QUESTION
A friend of mine has organized a business stay in Slovakia as the manager of a limited liability company. He is already registered as a manager in the commercial register. However, he was informed that, as a foreigner from Iran, he needs to provide a criminal record statement to the trade office, super-legalized. How can he arrange this, and does he have to be physically present to do so?
THE ANSWER
Once a foreigner is registered as an executive of a commercial company, it’s only a matter of time before the trade office requests that they submit a criminal record extract. If a foreigner holds temporary residence in Slovakia for at least 6 months, obtaining a Slovak criminal record extract is typically sufficient. This can usually be done at a post office. Note that many post offices may require the presentation of the foreigner’s birth certificate to request a criminal record extract, but exceptions can be found.
Alternatively, the foreigner can obtain a criminal record extract from their country of origin, in this case, Iran. However, in the case of Iranian nationals, the Trade Office requires a super-legalized criminal record extract. This means the document must be confirmed by the Ministry of Justice of Iran, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran, and the Slovak Embassy in Iran. After these steps, it should be officially translated into Slovak (it’s recommended to have the translation done in Slovakia).
Regarding the confirmation by the Slovak Embassy in Iran, the foreigner doesn’t necessarily need to attend the embassy in person. Instead, they can send the document for super-legalization by mail. The embassy typically prefers to receive a scan of the criminal record extract by email for verification of signature patterns by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran. After verification, the document can be sent by mail to the embassy, along with the required fee. However, it’s crucial to ensure that the documents are collected and transported to Slovakia.
If a foreigner has been granted residence and subsequently registered in the commercial register, it takes several months for the trade office to request the submission of a criminal record extract. Given the time-consuming process of super-legalization and the requirement for a recent criminal record extract (not older than 90 days), it’s advisable to start addressing these requirements as soon as possible after being registered as a new manager in the commercial register.