay visa.
- Degrees, mark sheets and transcripts for the student visa, recognition of qualifications and professional registration.
- Employer and experience letters for work visas, the EU Blue Card and the digital nomad visa.
- Bank statements, ITR and Form 16 as proof of funds.
- Affidavits before a notary when a certificate is missing or something has to be declared (a change of name, for example).
All of them, if they are not in Spanish, are submitted with a sworn translation. The sworn translation of Indian documents page has the full table with apostille yes or no for each one.
How does the MEA apostille work?
India is party to the Hague Convention, so its public documents are legalised with an apostille rather than consular legalisation. It is issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) of the Government of India through its collection centres and authorised outsourcing agencies. Before the apostille, most documents go through prior attestation: the state education department for degrees, the Home Department for personal certificates or the chamber of commerce for commercial documents. The apostille is a sticker with a QR code attached to the document, and it is part of it: it gets translated too.
Why does the document have to be in English?
Because I translate from English into Spanish, not from Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, Gujarati or Bengali. Most Indian documents are issued in English or in a bilingual version, and I work with those directly. If yours is only in a regional language, you first need an official English version: from the issuing body itself or from a recognised translator in India, with their seal. That apostilled version is what I translate into Spanish. It is one more step, but it prevents the consulate rejecting a translation made "by ear" from an original I cannot read.
In what order is everything done?
- Obtain the original document (or the official English version, if it is in a regional language).
- Prior attestation by the relevant department.
- MEA apostille.
- Complete scan of the document with the apostille, and sworn translation into Spanish.
If you send me a document without an apostille and the consulate requires one, I tell you before I start.
How long does it take, and how do you pay from India?
A standard document is translated in 24/48 hours; a complete student visa file (with long transcripts) gets a single deadline confirmed in writing within 2 working hours. My office hours are 9:00 to 20:00 mainland Spain time, three and a half to four and a half hours behind India: if you message me mid-morning, I reply at the start of my working day. Payment is with your Indian card (Visa, Mastercard or international RuPay) through Stripe, in euros; if international payments are blocked on your card, enable them in your banking app before paying. You receive a digitally signed PDF, valid for the consulate and for the visa platform; if paper is required, I courier it to India.
And Spanish documents for use in India?
The reverse route exists too: Spanish birth or marriage certificates, degrees, criminal record certificates or company documents to be presented to an authority, university or employer in India. I translate them into English with my signature and stamp, and when the Indian body requires it, the original is apostilled first in Spain.
Have your document list ready? Send it to me on WhatsApp and I will tell you what needs an apostille and what the complete batch costs.