Legalization of Your NUMSS (Spain) Degree

I am pleased to share that my work in Seville, Spain finished three days earlier than expected—which, in Spain, truly feels like a miracle. I decided to take a short break and visit Quinta do Lago in Portugal, the most exclusive community in the country. It is a beautiful area and I am enjoying the time here.

As mentioned previously, the legalization process in Spain has changed. It is now mandatory for the signature of the university president on the degree to be witnessed by a notary in Spain. In the past, this was not required.

Since I no longer reside in Spain—I sold my home and farm (Finca de Pourgol) last year and relocated to Florida to focus on expanding manual osteopathy in the United States—it is not practical for me to travel frequently to Spain for each legalization request. This created challenges, as several students have recently requested degree legalization.

Fortunately, my lawyer in Madrid has arranged a solution. During this trip, I appeared before a notary who officially witnessed and registered my signature. This means that moving forward, the legalization process can be completed remotely without requiring my physical presence in Spain each time.

Due to this change, students wishing to legalize their NUMSS (Spain) degrees must now use the Madrid-based law firm that coordinated this notary process. You may obtain their contact details from the NUMSS (Spain) admissions office.

While it is still technically possible to use another law firm or attempt the process independently, doing so would require flying me to Spain to sign before a different notary, which could cost approximately $10,000 in my travel costs. For this reason, it is far more practical to proceed with the designated law firm, whose fee is approximately €1,000 for handling the full process.

There is also a new logistical cost to consider. Since the degree must be physically signed by me in the presence of a notary (or under the registered signature system), NUMSS (Spain) must ship the original degree to my location for signing, and then it must be shipped back. I do not charge for my time and continue to offer this service to students at no cost, but shipping expenses must be covered by the student.

To minimize costs and avoid duplicate printing fees, it is best to inform NUMSS (Spain) before you order a degree certificate if you intend to legalize your degree.

Finally, please note that legalization is not required unless specifically requested by an authority. Your NUMSS degree is already valid and authenticated. Legalization is typically only necessary for specific purposes such as immigration, government employment, or hospital-based positions. If no authority has requested it, there is no need to proceed with legalization.

Have a wonderful day and God bless.

Dr. Shawn Pourgol, MBA, DC, DO, DN, PhD
Osteopath, Naprapath, Chiropractor & Founder of:
National Academy of Osteopathy (Canada, USA)
National University of Medical Sciences (USA, Spain, Panama)
Osteopathy Chronic Pain Clinics of Canada (380 clinics in 34 countries)
Florida Naprapathic Association 
World Osteopathy Day