Dubai Consulate Attestation Process: Which Consulate Stamps Your Document

What Consulate Attestation Means

Consular attestation means an embassy or consulate confirms that the signature or seal of the previous official on your document is genuine. It does not check that the content is true. It is one link in a chain, and the chain must be followed in order.

The UAE is not a party to the Hague Apostille Convention, as the Hague Conference status table shows. That is why one stamp from the issuing country is not enough here, and why consulates are involved at all.

Documents Coming to the UAE: the UAE Embassy or Consulate Abroad

For a document issued in another country, the UAE embassy attestation process happens in that country, before the document arrives. The usual order is:

1. The document is issued, or a copy is notarised, in the issuing country.
2. The issuing country’s foreign ministry attests it.
3. The UAE embassy or consulate in that country attests it.
4. MOFAIC in the UAE attests it, as set out on the MOFAIC attestation page.

MOFAIC fees are AED 150 for personal documents and AED 2,000 for commercial documents. Fees charged abroad, and the order your embassy follows, are set by that country, so check them before you start. Our guide to document attestation in Dubai, from lawyer to MOFAIC covers the UAE end in detail.

If the document is a degree or a marriage certificate, see our pages on degree certificate attestation and marriage certificate attestation.

Documents Leaving the UAE: Notary, MOFAIC, Then the Destination Consulate

For a document made in Dubai and used abroad, the order runs the other way. The consulate attestation Dubai step comes last, at the consulate of the country where the document will be used.

1. Prepare the document, with a legal translation if the receiving country needs one.
2. Have it notarised.
3. Have MOFAIC attest it.
4. Take it to the consulate or embassy of the destination country in the UAE.

Many countries have their consulate in Dubai and their embassy in Abu Dhabi. Each one sets its own appointment system, forms and rules for consulate attestation in UAE offices, so ask the consulate which office takes your document type.

Translations for official use are done by a legal translator registered with the UAE Ministry of Justice. Notarising a translation in the instrument costs AED 50 per page under the federal fee schedule.

Where the Notary Step Fits

In the Dubai consulate attestation process, the notary comes first, before MOFAIC and before any consulate. Without a notarised document, MOFAIC has nothing to attest, and the consulate has nothing to confirm.

In Dubai, a private notary is a lawyer licensed by Dubai Courts to carry out notarial acts. We prepare and draft your document, translate it where needed, and handle your notarisation at our Business Bay office, online or at your home. Then we guide you through the MOFAIC and consulate steps that follow.

Some consulates also offer their own notarial services for their citizens. Where that is the case, the consulate may be the right route, and we will say so. Read our page on notarial services at the Philippine consulate in Dubai for an example, and our page on Indian notary and document attestation.

For how the notary step itself works, see how to notarise a document in Dubai.

What to Check Before You Start the Dubai Consulate Attestation Process

Most rejections come from a skipped step or a mismatch. Check these first:

• the country where the document will be used, and its consulate’s current requirements
• whether the document is personal or commercial, because MOFAIC fees differ
• whether the original is needed or a certified copy is accepted
• that names and dates match across every document in the file
• whether a legal translation is needed, and into which language
• the order of stamps: notary, MOFAIC, then consulate

Our own service fee depends on the document, so ask us for the figure when you send it. Government, translation and consulate fees are separate. See notary public fees in Dubai for how the cost is made up.