The family record book is a document in which the relationship between parents and children is recorded, as well as all the civil events of a family, from new births to divorces or deaths. This document is issued by the Civil Registry when a couple marries or, in the case of unmarried couples, when registering a child. It has always been a physical document, but the new Civil Registry Law, passed in 2015, envisages that this document will change from a physical to a digital format and, in addition, a modification consisting of an individual electronic certificate in which all the civil events of the citizen appear. The aim of all this is to speed up bureaucratic procedures.

Its usefulness is varied and ranges from elements that cover the whole family to those that concern individual members. In the following, we will explain some of the situations in which this book should be presented. We will start by saying that the family record book is necessary for simple matters such as registering children in the place where they live, processing their ID card or passport when they are still minors and even registering them with the Social Security. It is also necessary to present it in the case of travelling with a baby who does not have a DNI, to apply for unemployment or unemployment benefit, to sign an employment contract or request maternity and paternity leave, and finally to apply for a place in a nursery or school.

Being such an important document, it is obvious that its translation can also be essential, especially if you live in a foreign country. To begin with, it is important to highlight that in order to translate this document, a sworn translation must be requested or, in other words, an official certified translation that can only be carried out by an official sworn translator who is accredited by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (MAEC). Once translated, it can be requested for a variety of situations. For example, when one of the two partners is a foreigner and their family record book is not in the official language of the country in which they live, in order to formalise an adoption in another country, or when minor children study in a country whose language differs from that of their family record book.