Certificate validity period on criminal record

The key point: the certificate has two different validity periods, and that is exactly where confusion arises

A criminal record certificate is not a permit or a clearance. It records what was in the registry at the time of the check, and speaks only to that date. The Spanish Ministry of Justice puts it plainly: the certificate makes it possible to confirm the absence or presence of convictions registered in the Central Criminal Records on the date it was issued.

This leads to something that sounds odd until you say it out loud: the certificate itself does not ’expire.’ What expires is the receiving authority’s confidence that nothing has changed since it was issued. The expiry date is therefore set not by whoever issued the document, but by whoever accepts it.

The Hong Kong Police give the clearest answer on how long a certificate remains valid: their results carry no expiry date, only a date of issue — the validity period is set by the relevant immigration authority, consulate, or government body, and you must contact them directly for that requirement.

This means the question ’how long is the certificate valid’ is the wrong one to ask. The right question is: ’what validity period does the authority I’m submitting to require’ — and plan your request around that.

• The certificate reflects the state of the registry on the date of issue
• The validity period is set by the receiving authority, not the issuing one
• The same document can be current for the US and expired for Canada

USA: two years from the date of issue — and one exception

The State Department’s guidance to consular officers is explicit: police certificates are valid for two years from the date of issue. This is the longest validity period found in any official source.

The rule does, however, carry a caveat that makes it worth reading in full. The two-year period applies to police clearance certificates from any country the applicant has visited or lived in since the previous checks — and does not apply to a certificate from a place the applicant has not returned to since those previous checks. In other words, a certificate from a country you left and have not been back to does not become outdated under this rule at all: there is nothing to update.

One separate line: a consular officer may request updated certificates if there is reason to believe a more recent record exists that needs to be examined.

It is also worth knowing who is required to provide the certificate. An applicant aged sixteen or over must submit a certificate from their current country of residence if they have lived there for at least six months; from their country of citizenship if they have ever lived there for at least six months; and from any previous country of residence where they lived for a year or more after turning sixteen. Regardless of age, a certificate is required from any country where the applicant has been detained.

For comparison: a medical examination under the same instruction is valid for no more than six months under any circumstances, and other documents subject to change — one year. The criminal record certificate is specifically named as an exception with a longer validity period.

• Two years from the date of issue
• Exception: a police clearance from a country you have not returned to does not expire
• 16+ — country of residence and citizenship from 6 months, previous countries from 1 year
• Detention in the country — a certificate is required regardless of age

Canada: six months, but counted backwards

Canada handles this differently, and the distinction matters. A police certificate from the country where you currently live must be issued no more than six months before the date of application. The clock runs backward from the filing date, not forward from the date of issue.

In practice, this means that ’still valid for another month’ is a meaningless phrase. If a certificate is more than six months old on the day of submission, it will not be accepted, regardless of how much time may remain under someone else’s rules.

For all other countries the rule is different and very convenient: the certificate must have been issued after the last time you lived there for six consecutive months or more. Such a certificate does not expire — there is no need to obtain a new one.

Certificates are required for each country where you or a family member resided for six consecutive months or more during the past ten years. Periods before the age of eighteen and time spent in Canada itself do not count.

The deadline that derails planning most often: once you receive an Invitation to Apply in Express Entry, you have sixty days. In that time you must obtain police clearance certificates from every country on your list — and some countries take longer than two months to issue them.

• Current country — issued no earlier than 6 months before the application date
• Other countries — issued after the most recent stay of 6+ months
• List of countries — 10 years ago, periods of 6 consecutive months
• Express Entry: 60 days to complete everything after receiving an invitation

Argentina and Chile: five working days versus sixty

Argentine law on the National Recidivism Registry does not specify the term itself, leaving it to regulation: the certificate is issued with established details and remains valid for the period determined by the governing decree.

The registry answers the question about the timeline as follows: the statutory period is five business days from the moment the certificate is issued. It then adds: nevertheless, confirm this with the authority where you will be submitting it.

Five working days — the shortest turnaround encountered. This explains why the Argentine certificate is ordered last, and why the registry offers express rates: a certificate can be obtained in five working days, 24 hours, six hours or one hour. A certificate that has been issued can be downloaded within ninety calendar days of the issue date — a separate deadline that has no bearing on the certificate’s validity period.

Chile is even more candid about this. The state portal ChileAtiende, citing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, states the following about the certificate issued to Chileans abroad: this certificate is valid for thirty to sixty calendar days, depending on the requirements of the country where you are located. In other words, the issuing authority openly acknowledges that the validity period is set by someone else.

• Argentina: the legal deadline is 5 working days from the date of issue
• Argentina: the certificate can be downloaded for 90 calendar days — this is a separate deadline
• Chile: 30–60 calendar days, depending on the requirements of the receiving country

Spain, Hong Kong, and Georgia: no time limit at all

Three of the seven sources set no expiry period of any kind — and that too is an answer, not a gap.

Spain: the criminal record certificate is issued by the Ministry of Justice, which describes it on its service page as confirming the presence or absence of convictions in the Central Register of Convicted Persons as of the date of issue. No validity period is stated. The new foreigners’ rights regulations in force from 2025 require the absence of convictions in countries of residence over the past five years for offences recognised under Spanish law — but they also set no expiry date for the certificate itself.

Hong Kong: the police explicitly state that the certificate has no expiry date. There is also something unique here that exists nowhere else on this list: the certificate is not issued to you. It is sent by registered post directly to the consulate or immigration authority whose request letter you included with your application — so the package must contain the requesting authority’s letter with its postal address and email. That request letter itself is valid for one year from the date of issue. There is no renewal service: if the receiving authority considers the result outdated, you submit a new application from scratch — with a new request letter and new fingerprints, and the same processing time of four calendar weeks.

Georgia: the law on fees and processing times for Ministry of Internal Affairs services sets two things for a criminal record certificate — a fee of 20 lari and an issuance period of three working days, or an additional 20 lari to expedite to one working day. The law sets no expiry date.

• Spain: register as of the date of issue, no validity period established
• Hong Kong: no expiry; the certificate is sent to the consulate, not to the applicant
• Hong Kong: no renewal — only a new application and new fingerprints
• Georgia: 20 lari and 3 working days; 1 working day — double the fee

An apostille and translations: two more deadlines in the same chain

A certificate is almost never submitted on its own: an apostille or consular legalisation is placed on top, followed by a translation. Each stage adds days, and the entire chain must be factored in.

The sequence here is strict: first the certificate, then the apostille on it, then the translation. The steps cannot be reordered — the apostille certifies the signature on a specific document.

The apostille date does not refresh the certificate. If the receiving authority requires a certificate no older than six months, the clock runs from the date of the certificate itself, not from the date the apostille was affixed a month later.

And the converse: if the certificate had to be redone, the apostille on the old certificate becomes void along with it. This distinguishes the situation from an error in a translation, where the original with its apostille remains valid and only the translation is redone.

This gives a practical sequence for gathering documents. Start by finding out the receiving authority’s validity window. Then count backwards: how many days for translation, how many for the apostille, how many for the certificate itself. Only then submit the request for the certificate — timed so that it will fall within the required window with a couple of weeks to spare.

• The process: certificate → apostille → translation
• An apostille does not update the date on the certificate
• If the document has been reissued, the apostille must be reissued too
• Count backwards from the filing date, not forwards from the order date

How long is a criminal record certificate valid?

There is no universal validity period. The US considers a certificate valid for two years from the date of issue; Canada requires that the certificate from the country of current residence be issued no more than six months before the application date; Argentina gives its own certificate five business days; Chile allows thirty to sixty days. Spain, Hong Kong and Georgia set no time limit at all.

Why doesn’t the certificate state an expiry date?

Because the certificate confirms the state of the register on the date of issue, and in that sense it does not expire. The validity period is set by the receiving party — based on how long they consider the information to be current. The Hong Kong Police state this explicitly: their results carry only a date of issue, and the validity period is determined by immigration authorities and consulates.

Does an apostille update the date of the certificate?

No. An apostille certifies the signature and seal on an already-issued document but does not change the document’s own date. If a certificate must be no more than six months old, the clock runs from the date on the certificate itself.

Do I need a certificate from a country I left long ago?

Usually yes, but it does not expire. Under the US rule, the two-year validity period does not apply to a certificate from a country the applicant has not returned to since the previous checks. Canada frames the same principle differently: the certificate from a former country of residence must have been issued after the last time you lived there for six consecutive months or more.

When should you order the certificate if the document pack takes a long time to gather?

Second to last — before the translation. First find out how long the receiving authority takes, then calculate the time needed for the apostille and translation, and order the certificate so that it falls within the required window by the submission date. Ordering the certificate first is the most common reason people end up having to get it twice.

Can the certificate be extended?

No such service exists. The Hong Kong Police are explicit on this point: there is no renewal service — you must submit a fresh application with all supporting documents, including a new request form and new fingerprints, and wait the same four calendar weeks.