🇩🇪 Criminal Records for the Germany Working Holiday Visa

Volare Editorial | August 30, 2026

When preparing your folder for the Germany Working Holiday Visa, security is an absolute priority for consular authorities. The criminal record certificate is the document that proves your good civic conduct, but its mandatory nature and the exact way to present it vary drastically depending on the passport you are applying with.

At Volare, we break down the technical requirements so you know exactly what to manage before the Federal Foreign Office of Germany (Auswärtiges Amt) without spending extra money on unnecessary bureaucratic procedures.

The myth of Apostilles and Translations

There is a lot of outdated information circulating on the internet claiming that all Latin American documents must be internationally legalized to be valid in Europe.

Volare Alert: If you apply from Argentina or Uruguay, the German consulate DOES NOT require the Hague Apostille or a public translation for your criminal record certificate in the Working Holiday Visa process. You can present the original document in Spanish. Paying for apostilles or translators for this specific visa is a waste of time and money.

(Note: For traditional skilled work visas or if you apply from Brazil, the rules change and the apostille is usually mandatory. Always check the specific instructions of the embassy in your jurisdiction).

Summary Board: Requirement by Nationality

Not all countries are required to prove their criminal history. Based on current consular guidelines for countries with youth mobility agreements, here is the exact breakdown:

Country (Passport)	Must present Criminal Records?	Validation and Detail Requirement
🇦🇷 Argentina	✅ YES	In original Spanish. NO Apostille and no translation.
🇺🇾 Uruguay	✅ YES	In original Spanish. NO Apostille and no translation.
🇨🇱 Chile	❌ NO	Unique exception. Chileans do not require this document.
🇧🇷 Brazil	✅ YES	Generally requires a Hague Apostille and Sworn Translation.
🇨🇦 🇦🇺 🇳🇿 🇯🇵	❌ NO (Generally)	If applying from within Germany, the Ausländerbehörde does not usually require it initially.

Technical requirements of the certificate

For the countries that are required to present it, the document cannot be just any police clearance. It must strictly comply with two legal parameters for the consular officer at Make it in Germany (the official portal) to consider it valid:

1. Federal (National) Scope The certificate must cover the entire territory of your home country. In Argentina, for example, it must be issued exclusively by the National Registry of Recidivism (Registro Nacional de Reincidencia). Certificates issued solely by provincial or local police will be automatically rejected.

2. The 90-day Rule (Validity) Criminal records have a very short lifespan in the eyes of the consulate. The unbreakable rule is that the document must not be more than 90 days old at the exact time of your embassy appointment. Many officers prefer the issue date to be within the last 30 days, so we recommend processing it as the final step before your interview.

Summary Board: Common errors and solutions

To prevent your folder from being returned at the counter due to an error in this document, review our solutions matrix:

Applicant Error	Consular Consequence	Volare Solution
Processing it too early	Rejection due to expired document (>90 days).	Request it online just 2 or 3 weeks before your consular appointment.
Bringing a provincial certificate	Invalidity of the document (lack of scope).	Ensure the issuing entity is the Ministry of Justice or a national equivalent.
Paying for translations (AR/UY)	Completely unnecessary waste of money.	Print the official PDF in Spanish with its digital validation code and present it.

Complete Volare Guide

Having your criminal records in order (or knowing you are exempt, as in the case of Chile) gives you the confidence to advance to the next level of your application. To review how to put together the rest of your folder, manage your medical insurance, and demonstrate your funds, we invite you to study our Official Germany Working Holiday Visa Guide.