Criminal Record Certificate for Northern Cyprus: Requirements, Apostille and Translation

A criminal record certificate is required for an application to the Council of Ministers and for other DeJure Consulting services, such as setting up a local company or a company in a Free Zone. Here we explain the requirements the certificate must meet.

Main requirements

Under the new laws, a criminal record certificate:

• must be no more than 3 months old from its date of issue;
• must bear an apostille.

Where to obtain an apostille for the certificate

The certificate must be apostilled in the country where it was issued. Arriving in Northern Cyprus without an apostilled certificate and trying to obtain an apostille here is pointless: it is not possible. The only option is to obtain an apostille for a certified translation in Southern Cyprus or Ankara.

You should therefore arrange the apostille in your own country. We know this takes a little longer than simply obtaining the certificate, but it is necessary.

If the issuing country is not a party to the Hague Apostille Convention, the certificate is submitted without an apostille. There are very few such countries. Northern Cyprus is one of them.

The certificate's language and translation

Some countries issue criminal record certificates in English as well. For example, German certificates are always issued in both German and English. These certificates do not need to be translated and can be used as they are. One important point: they still need an apostille.

Certificates issued only in the language of the country where they were obtained must be translated and notarised. Translation into Turkish or English and notarisation can be arranged in your own country. However, the ministry may in principle request that the translation and certification be carried out within Northern Cyprus. DeJure Consulting also provides document translation and certification services.

A scan or the original

For an application to the Council of Ministers, you can send us a scan of the certificate and bring the original later so that we can keep it in our files. The original criminal record certificate is required to set up a company.

Clarify what you need the certificate for

You can tell us why you are obtaining a criminal record certificate, and we will explain all the criteria that apply to your particular case.

Questions and answers

How recent must a criminal record certificate be? Under the new laws, it must be no more than 3 months old from its date of issue.

Does a criminal record certificate need an apostille? Yes. The apostille must be obtained in the country where the document was issued.

What if the issuing country is not a party to the Hague Apostille Convention? The certificate is submitted without an apostille. There are very few such countries. Northern Cyprus is one of them.

Can a certificate be apostilled in Northern Cyprus? No, this is not possible. The only option is to obtain an apostille for a certified translation in Southern Cyprus or Ankara.

Does a criminal record certificate need to be translated? If it is issued only in the language of the country where it was obtained, it must be translated and notarised. If it is also issued in English, as German certificates always are in German and English, no translation is needed.

Where can the certificate be translated and certified? In your own country, into Turkish or English. The ministry may in principle request that the translation and certification be carried out within Northern Cyprus. DeJure Consulting provides document translation and certification services.

Is the original certificate required, or is a scan sufficient? A scan is sufficient for an application to the Council of Ministers; the original can be brought later so that we can keep it in our files. The original is required to set up a company.

Contact DeJure Consulting to clarify the requirements for your case. Read more about the service: submitting an application to the Council of Ministers.