Do you need to request an Italian certificate of pending charges for Burundi? You have come to the right place. This guide explains what a certificate of pending charges is, where to request it in Italy, and the steps for its legal recognition in Burundi.
The Certificate of Pending Charges (Certificato dei Carichi Pendenti) is a document certifying whether or not there are ongoing criminal proceedings within the jurisdiction of the specific Italian Public Prosecutor’s Office (Procura della Repubblica) that issues it, in which the holder is a defendant.
Since each Public Prosecutor’s Office only holds information regarding ongoing criminal proceedings within its own jurisdiction and there is no centralized database, it may be necessary to request the document from multiple Offices depending on one’s specific certification needs.
If you need to certify the absence or presence of final convictions (including final judgments in specific civil cases and administrative proceedings), you must instead request a Criminal Record Certificate (Certificato del Casellario Giudiziale). Unlike the Certificate of Pending Charges, this second document includes information on some final convictions and judgments received, regardless of which Italian Court issued the final judgment.
The procedure for the legal recognition of an Italian certificate of pending charges in Burundi requires the document to be legalized by affixing an apostille, as the Hague Convention is in force in both Italy and Burundi.
In this case, to have the certificate of pending charges recognized by the authorities in Burundi, it must be eligible for an apostille at the issuing Public Prosecutor’s Office. Eligibility requires the document to be signed with a wet-ink signature from an official whose handwritten signature is on file with the Public Prosecutor’s Office for the authentication of documents intended for use abroad. If the document is eligible, another official at the Public Prosecutor’s Office will affix an apostille. The affixation of the apostille stamp certifies that the document is indeed a public document.
Following the affixation of the apostille, the document must also be translated into a language recognized by Burundi, like Kirundi, unless it is already issued in one of those languages or in a format that includes one, in accordance with the translation requirements in force in Burundi.
In cases where translation is necessary, the simplest option is to have the translation done directly in Burundi, as no further formalities would be required for its recognition. If it is not possible to have the translation done in Burundi, the document can be translated in Italy by performing either a certified translation (traduzione certificata) or a sworn translation (traduzione giurata), a translation whose content is sworn before a Court, a Notary or a Giudice di Pace. Before proceeding with a translation in Italy, it is essential to verify with the receiving authority which type of translation is accepted and whether any additional formalities are required for its recognition.
Should you need assistance in requesting your certificate of pending charges in Italy for Burundi, please do not hesitate to contact us!
We can also assist with its apostille at the Public Prosecutor’s Office and/or its official translation.
We can also request other types of documents on your behalf from Italian Courts and Public Prosecutor’s Offices, such as criminal record certificates and copies of court judgments.
Furthermore, we can assist with a wide range of administrative procedures at Courts, Public Prosecutor’s Offices, Prefectures (Prefetture) and Municipalities (Comuni) throughout Italy.
