How to get Documents Attested by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA Attestation) for the U.A.E ?
Whether you already live in the U.A.E or are planning to move to the United Arab Emirates, you will need to sort your documents and prepare them for any of the purposes of visiting, opening a business, company registration, bringing your family, maid or parents to live with you etc. The one common thing with all is that irrespective of the document type, you need to get them attested before they can be accepted as legally valid.
Here i will try to explain in detail the process of getting your document attested by the Ministry of foreign Affairs and International cooperation also more commonly known as ‘MOFA’ in short.
Why ‘MOFA’ Attestation?
MOFA is the central Government agency that deals with all things foreign to the U.A.E. So whether we are talking about goods ,people, pets or documents without the M.O.F.A approval nothing can come in to the U.A.E.
So if you are one of the million expatriates, living and working in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah or anywhere in one of the seven emirates that make up the UAE, you will find that for some reason or other you need to visit the MOFA office to get your documents attested.
It could be that your prospective employer needs you to get a ‘good conduct’ certificate or a ‘police clearance’ certificate, before they consider you for the new job. It could be that you need to get your power of attorney issued at your home country attested before you can use it for getting a loan. It couls also be that you have been working in the UAE for some time and now want to bring in your spouse or kids fro your home country to live with you and you need to sponsor their VISA.
For all the reasons mentioned above you need to visit the MOFA office to get everything done.
The Process:
There are 3 ways to deal with this.
- Visit the MOFA office in person to get things done.
- Visit the MOFA website and follow the process mentioned below:
Service Procedures:
a)- Registration Process:
Visit MOFA website and register according to customer type (individuals or companies). Fill out the required information according to fields given in the registration form.
b)- Application Process:
In order to submit the application, Simply fill in the fields in the online form, then attach a copy of document, and select the part of the document where attestation stamping is required as per document type.(check with the MOFA website as choosing the correct stamping place is very important)
c)- Review Phase:
The application submitted is reviewed by UAE Embassy / Customer Happiness Centers within the UAE. In case all the formalities are perfect and laid down procedures and conditions are met , the approval is sent to customer to complete payment process.(remember Do not make any payment before you get the approval from the MOFA)
d)- Payment of Fees:
Once you obtain the approval of MOFA for the payment process, log in MoFAIC website , select “My Tasks”, and make the payment.
5. Receipt of documents:
Once you complete the payment process, then you still need to visit the UAE Embassy / Customer Happiness Centers inside the UAE to attest the original documents.
3. Hire an Attestation Firm.
There are numerous attestation firms registered and licensed to provide all your required services under one roof and you can get all of it done without even having to visit the Embassy or customer service centers even once.
There are document attestation companies and certificate attestation firms which will collect your documents from your designated pick up place and then deliver to right you want them to.
Attestation companies such as Attestation house charge you a service fee for the services rendered but they make the whole process super easy and you can focus on what’s really important to you and leave all the mundane tasks to the professionals.
