Where to Get FBI Fingerprints in Madrid: Every Option Compared (with Prices)

You have two options. You can book an appointment at a private service like ours, or you can try one of three police stations in the Madrid region: Móstoles (Tuesdays at 11:00 AM), Pozuelo de Alarcón (Wednesdays at 11:00 AM), or Alcalá de Henares (Thursdays at 11:00 AM). Days and times at the police stations change often, so call before you go.

At Blueprint Spain, fingerprints cost €105, which includes the $18 FBI fee and UPS expedited shipping to the FBI. Our complete service, with the expedited apostille and the sworn translation, is €290 plus 21% VAT (€350.90 in total). The other four companies in our comparison charge between about €500 and €675 for the same three services.

Not by as much as you might think. You still pay the $18 FBI fee, a courier to the FBI (about €50), the $20 apostille fee, a courier to Washington, D.C. (about €50), and shipping back to Spain (about $60–80), plus a sworn translation (€50–85). You also take the risk that the station won't take your prints, or that the FBI rejects ink prints and you have to start over.

Some do, but it's hit or miss. The Policía Científica at Móstoles, Pozuelo de Alarcón, and Alcalá de Henares take them once a week, but some stations make you wait or won't take them at all, depending on the officer and how busy they are. Call ahead, and say the fingerprints are for an FBI background check, not for extranjería (immigration).

As far as we know, no. The Madrid stations don't book appointments for FBI fingerprints: you go on the day, at about 11:00 AM. Days and times change often, so call the station before you go.

No. The U.S. Embassy in Madrid and the U.S. consulates in Spain don't take fingerprints for FBI background checks.

No. Live Scan sends fingerprints to the FBI electronically from approved locations in the U.S. From Spain, the FBI needs your fingerprints on a physical card (FD-1164 or FD-258), sent by mail. Be wary of any company that offers to send fingerprints taken in Spain to the FBI electronically. We take your fingerprints on a digital scanner, print them onto the card, and mail it to the FBI for you.

The FBI usually processes your fingerprints in 4–5 business days once it receives them. With our complete service, apostille and sworn translation included, plan on about 4 weeks for digital copies and about 5 weeks for physical copies. Doing it yourself by mail usually takes longer: the apostille alone can take 2–6 months to come back to Spain.

If you take them at a police station, you'll have to start all over. If you take them with us, it's extremely rare they are rejected. 99% of the fingerprints we take are accepted by the FBI the first time. If they're rejected, we retake them free of charge. All our clients have had their prints accepted. 100%. If for some reason we can't get your FBI background check, we'll refund you, unless your fingers are too damaged to take usable prints.

To our office, just an ID. We print your fingerprints onto the FBI fingerprint card for you. At a police station, bring your passport and two blank fingerprint cards (FD-1164 or FD-258).

Yes. We do home visits for an extra fee, and from time to time we hold pop-up fingerprinting events in other cities, such as Valencia, Barcelona, and Málaga. Contact us to ask about a home visit or our next pop-up.