Legalization / Attestation

Attestation is the process of having your educational, non-educational, and commercial documents, such as degrees, birth/marriage certificates, agreements/contracts, and so on, certified for authenticity, primarily for overseas travel or applying for work permits, dependent visas, or resident permits in foreign countries. Except for countries that subscribe to the Hague Convention, 1962, where attestation is a two-step process, attestation is typically a three-step process. The following are the measures to take.

1st Level/State Attestation

This is the first level of attestation that is required by the particular state that issued the certificate originally and is also known as Home attestation/GAD attestation depending on the type of document under consideration. In the event of educational certificates, this attestation is necessary from the state education department, as well as the Home Department or General Administration Department (GAD). The next stage is either MEA attestation or MEA certification.

2nd Level/MEA attestation or Apostille

Following state authentication, the document is forwarded to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) for further attestation. MEA provides two types of attestation, a regular stamp and an Apostille sticker, depending on the situation. Apostille is performed for countries that adhere to the Hague Convention, which currently has 92 signatories. An Apostille stamp eliminates the need for additional attestation from the embassy or high commission of the nation to which the document will be submitted. It’s a square-shaped computer-generated stamp that’s affixed to the document’s backside. MEA affixes a regular stamp on the reverse of the document for all other nations, after which it is submitted to the corresponding Embassy/High Commission for attestation.

3rd Level/Embassy Attestation

After the MEA attestation, certificates for non-Hague member nations are sent to the corresponding Embassy/High Commission office for final verification. After validating the attestation done by the Ministry of External Affairs, the embassy/high commission stamps the certificate with its own stamp.

FAQs

What is a document’s attestation or legalisation?

Attestation is the process of having your documents, including educational, non-educational, and commercial documents, such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, degrees, agreements, and contracts, certified for use in other countries.

Why are certifications and original documents subject to Attestation, Legalisation, and Authentication?

To confirm the validity of documents, primarily for applications for international travel, work permits, dependent and resident permits, and commercial operations. The use of a document after it has been produced varies depending on the type of document. A few examples are shown below, however, this is not a full list.
Educational documents – Are primarily utilised to obtain a job or pursue higher education in another country.
Non-Educational Documents — Birth/Marriage certificates/Sworn affidavits are the most common non-educational documents confirmed for dependent/reunion visas, employment, and further education, among other things.
Commercial Documents – Agreements/contracts between Indian and Foreign entities, Power of Attorney etc. are required to be attested for commercial, legal and third party representations.

What is an Apostille, and how does it work?

The Ministry of External Affairs affixes an apostille on the reverse of a document, which is a square-shaped, computer-generated stamp. It is legal in countries that adhere to the Hague Convention, which now includes 92 countries around the world. Unlike a regular MEA attestation, an Apostille stamp does not require any further attestation from the embassy or high commission of the nation to which the document will be submitted.

Does the Indian government attest copy of certificates?

For attestation, the Indian government only accepts originals.