Guides: FBI checks for Spain and Portugal

Plain-language answers to the questions people ask before applying.

• FBI background check for Spain: residency and visa applications
  What Spain asks for when you need an FBI background check for residency or a long-stay visa: fingerprints, the FBI result, the apostille and a sworn translation.
• Why Spain asks for a sworn translation of your FBI check
  What a sworn translation (traducción jurada) is, why Spanish authorities ask for one, and why the apostille must be translated too.
• How long is an FBI background check valid in Spain?
  The FBI result has no expiry date of its own, but Spanish authorities often only accept one issued in the last 90 days. How to time it.
• FBI background check for Portugal: visas, AIMA residence permits and citizenship
  When Portugal asks for an FBI background check: for the visa, often again at AIMA, and for citizenship. The steps, the timing and how to plan each check.