A Quick Guide to Document Apostille Process in India
Document Apostille is a type of document attestation service for the legalization of your documents and certificates in member countries of the Hague Convention. Apostille services are required when you are seeking a visa to stay in Apostille Hague Convention countries including India, France, Germany, Canada, Mexico, UK, USA, Japan, and so on. Be it for employment, education, work, or residency, you will need to get mandatory documents attested for the visa process.
Apostille services are required to attest documents such as birth certificates, educational certificates, marriage certificates, and others for official and legal uses.
Apostille service in India is required when someone is going to a foreign country for all sorts of reasons and need to obtain work, employment, student, or residence visa for temporary or permanent stay in that country. It is the process of document attestation and legalization by obtaining an apostille sticker and/or stamp from the authority as proof that all the documents you are submitting are genuinely issued from designated officials. After getting the Apostille stamp from the MEA, you do not require any additional certification or attestation from the embassy.
The Process of Apostille Attestation
The requirement of apostille service in India is growing since independence due to increased business, work, and education opportunities in foreign countries. India is a member of the Hague Convention since 2005 and provides apostille services for document legalization for use in almost all the Hague countries. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) provides apostille stickers and stamps with a validity of six months.
The Apostille process in India is decentralized to carry out document apostille from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). For different types of documents, the apostille procedure differentiates to get attested from different authorities. Basic steps involved in the document apostille process include:
- Notary Attestation
- Home Department Attestation
- HRD (Human Resource Department) Attestation
- Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Attestation
- Chamber of Commerce Attestation
- MEA (Ministry of External Affairs) Attestation
Depending on the type of documents you want to get attested for your visa class, you need to go to different authorities during the process for document attestation at different stages. Documents that require apostille stamps are mainly categorized into three types:
1. Personal Documents
It includes:
- Marriage Certificate
- Birth Certificate
- Divorce Certificate
- Death Certificate
- Adoption Deed
- Medical Certificate
- Police Clearance Certificate (PCC)
- Experience Certificate
- Migration Certificate
- Passport Copies etc.
Personal document apostille process requires notary attestation, HRD or SDM attestation, and apostille from MEA.
2. Educational Documents
It includes:
- Degree Certificate
- SSC Certificate
- Transfer Certificate
- Transcript Certificate
- Mark Sheet
- School Leaving Certificate
- Engineering Certificate
- Diploma Certificate
- Nursing Certificate etc.
Educational document apostille process includes notary attestation, HRD or SDM, or home department attestation to get the apostille stamp.
3. Commercial Documents
It includes:
- Memorandum Of Association
- Power Of Attorney
- Authority Letter
- Board Resolution
- Article Of Association
- Certificate Of Incorporation
- Commercial Invoice
- Bill Of Lading
- Insurance Certificate
- Invoice Bills etc.
The commercial document apostille process requires you to get a chamber of commerce attestation and apostille from MEA to complete the process.
When you look to get your documents attested or apostille from MEA, a registered and government authorized agency can help you with your document apostille service in India through a hassle-free process. At Globo Prime, we provide apostille service in India for attestation of all types of documents. Contact us to know more about the document apostille process and fees for specific documents as per your requirements and travel goals.