International cases · Prison
Cases and sentences in more than one country
More and more people have a criminal record in more than one country, or are serving a sentence in one while another asks for them. Spanish law has rules for this situation, and some changed recently in favour of the person convicted. Knowing them can mean years of difference.
Saúl Rosell Manglano · Criminal defence lawyer · Madrid · ICAM 83.198
The essentials
EU
Final convictions in other EU countries can count in Spain as previous convictions, unless they would already be cancelled under Spanish law.
2024
Since a reform of October 2024, prison time served in other EU countries is taken into account for the maximum limit of prison time in Spain.
Once
Nobody can be punished twice for the same facts, whether the first judgment was given in Spain or in another EU country.
Previous convictions in other countries
EU countries exchange criminal records. A final conviction in another EU country can be treated in Spain like a Spanish one, for example to apply the aggravating circumstance of reoffending or to refuse a suspended sentence. The exception is when that record would already have been cancelled under Spanish law because of the time that has passed. It is worth checking, because it often is.
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This comes from an EU rule of 2008 (Framework Decision 2008/675) that obliges member states to give previous convictions from other EU countries the same effects as national ones, before the trial, at the trial and when the sentence is enforced.
Maximum limit of prison time
When someone has several sentences for facts that could have been judged together, Spanish law sets a maximum limit of time actually served. Since Organic Law 4/2024, sentences already served in other EU countries are also taken into account to fix that limit in Spain. The Supreme Court has applied the change to older cases because it is more favourable to the person convicted.
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In practice this means reviewing the full list of sentences, in Spain and abroad, and asking the court that issued the last sentence to fix the limit. If nobody asks, nobody does it.
Time spent in custody abroad
Time spent in custody in another country for the same facts is deducted from the sentence. That includes time in custody in Spain waiting to be handed over on a European Arrest Warrant, which the issuing country has to deduct. The certificate of days in custody must be requested and sent, because it does not always travel by itself.
Cases open in Spain and abroad at the same time
If someone in a Spanish prison is also wanted by another country, the Spanish court can postpone the surrender until the Spanish case is over, or agree to a temporary surrender. And if the same facts are being investigated in two countries, there are ways to coordinate so that only one of them goes ahead. A judgment in one EU country prevents a second trial for the same facts in another.
When two countries want the same person
Sometimes two European Arrest Warrants, or a warrant and an extradition request from outside the EU, concern the same person. The Spanish authority then decides which goes first, considering the seriousness of the offences, where they were committed, the dates of the requests and whether each one is for trial or to serve a sentence, among other factors. The Court of Justice of the EU has said that this decision must be open to challenge before a court.
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For the person concerned the order is not a technicality: it can decide in which country the first trial takes place, where the sentence is served and whether the second request is ever executed.
How we will understand each other
I work in Spanish. With my clients from abroad I use translation tools to read and answer messages, and we manage well that way. At the police station and in court the law gives you a free interpreter, and I make sure that right is respected. If you write to me in English, I will answer you.
Common questions
I served a sentence in Germany and now I have a sentence in Spain. Does that count?
It can, if the facts could have been judged together in time. Since the 2024 reform, time served in other EU countries is taken into account for the maximum limit in Spain. It has to be requested from the court.
Will a conviction from another country stop me getting a suspended sentence in Spain?
It may, if it is final and would not be cancelled under Spanish law. Whether it can be cancelled depends on the type of offence, the sentence and the time passed, so it has to be checked case by case.
Two countries want me at the same time. Who decides where I go first?
The Spanish authority, weighing the seriousness of the offences, where they were committed, the dates of the requests and whether each one is for trial or to serve a sentence. The order can decide where you are tried first and where you serve time, so it is worth arguing.
Is it urgent?
Call me on 688 884 488. I answer the phone myself, at any hour.
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