Criminal Record Certificate: Translation and Apostille

The document is issued by the criminal records unit within the Ministry of Justice, and today it can largely be obtained electronically in a verifiable form. Where the document is to be used abroad, however, the institution needs to issue it in a form suited to that purpose and it needs to be tied to an apostille; a printout obtained for everyday use is often not enough.

Which type of certificate, for which use?

A criminal record certificate can be obtained for different purposes and with different content. A document to be submitted abroad has to have the scope the receiving institution expects. Some institutions ask only for the current record, while other applications may call for archive information covering deleted entries as well. The table below summarises the main distinctions met in practice.

The most important message in this table is that you need to know exactly what the receiving institution wants before you obtain the document. The phrase “criminal record certificate” does not point to a single type of document; its content and scope change with the request. A document obtained with the wrong scope sends the process back to the beginning.

Which authority issues the apostille?

For apostille purposes, the criminal record certificate falls into the class of judicial documents. Administrative documents are apostilled by governors’ offices and district governors’ offices, whereas judicial documents are endorsed by the judicial justice commissions in centres that have a serious crimes court. When this distinction is missed, the document queues at the wrong authority; it is the most frequent cause of delay with criminal record certificates.

The same logic applies to a notarised translation of the document. A notarised translation also counts as a judicial document, and its apostille is likewise obtained from the judicial justice commission. Whether the apostille goes on the original or on the notarised translation depends on what the receiving institution asks for. That requirement is contained in a single sentence, the one that shows whether an “apostilled original of the document” or an “apostilled official translation” is wanted.

The process step by step

1. Read the receiving institution’s requirement. Is it a “criminal record certificate for use abroad”, does it have to be apostilled, and into which language is it to be translated? Those three pieces of information determine the process.
2. Obtain the right type of document. It must be supplied in a form suitable for use abroad and capable of being verified.
3. Obtain the apostille from the judicial authority. The endorsement comes from the judicial justice commission and, depending on the type of document, goes on the original or on the notarised translation.
4. Have the sworn translation done. Names, date of birth and the record details must match the source exactly.
5. Go for notarisation if it is required. If the institution asks for notarisation, the translation is notarised and the chain is complete.

The recency requirement: the point most often missed

A criminal record certificate shows a position at a moment in time. With documents of this kind, institutions usually require a recent date. A certificate obtained a year ago may not be accepted even if its translation is flawless, because what is looked at is the date the document was issued. Obtaining the document very early is therefore no advantage. The soundest order is to have the translation done while the document is current and carries its certification.

In practice the right order is this: first establish what the receiving institution requires, then obtain the document, take it straight to the apostille, and complete the translation at that stage. Obtaining the document and then leaving it for weeks can mean having to repeat the whole exercise because of the recency requirement.

Common mistakes

• Sending abroad a printout meant for domestic use. A printout that cannot be tied to an apostille will be refused by the receiving institution.
• Looking for the apostille at the governor’s office. A judicial document is endorsed by the judicial justice commission.
• Applying with an out-of-date document. A recency requirement is not made good by the freshness of the translation.
• Letting the spelling of a name differ from the passport. A document whose identity details do not match will not be processed.

Points that come up often

My record is clean, do I still need the certificate? Yes. A clean record does not make the document unnecessary; the institution wants to see the statement that there is no record in an official document too. An empty record may equally be required with an apostille.

Can someone else obtain the document on my behalf? That depends on how the document is obtained and on the authorisation given. It is often possible for a third party to carry out the formalities under a properly drawn power of attorney; for the precise conditions you need to ask the unit concerned.

Is a document with a QR code enough? With documents that carry a QR code and can be verified online, practice varies from one receiving institution to another. Some accept electronic verification while others want a printed and apostilled copy; asking in advance is the most practical course.

The document is issued in Turkish, so how does it reach a foreign language? A criminal record certificate obtained in Türkiye is issued in Turkish, and the move into the language needed abroad is made by sworn translation. Some countries accept a translation only in their own official language, so the target language should be confirmed at the outset.

I am applying to more than one country, is a single document enough? Since each institution may retain its own copy, applications to several institutions call for enough copies to be planned from the start, along with a separate apostille for each where that is needed. Setting off with a single copy may mean running the process a second time.

Who obtains the document, and how

A criminal record certificate can be obtained by the person concerned, and it can equally be obtained by a third party under a properly drawn authorisation. For applicants who are abroad this detail matters, since coming to Türkiye to obtain the document is not always necessary. The form and extent of the authorisation vary with where and how the document is obtained, so it is worth settling which route will be used before the process starts.

How the document is obtained also affects the steps that follow. A record obtained in verifiable form carries through to the apostille and translation stages without difficulty; a document whose scope or type has been chosen wrongly, by contrast, comes back at a later step. The first step is therefore always to find out exactly what the receiving institution wants, and the second is to obtain the document accordingly.

Checklist

• Have you confirmed which type of record the receiving institution wants (current, archive, or for use abroad)?
• Was the document obtained in a verifiable form suitable for an apostille?
• Will you obtain the apostille from the judicial justice commission?
• Is the document recent enough to meet the recency requirement?
• Does the spelling of your name match your passport exactly?

It is perfectly possible to establish the right order and the competent authority for your criminal record certificate and to complete the translation in one go. You can send us your document through the quote form, look at the layers of certification in our document guide, and ask about the details of the process through the contact page.

The account below summarises typical practice; the practice of an individual institution may differ. Where you are in any doubt, it is worth putting the point to the institution before you apply.