Libbie Stevens | Visa Advisor, Wilmer Health | Published: 4 May 2026
This guide is for informational purposes only and reflects requirements as understood in 2026. Visa requirements can vary by consulate and are subject to change. Always confirm specific requirements with the Spanish consulate or immigration authority handling your application. For specific advice about your individual application, contact us at hello@wilmerhealth.com.
If you are applying for a Spanish long-stay visa from the UK, you will need to include a criminal record certificate in your application. And if you have ever applied for a job in the UK, you probably have a DBS check sitting in a drawer somewhere — so it is completely natural to wonder whether that will do.
The short answer is that Spain needs a specific document, and a DBS check is not it. But understanding why matters — because submitting the wrong one is one of the most common and most avoidable reasons Spanish visa applications are rejected, and it can cost you your appointment slot and potentially your application fee.
This guide explains the difference between the two, why Spanish consulates will only accept one of them, and what you need to do to make sure you have the right document before you submit. For a full overview of everything the ACRO certificate involves, see our complete UK guide to the ACRO certificate for a Spanish visa.
A DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check is a UK employment document. Employers — schools, hospitals, charities and others — use it to check whether someone applying for a job has a criminal record that might make them unsuitable for that role.
There are three types: Basic, Standard, and Enhanced. Each one shows a different level of information depending on the job being applied for.
The important thing to understand is that a DBS check is built for UK employers. It is not designed for foreign governments or immigration authorities, and it is not formatted in a way that Spanish consulates are set up to accept.
An ACRO Police Certificate — sometimes called an ACRO International Certificate — is an official UK document issued specifically for use abroad. It is produced by the ACRO Criminal Records Office, a national police unit that holds records from the Police National Computer (PNC).
Unlike a DBS check, the ACRO certificate is designed to be shown to foreign governments and immigration authorities. Once it has been apostilled and accompanied by a Spanish sworn translation, it is accepted by Spanish consulates as a valid criminal record certificate.
Think of it as the international version of a UK criminal record check — and it is the one Spain requires.
This is the question most people ask, and it is a fair one. Both documents come from UK government bodies and both relate to criminal records — so why does one work and the other does not?
There are a few reasons.
It is built for UK employment, not international use. A DBS check is a domestic document. It is not set up to meet the requirements of a foreign immigration authority, and Spanish consulates are looking for something that has been specifically produced for international use. A DBS check simply does not fit that criteria.
Spanish consulates ask for the ACRO by name. Spanish consulates in the UK — London, Manchester and Edinburgh — specify the ACRO International Police Certificate in their document requirements. A DBS check does not meet that requirement at any level.
The two documents show different things. A Basic DBS, for example, only shows unspent convictions. An ACRO certificate gives a complete picture of your criminal record status in a format that Spanish authorities are set up to read and assess. They are not interchangeable.
If a DBS check is submitted with a Spanish visa application, the consulate will reject it. In most cases your application will be returned or refused, and you will need to start again with the correct document — losing your appointment slot and potentially your application fee along the way.
It is one of the most avoidable mistakes in the Spanish visa process. If you are not sure which document you have, check who issued it. If it says Disclosure and Barring Service, it is a DBS check. If it says ACRO Criminal Records Office, you have the right one.
It is worth checking before you apply for anything new. If you have previously applied for a visa or worked abroad, you may already have an ACRO certificate somewhere — though you will need to check whether it is still within the six-month window that Spanish consulates require. Our 2026 ACRO certificate requirements checklist has everything you need to verify before you submit.
Not sure what you have? Look at the top of the document. An ACRO Police Certificate will show the ACRO Criminal Records Office branding and reference the Police National Computer. A DBS certificate will reference the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Now you know you need the ACRO certificate rather than a DBS check, the next step is getting it prepared correctly for your Spanish visa application. Our guide to how to get an ACRO certificate for a Spanish visa in the UK covers everything — the application process, the apostille, the sworn translation, and how to time it all around your consulate appointment.
A DBS check and an ACRO Police Certificate are both UK criminal record documents, but they serve completely different purposes. For a Spanish long-stay visa, only the ACRO Police Certificate will be accepted — and it needs to be apostilled and accompanied by a Spanish sworn translation before you submit it.
If you want to make sure everything is done correctly from the start, Wilmer Health’s fully managed ACRO certificate service takes care of the whole process — certificate, apostille, and sworn translation — delivered to you in around 12 working days.