Ukrainian documents remotely: certificates, official records and diplomas
A residence permit, a wedding or a university place in Spain suddenly calls for an apostilled birth certificate, a duplicate diploma or a recently issued official record, and all your papers are back in Ukraine with no way to go and collect them. The good news: almost everything can be handled remotely. Here is how to obtain documents from Ukraine step by step, through DRATsS, Diia, a power of attorney and a representative.
- Duplicate certificates (birth, marriage, divorce) are issued by any DRATsS office regardless of where the record was originally registered, and some documents can be ordered through Diia.
- A Ukrainian criminal record certificate is obtained online through the Interior Ministry services, with no travel needed.
- For a representative to act in Ukraine you need a power of attorney: signed before a Spanish notary and apostilled, or issued at a Ukrainian consulate.
- The apostille is only issued in Ukraine: the Ministry of Justice for DRATsS and notarial documents, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for official records, and the Ministry of Education for academic ones.
- The final step in Spain is the sworn translation, and the whole chain takes roughly 2 to 6 weeks.
When you need Ukrainian documents
Ukrainian documents come up in almost every Spanish procedure:
- Residence permits and arraigo - birth and marriage certificates, a criminal record certificate;
- marriage and pareja de hecho - a birth certificate, civil status records, a divorce certificate;
- study and work - diplomas and school certificates for homologation;
- inheritance and transactions - proof of kinship and of ownership.
The problem is usually not the document itself but its form: Spanish authorities ask for an original or a duplicate with an apostille and a sworn translation, and sometimes for a document issued within a certain period. An old Soviet-style certificate booklet or a laminated form often will not do, because an apostille cannot be affixed to them. That is when the process of obtaining a fresh copy from Ukraine begins.
Duplicate certificates: DRATsS and Diia
Civil status documents (birth, marriage, divorce, death) are issued by the DRATsS offices (Derzhavna reiestratsiia aktiv tsyvilnoho stanu, the civil registry). The key rules are:
- A duplicate certificate can be obtained at any DRATsS office - it is no longer tied to the place where the record was registered. The data comes from the State Register of Civil Status Records.
- Some documents can be ordered online - the Diia portal and app allow you to request duplicate DRATsS documents, with the finished document collected by the applicant or their representative.
- A representative can collect the document for you under a notarised power of attorney: a relative, a friend or a specialist engaged in Ukraine.
If the record was held in a temporarily occupied territory, the matter is resolved through the register (if the entry was added to it) or through the courts, which takes longer but is still workable. Cases like these are worth diagnosing in advance.
Official records and diplomas
The criminal record certificate
The simplest document of all: the criminal record extract is ordered online through the electronic services of the Ukrainian Interior Ministry and Diia, and the result arrives electronically. For Spain you normally need the apostilled version, which is issued by the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and can be arranged through a representative without you travelling.
Diplomas and school certificates
If the original diploma has been lost, a duplicate is issued through the educational institution (or its legal successor). For homologation in Spain the diploma and the transcript of grades will need an apostille from the Ukrainian Ministry of Education and Science. If the university is in occupied territory or has ceased operating, there are procedures through the Ministry and the archives, and each such situation is handled individually.
Other documents
Archive records, employment history documents and court decisions are also obtained through requests to the relevant authorities and archives, normally by a representative acting under a power of attorney.
A power of attorney to collect them
For a representative in Ukraine to act on your behalf they need a power of attorney. From Spain there are two ways to arrange one:
- Before a Spanish notary - fast, by appointment; the document is then apostilled at the notarial college and translated into Ukrainian for use in Ukraine. Bilingual texts are convenient here.
- At a Ukrainian consulate (Madrid, Barcelona and other cities) - a consular power of attorney is immediately valid in Ukraine without an apostille, but consular appointments involve a wait.
The power of attorney must list the powers precisely: obtaining duplicate DRATsS documents, filing apostille applications, collecting official records, and representation before archives and institutions. Wording that is too narrow is a common reason for a representative being refused. There is more on the procedure in our article about powers of attorney before a Spanish notary.
The apostille in Ukraine: who issues it
An apostille on Ukrainian documents is only issued in Ukraine. Competence is split between three ministries:
| Authority | Documents it apostilles |
|---|---|
| Ministry of Justice | DRATsS documents (certificates, extracts), court decisions, notarial documents |
| Ministry of Foreign Affairs | Criminal record, medical, archive and other official records |
| Ministry of Education and Science | Diplomas, school certificates and transcripts of grades |
The benchmark timeframe is a few working days from filing, and longer in busy periods. A representative can file the apostille application, and an electronic apostille service is available for a range of documents. Once apostilled, the document is sent to Spain by courier, leaving the final step: the sworn translation into Spanish, done here.
How Krepko does it for you
Obtaining documents is a marathon across the institutions of two countries: DRATsS, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, couriers and translators. Krepko runs it for you: we work out which documents your Spanish procedure needs and in what form, prepare the power of attorney, obtain the duplicates and the apostille in Ukraine through our partners, deliver them to Spain and arrange the sworn translation. The legally significant steps are performed by licensed specialists - lawyers, gestores and sworn translators.
The details are on our Documents and legalisation service page. Or leave a request and we will assess your situation and give you realistic timings.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Duplicate certificates are issued by any DRATsS office on an application from your representative, some documents can be ordered online through Diia and the Interior Ministry services, the apostille is affixed on the representative's application, and delivery to Spain is arranged by courier. Your presence in Ukraine is not required.
An apostille is not affixed to laminated documents. The standard solution is to obtain a duplicate certificate from DRATsS on a new form and apostille that instead. The same applies to fragile documents and old-format certificates, which the authorities accept reluctantly.
The benchmark is two to six weeks: obtaining the duplicate document or record, the apostille (usually a few working days), courier delivery to Spain and the sworn translation. Timings depend on the type of document, the region of Ukraine and how busy the authorities are, and can be estimated more precisely after an initial review.
Partly. Consulates perform notarial acts, issue powers of attorney and a number of official records. But duplicate DRATsS certificates and apostilles are issued in Ukraine, so in practice the faster combination is a power of attorney arranged in Spain plus a representative in Ukraine.
Yes, the final step is a sworn translation (traducción jurada) into Spanish by a translator accredited by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The translation is done after the apostille so that the stamp is translated too. Only then is the document ready to file with Extranjería, the Registro Civil or a university.
For most actions, yes. A relative without a power of attorney can only obtain a limited set of documents, because the authorities require proof of authority. The power of attorney is drawn up before a Spanish notary with an apostille, or at a Ukrainian consulate, and sent to the representative in the original.
Sources
Your documents are in Ukraine but you need them here?
Leave a request - the review is free. We will tell you which documents your procedure needs and in what form, and organise the entire chain from DRATsS to the sworn translation, with no trip required.
Discuss your caseThis material is for information purposes and is not legal advice. The way Ukrainian authorities operate may change, including because of martial law. Krepko organises the process and takes the routine off your hands, while the legally significant steps are performed by licensed specialists - lawyers, gestores and sworn translators.
Related articles
Need help with this topic?
We will review your case for free and quote the exact cost and timeline. We reply in your messenger within 15 minutes during working hours.