Police Clearance Certificate Spain

[mad_wild]

I'm sure all of us globetrotters have been there, studying/working somewhere for some random period of time a couple of years ago which has now come back to bite us in the arse while trying to get our SMC Applications ready for submission.

I have ran into a problem with obtaining a Police Clearance Certificate from Spain - I need to send some documents over to the Ministry of Justice in Spain, and they request that a pre-paid self addressed envelope is included to send the Certificate once processed back to me in New Zealand...the problem is NZ Post does not offer such an extravagance...I have checked with UPS/DHL and they've all quoted me somewhere between $300-500 for a courier prepaid postal bag......which is insane for a $5 certificate.

I'm sure I'm not the first person who has had to go through this process - anyone got any ideas/advice on a postal service they've used in the past to ship documents overseas and also include some form of pre-paid self addressed envelope for them to return the document back to you? Specifically to Spain or otherwise?

I mean I've lived in some pretty obscure countries in my time and have managed just fine to obtain police certificates, but Spain is really turning out to be the biggest pain in my backside.

Any advice much appreciated as usual!

[AnnaB]

Hmm.. Do you know anyone in Spain you could authorize to collect it on your behalf and post it to you?

[TheNewKiwi]

When I changed my name, I had to send documents from NZ to Manila, Philippines and include a prepaid envelope for their return. I used FedEx. I phoned their customer service number, and they explained it all. They helped me create an account, and when I sent it off I was able to include an envelope and waybill for the return of my documents. I can't recall the exact amount, but it was maybe $70NZ. They were the least expensive and most helpful courier service I found (DHL was the worst).

I also felt the amount was astronomical for what I was doing (changing my name on my US social security number) but I bit the bullet because it needed to be done.

[newarrival]

I'm sure all of us globetrotters have been there, studying/working somewhere for some random period of time a couple of years ago which has now come back to bite us in the arse while trying to get our SMC Applications ready for submission.

I have ran into a problem with obtaining a Police Clearance Certificate from Spain - I need to send some documents over to the Ministry of Justice in Spain, and they request that a pre-paid self addressed envelope is included to send the Certificate once processed back to me in New Zealand...the problem is NZ Post does not offer such an extravagance...I have checked with UPS/DHL and they've all quoted me somewhere between $300-500 for a courier prepaid postal bag......which is insane for a $5 certificate.

I'm sure I'm not the first person who has had to go through this process - anyone got any ideas/advice on a postal service they've used in the past to ship documents overseas and also include some form of pre-paid self addressed envelope for them to return the document back to you? Specifically to Spain or otherwise?

I mean I've lived in some pretty obscure countries in my time and have managed just fine to obtain police certificates, but Spain is really turning out to be the biggest pain in my backside.

Any advice much appreciated as usual!

Maybe I am completely on the wrong track here.., but if the envelope is posted in Spain to New Zealand, wouldn't you need a Spanish postal service to do that? Just thinking that if I'd had an envelope to sent to Spain, pre- paid and prepared by the Spanish postal service and would try to post it in New Zealand, that wouldn't work either?

[mad_wild]

Exactly my point Renate - NZ post has already explained this to me, thus I am forced to find an international courier of some sort instead. I have offered to send an additional cheque to pay the Ministry of Justice whatever amount they require to send it back through the regular Spanish post, but no, the prepaid envelope has to be included in the original mail sent to them . It's absolutely bonkers! I wish I still knew someone back in Spain, but I haven't lived there for years, and all my pals have moved on too. I'll give FedEx a call - otherwise I might as well just get a solicitor in Spain to do it for me and pay the same amount as it would probably cost to do it via international courier.

[newarrival]

Exactly my point Renate - NZ post has already explained this to me, thus I am forced to find an international courier of some sort instead. I have offered to send an additional cheque to pay the Ministry of Justice whatever amount they require to send it back through the regular Spanish post, but no, the prepaid envelope has to be included in the original mail sent to them . It's absolutely bonkers! I wish I still knew someone back in Spain, but I haven't lived there for years, and all my pals have moved on too. I'll give FedEx a call - otherwise I might as well just get a solicitor in Spain to do it for me and pay the same amount as it would probably cost to do it via international courier.

Good luck! Pity that they aren't willing to be a little bit flexible....

[mad_wild]

Just wanted to post a quick update for anyone else who might search for this in the future - after a million e-mails and a couple of phone calls to Spain I have learned that if you're an EU National (even if you're not living within the EU at the moment) you DO NOT need to include a pre-paid envelope with your application. Supposedly they will process the certificate once they receive all of the documentation (Form 790 + apostolised passport copy (which you can ONLY get at the Spanish Embassy in Wellington if you're in NZ already) + proof of payment) I am sending out today and will send the certificate back to me via e-mail and through post to New Zealand (at their expense). I'll post another update here once I (fingers crossed) receive the police clearance certificate.