Apostille documents for Spain from Colombia, Mexico, Argentina, Peru and Venezuela

The apostille replaces diplomatic legalisation between the countries that signed the 1961 Hague Convention ². It has the same purpose as legalisation: to certify the authenticity of the signature and the capacity of the authority that signs the document ³.

According to the Convention's official table, Spain applies it since 1978, Argentina since 1988, Mexico since 1995, Venezuela since 1999, Colombia since 2001 and Peru since 2010 ¹. For Spain, that means three rules:

• Only the country that issues the document can apostille it. The Spanish consulate does not apostille or legalise documents from your country ³.
• The apostille is enough. A document apostilled by the authorities of the issuing country needs no other step at the consular office and can be submitted directly in Spain ³.
• Originals only. Original documents or certified copies issued by the same body are accepted; an apostilled photocopy does not replace the original ³.

Documents issued by your embassy or consulate in Spain (certificates of residence, good conduct, nationality) are outside the Convention and follow another legalisation route ².

Spanish consulates ask for an apostille on criminal record certificates, civil registry certificates and the other public documents you submit with your visa ⁴.

The competent authority is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through its Apostille and Legalisation Coordination ⁶. The procedure is done online, in the Cancillería's apostille and legalisation service, and costs 37,800 Colombian pesos according to the Hague Conference sheet updated in July 2026 ⁶.

For the non-lucrative visa, the Consulate General of Spain in Bogotá asks for criminal record certificates issued "for migration purposes" and apostilled ⁴.

Mexico splits the apostille according to who issued the document ⁷:

• Federal documents: they are apostilled by the Secretaría de Gobernación, through its Directorate of Political Coordination with the Powers of the Union. The Hague Conference sheet, updated in November 2024, gives a price of 1,878.39 Mexican pesos per document ⁷.
• State documents: they are apostilled by the government of the state that issued them. There are 32 competent authorities, one per federal entity ⁷.

Before asking for the apostille, check which authority signed your document, federal or state, so you know where to ask for it.

Argentina. The authority is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship, which since 2003 also authorised the Colegios de Escribanos (notary associations) to apostille ⁸. If your document is electronic and has a digital signature, you can apostille it remotely through the TAD platform: you need a Clave Fiscal level 2 or higher and a bank account in Argentina linked to it; it costs $4,500 and takes an average of 30 working days ¹¹. Paper documents are apostilled at the provincial Colegio de Escribanos or, if you are outside the country, at an Argentine consulate ¹¹. The Consulate General of Spain in Buenos Aires accepts criminal record certificates apostilled by the Cancillería, with a digital apostille, or by the Colegios de Escribanos ⁵.

Peru. The authority is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs ⁹. Digital documents signed electronically by a registered official, in PDF and with a verification mechanism such as a QR code, are apostilled online for S/ 18.00 and downloaded within 5 working days at most ¹². If your document has a handwritten signature, the procedure is in person at the Cancillería's head office, at authorised MAC Centres or at its decentralised offices ¹². Each application admits only one document ¹².

Venezuela. The authority is the Ministry of People's Power for Foreign Affairs, through its Office of Consular Relations, which runs an electronic apostille and legalisation system ¹⁰. Because Venezuela has been a party to the Convention since 1999 ¹, for Spain you need the apostille, with no additional consular legalisation ³. Apostilles issued since 2 May 2019 are verified on the Ministry's lookup portal ¹⁰.

Several countries already issue electronic apostilles. Peru asks you to check first with the body in the country where you will use the document whether it accepts the digital apostille ¹². For Argentina, the Consulate of Spain in Buenos Aires expressly mentions the digital apostille among the valid options for criminal record certificates ⁵.

The apostille does not expire, but if the document has limited validity, the apostille has it too ³. The Buenos Aires Consulate, for example, asks for criminal record certificates issued in the last three months ⁵: do not apostille too far in advance.

If your document is in a language other than Spanish, besides the apostille you will need a sworn translation; see the sworn translation guide on this site.