Portuguese to Spanish sworn translation for Brazil and Portugal

Em português: Mora na Espanha e precisa de tradução juramentada para espanhol? Envie fotos das suas certidões com a apostila. Um tradutor jurado nomeado pelo MAEC faz a tradução, com preço fixo antes de pagar.

You can also write to us on WhatsApp: +44 7482 545337, as a second channel.

We work with MAEC-appointed sworn translators. We are not affiliated with any Spanish, Brazilian or Portuguese authority.

In Spain, when an office asks for an official or "certified" translation, it means a sworn translation (traducción jurada) by a MAEC-appointed translator. Real Decreto 724/2020 gives it official status with no further legalisation. A Brazilian tradutor juramentado is not one of the routes Spain lists for Extranjería. Diplomas usually take 3–5 working days. We also translate documents from Cabo Verde, Angola and Mozambique.

Do Portuguese documents need a sworn translation in Spain?

Yes, in most cases. Extranjería's Hoja 61 asks for foreign documents translated into Spanish, and the Registro Civil applies Ley 20/2011 article 95. So a Portuguese birth, marriage or criminal record certificate needs an official Spanish translation. The main exception is a document from Portugal with an EU multilingual standard form attached.

Source: Ley 20/2011, art. 95. Neither rule exempts languages close to Spanish, such as Portuguese.

Documents from Portugal follow EU rules. Under Regulation (EU) 2016/1191, Portuguese civil-status documents need no apostille in Spain. Ask the Portuguese registry for the multilingual standard form, and a translation is usually not needed. See our guide to the EU multilingual standard form.

For Extranjería, Hoja informativa 61 lists three accepted translation routes, starting with a MAEC sworn translator.

Which Brazilian documents are most translated?

Brazilian residents usually need the federal criminal record certificate, the inteiro teor birth certificate, the marriage certificate and the university diploma. The cartório apostille, the route and the Hoja 61 position are covered on our Brazil page.

These documents support arraigo sworn translation, Spanish nationality sworn translation and regularisation and renewal sworn translation files. For Brazilian documents, sworn translation into Spanish starts with the route on Brazilian documents sworn translation for Spain. Lawyers and gestorías filing for Brazilian or Portuguese clients can use our service for law firms and gestorías.

Portuguese birth certificate translation to Spanish

The Brazilian inteiro teor reproduces the whole record, including every averbação. The Portuguese assento de nascimento may arrive with a multilingual form instead. The translation keeps the registry's own headings, so the Spanish reader can match each field. Details: birth certificate sworn translation into Spanish.

Portuguese criminal record translation to Spanish

A Brazilian certidão de antecedentes criminais and a Portuguese certificado do registo criminal may word "no record" differently. The translator renders each formula literally, so the Spanish text says exactly what the original says. Validity is set by each office, commonly 3 to 6 months. Arraigo asks for a record from each country you lived in during the last 5 years. Details: police clearance sworn translation into Spanish.

Portuguese diploma translation to Spanish

A Brazilian licenciatura is often a teaching qualification, while a Spanish licenciatura was a pre-Bologna degree. The translator renders the title as written, never as an equivalent. For homologation, the academic record (histórico escolar) must show subjects and hours or credits. Details: degree certificate sworn translation into Spanish and degree homologation sworn translation.

How are Brazilian surnames ordered in Spanish?

In Brazil, the mother's surname usually comes first and the father's last. This is custom, not a legal rule, so families vary. A sworn translation keeps every name exactly as written. Spanish surname rules apply later, mainly when you acquire Spanish nationality.

On nationality, Spanish law requires "un nombre y dos apellidos". The father's first surname comes first, then the mother's first surname, taken from the foreign birth certificate. You may keep your own surnames by declaring it at acquisition or within two months (Ministry of Justice).

How the NIE or TIE shows your surnames is the office's decision. We check every name against your passport and note differences.

What makes Portuguese documents tricky to translate into Spanish?

The language looks familiar, which is the risk. Shared words with different meanings, marginal notes added years later and Brazilian document versions cause most problems. A sworn translator reproduces everything on the page, including stamps, QR codes and the apostille, and never shortens familiar-looking text.

• False friends. "Apelido" means surname in Portugal but nickname in Brazil; Spanish uses "apellido". Degree titles such as "licenciatura" also differ.
• Averbações. Marginal notes recording a marriage or divorce are translated where they appear.
• Inteiro teor or breve relato. Order the full version before paying for an apostille.
• Apostille page. The apostille is translated in the same document, in Portuguese or bilingual form.

Which Portuguese-speaking countries use an apostille for Spain?

Brazil and Cabo Verde use the apostille. Portugal needs none for civil-status documents, because EU rules apply. Angola and Mozambique have not joined the Apostille Convention, so legalisation applies there; we confirm the exact chain with you before quoting. Source: the HCCH status table.

Portugal's apostille, for documents outside the EU rules, comes from the Procuradoria-Geral da República or a delegated office (Ministério Público). The order of steps: apostille before sworn translation. Stamp and translation together: apostille and sworn translation.

Older civil records from Goa can also be in Portuguese. Their apostille comes from India, so see Indian documents sworn translation for Spain.

Last checked: 1 October 2026.

How long does a Portuguese to Spanish sworn translation take?

A Portuguese certificate or diploma usually takes 24–48 hours. Files of 2–5 pages take 2–3 working days. There are about 37 Portuguese sworn translators (official register, August 2026), against about 3,770 for English. Your quote fixes the delivery date before you pay, so send documents early when an appointment is near.

These are starting prices. For your final price, send your details through the quote form. We email you a written quotation, and work starts only after you approve it.

As an indicative market range, sworn translations in Spain cost about €30–120 a page. That is roughly €30–80 for the first page and €15–40 for later pages (Cronoshare, January 2026). This is a market range, not our price. Price list: sworn translation price. You can get a fixed quote for your Portuguese certidões from clear phone photos.

Portuguese documents: four doubts we settle before you pay

Sending a cartório certidão from São Paulo or a registo criminal from Lisbon? Four answers come before any payment.

• Is the translator real? All our Portuguese sworn translators are appointed by Spain's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAEC) and listed on its official register. They sign digital translations with a qualified electronic signature, which you can check against the MAEC list; see how to verify a Spanish sworn translator.
• What if Extranjería returns it because an averbação was missed? Free, prioritised re-issue if rejected on formal grounds. Read our re-issue terms.
• Is my data safe? Files are deleted within 7 days of delivery, as our privacy policy sets out.
• Appointment this week? See the urgent sworn translation service.

What does an official Portuguese to Spanish sworn translation include?

The Spanish text follows the certidão line by line. Cartório seals, signatures and QR codes are described in brackets at the point where they appear. The translator's certification, signature and seal come last. A copy of the original is attached, sealed and dated on every page.

The seal gives the translator's name, language pair and MAEC number. The official title is traductor-intérprete jurado de portugués. You can confirm any appointment in the MAEC Buscador-STIJ.

Frequently asked questions

How do I order a Portuguese to Spanish sworn translation?

Photograph or scan every page, with the apostille and any averbações, and upload them with your passport photo page. Originals are never needed. The quote states the total and the date. Work starts only after you accept it.

Documents in other languages: sworn translation into Spanish from any language. English documents: English to Spanish sworn translation. Or see all languages we translate into Spanish.

We only translate. We never sell appointments.