A criminal record certificate is a document that lists final criminal convictions. Under Legislative Decree No. 122/2018, the former criminal certificate and civil certificate were incorporated into the Judicial Records Certificate (Certificato del Casellario Giudiziale), which also indicates whether the person is recorded in the European Criminal Records Information System. These certificates, together with their legalization by apostille, may be requested from any Public Prosecutor’s Office (Procura della Repubblica) in Italy, regardless of the applicant’s place of birth or residence.
A certificate of pending charges (Certificato dei Carichi Pendenti), on the other hand, lists criminal proceedings that are still pending against the applicant. This certificate, together with the apostille, may be requested from the Public Prosecutor’s Office attached to the court that has jurisdiction over the applicant’s current or former place of residence.
There is no prohibition against obtaining the certificate from a different Public Prosecutor’s Office; however, in that case, the certificate will show only the pending proceedings before the court within that office’s jurisdiction.
All of these certificates are valid for a maximum of six months from the date of issue.
Requests for certificates and the related apostille legalisation (required for use in the United Kingdom) must be submitted directly by the interested party, or by an authorized representative, to the relevant Public Prosecutor’s Office in Italy.
Some Public Prosecutor’s Offices offer postal procedures for applicants residing abroad. One example is the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Rome. Applicants are advised to contact the relevant offices directly for further information.
Translation for Use in the United Kingdom
Foreign citizens (in all cases), and Italian citizens whose certificates show criminal convictions or pending criminal proceedings, must use a translator in the United Kingdom to obtain a certified English translation.
A non-exhaustive list of translators known to the Consulate is available on the Consulate’s website. As there is no fixed fee schedule for translation services, applicants are advised to compare prices if the first services they find appear excessively expensive.
Only Italian citizens living within this consular jurisdiction and hold certificates that do not show criminal convictions or pending criminal proceedings, may request certification of the English translation from the Notarial Office of this Consulate, following the postal procedure described below.
The applicant must first send the following documents by email to: notarile.londra@esteri.it
- A PDF scan of a valid Italian identity document (passport or identity card);
- A PDF scan of the certificate duly legalized with an apostille;
- An English translation of the certificate in Word format. The translation may be prepared by the applicant using and adapting the templates provided by the Consulate.
Once the Office has reviewed the documents and confirmed that the request is acceptable, it will provide instructions for payment by bank transfer and authorize the mailing of the following documents:
- A photocopy of a valid Italian identity document (passport or identity card);
- The original certificate, duly apostilled;
- A printed copy of the English translation;
- A prepaid Special Delivery envelope showing the address where the applicant wishes to receive the validated documents. This envelope can be purchased at any Post Office.
Postal Address
Notary Office
Consulate General of Italy in London
Harp House
83–86 Farringdon Street
London EC4A 4BL
United Kingdom
The cost of the service is the amount specified in Article 72C of the Consular Fees.