PERSONAL DOCUMENTS

It is most common for a certified copy to be legalised rather than the original document which allows you to retain the certificate in it”s original state. We will arrange for a solicitor to certify a true copy of the original.

Educational documents which are not degrees, diplomas, certificates, qualifications or other awards may be legalised if they have been issued by an educational establishment in the UK. This includes school reports and letters concerning enrolling, attendance, fees and grades.

Documents which are degrees, diplomas, certificates, qualifications or other awards can only be attested and legalised if they were issued by an educational establishment and if it is registered at one of the following websites:

– “Register of Providers” / “Recognised Degrees” sections of the Department for Innovation, Universities & Skills (DIUS) site
– the Scottish Qualifications Authority site
– the National Database of Accredited Qualifications website
– the British Accreditation Council site
– the Open and Distance Learning Quality Council
– the Association of British Language Schools

Please check the above before sending your certificate to us as we do not check on your behalf.

Additionally, qualifications which are or were issued by OCR, Edexcel, Higher National Diploma, City and Guilds, National Open College Network, GNVQ or the American Study Abroad Programme in the UK can also be legalised

If in doubt, please contact us and we will check with the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and the appropriate Embassy before you place your order.

For a Power of Attorney (POA) to be attested and legalised the document has to be signed and notarised by a UK practicing Notary (not a solicitor).

For a POA to be considered to be a personal document, all parties to the document must be individuals. If any party is a company or similar this would be considered to be a business document.

We cannot advise on the wording of your Power of Attorney and you should seek your own clarification from the appropriate authorities or from your own legal advisors.

Normally it is only the original certificate that can be attested but we are able to offer a service to obtain an official copy which bears the seal of the General Registry Office as an alternative to using your original certificate. This would avoid the need for you to send the original(s) is to us and also the need for your original certificate(s) to have the attestation stamps placed on them.

To avoid the possible delay and the stamps on your original we can order you the copy bearing the seal direct from the General Register Office (GRO) which takes 2 working days and an additional fee as follows:

If issued from:

England & Wales £60.00 per certificate and must be a minimum of 2 years old

Scotland £60.00 per certificate and must be a minimum of 8-10 months old

Northern Ireland £60.00 per certificate and must be a minimum of 6-8 months old

If you would prefer this option, choose the option “Please obtain a GRO copy” within the online order form and when your order has been submitted please email a copy of your original document so we may extract the necessary information to obtain the copy – if you do not have your original you can also type in the required information into the online order form.

Originals of these documents can be legalised if they have been signed in the UK by the individual(s) concerned and the signature(s) witnessed by a UK solicitor or Notary Public. The solicitor or notary public should certify this clearly on the document.

All documents issued by a UK court can be attested and legalised provided it is certified by a UK solicitor or Public Notary to confirm that the document is original if that is the case, or a certified photocopy. Both are equally acceptable for the purposes of attestation and legalisation. We will arrange for the solicitor on your behalf.

Documents to export pets overseas can be attested and legalised provided they are original documents and are signed by a qualified Veterinary Surgeon.

Please note that no other documents for pets can be legalised.