National Police Corps of Spain

National Police Corps
Cuerpo Nacional de Policía
Common name Policía Nacional
Abbreviation CNP
Logo of the National Police Corps.
Badge of the National Police Corps.
Motto Ley y Orden
Law and Order
Agency overview
Formed March 13, 1986
Preceding agencies
  • Cuerpo Superior de Policía
  • Policía Nacional
Legal personality Governmental: Government agency
Jurisdictional structure
National agency
(Operations jurisdiction)		 Spain
Population 46,661,950
Legal jurisdiction As per operations jurisdiction.
Governing body Government of Spain
Constituting instruments
General nature
Operational structure
Overviewed by Directorate-General of the Police and the Civil Guard
Headquarters Madrid, Spain
Officers 87.872
Minister responsible Antonio Camacho Vizcaino, Minister of the Interior
Agency executive Francisco Javier Velázquez, Director-General
Website
http://www.policia.es

The National Police Corps (Spanish: Cuerpo Nacional de Policía, CNP; [ˈkwerpo naθjoˈnal de poliˈθi.a]) is the national civilian police force of Spain. The CNP is mainly responsible for policing urban areas, whilst countryside policing is generally the responsibility of the Guardia Civil, the Spanish gendarmerie. The CNP operates under the authority of Spain's Ministry of the Interior. They mostly handle criminal, judicial, terrorism and immigration matters. However, the CNP has limited competency in the Basque Country and Catalonia, where the autonomous Ertzaintza and Mossos d'Esquadra handle most matters except the most important ones like terrorism and organized crime.

Contents

Duties

Duties are regulated by the Organic law 2/1986 of March 13, 1986.

  1. The issuing of identity documents - ID cards and passports.
  2. To control receipts and outgoings of the foreign people and Spaniards.
  3. Immigration law, refuge and asylum, extradition and expulsion.
  4. Gaming enforcement
  5. Drug enforcement
  6. Collaborattion with Interpol and Europol.
  7. Control of private security companies
  8. General law enforcement

Access and training

Requirements

Basic Scale:

Executive Scale:

Competitive examination

The applicant can choose between a Basic Scale career or an Executive Scale career. Applicants must pass the following basic tests before starting the academy:

Training academy

If the applicant has been chosen, they will receive professional training in Ávila's police academy for six months. Whilst trainees reside at the academy, they learn about Spanish law, receive firearms and self-defense training, conduct practical application exercises, learn the basics of the English language and undergo training in crime investigation. After that, the applicant will have the aula práctica, that mixes theoretical knowledge with practical situations for three months. Finally, the pupil will receive a policing practice, in which there will be various common situations that will form him as an agent.

Ranks

Pay scale Superior Executive Deputy Inspector Basic
Comisario Principal Comisario Inspector Jefe Inspector Subinspector Oficial Agente
English equivalent Commissioner Superintendent Chief Inspector Inspector Deputy Inspector Sergeant Officer

Specialist units

There are numerous specialist units:

Nicknames

An earlier uniform was brown, leading to the nickname la madera/los maderos ("the wood"/"the logs"). They are also called la pasma. Among supporters of the violent Basque terrorist organization ETA, Policía Nacional are colloquially referred to as txakurrak (Basque for "the dogs").

Gallery

Citroën C4 Picasso  
Eurocopter EC120  
VAMTAC  

See also

External links

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Regional
Local