UAE Attestation of Indian Documents for People Already in the UAE
The UAE is not an apostille country. Indian documents need a full attestation chain, and most of it has to happen in India.
Read the guide
Country guide
Attestation for Dubai
The same UAE attestation chain — and what changes once your document reaches Dubai.
Non-Hague — full embassy chain required
Dubai is one of the seven emirates of the United Arab Emirates, and attestation for Dubai is attestation for the UAE. There is no separate Dubai stamp and no Dubai-only embassy route: an Indian document needs state verification, MEA attestation, attestation by the UAE Embassy in New Delhi, and then the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
What does differ in Dubai is what happens after attestation — which authority reviews the document, and what else that authority asks for. A certificate can be perfectly attested and still not be enough on its own for a Dubai healthcare licence or for recognition of a degree. This page covers those Dubai-specific steps; for the attestation chain itself, see our UAE attestation guide.
Typical timeline
12–20 working days end to end, depending on the issuing state — the same as for the rest of the UAE. We confirm an exact estimate for your specific document and issuing state before you commit.
One chain for every emirate
The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs sets out the order for any document issued outside the UAE: it is attested first by the foreign ministry of the country that issued it, then by the UAE Embassy or Consulate in that country, and then through the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs. That applies whether the document is going to Dubai, Abu Dhabi or Sharjah.
So if you are told a document needs “Dubai attestation”, it means this same chain. Anyone offering a shortcut that is only valid in Dubai is describing something the UAE government does not list.
Healthcare jobs in Dubai: attestation and verification are separate
Healthcare professionals working in Dubai are licensed by the Dubai Health Authority. Its Dubai Health Authority licensing manual (version 1.2, effective May 2025) states that all healthcare professionals must be licensed to provide healthcare services in the emirate of Dubai, and must meet requirements covering qualifications, experience, licensing from their home country, good standing, assessment and primary source verification.
Primary source verification is DHA’s own check: it validates the documents required for a licence directly with the organisation that issued them. It is not the same thing as attestation and does not replace it. Many applicants need both — attestation for the employment side, verification for the licence — so check exactly what your employer and the licensing process have asked for before starting either.
The regulator also depends on the emirate. DHA’s manual lists the UAE’s health regulators by geographical jurisdiction: the Ministry of Health and Prevention, the Department of Health in Abu Dhabi, and the Dubai Health Authority. A licence process for Abu Dhabi is a different process from Dubai’s.
Degree recognition in the UAE changed in 2023
Recognition of a foreign degree is decided at federal level, so it applies in Dubai as everywhere else in the UAE. On 22 June 2023 the UAE Ministry of Education replaced its University Qualification Equivalency system with a University Certificates Recognition system for degrees from institutions outside the UAE.
The Ministry said the new system removed several earlier conditions, including the need to attest previous degrees and minimum physical-presence periods for bachelor’s and master’s graduates. For universities ranked in the top 200, verifying the validity of the certificate is enough. Degrees in engineering, medicine and law remain subject to additional conditions.
Recognition is a separate step from attestation, handled with the Ministry. Whether your particular job needs it is a question for your employer — we will tell you plainly where our work ends.
What affects the cost for Dubai
Dubai is not priced differently from the rest of the UAE. The attestation chain is federal — state stage, MEA, UAE Embassy in New Delhi, then MOFA — so a document going to Dubai costs the same as one going to Abu Dhabi or Sharjah.
What changes the number is the document, not the emirate. Educational documents carry the HRD stage and any fee your university charges to confirm its own records; personal documents do not. The UAE Embassy charges per document, so a family sending four certificates pays that stage four times.
If you are already in Dubai, the practical cost to watch is the courier, in both directions. Send us the list and the destination and we will set out every charge, separating ours from the embassy’s.
Process
The Dubai attestation process, step by step
State verification
HRD for educational documents, Home Department or SDM for personal documents, Chamber of Commerce for commercial.
MEA attestation
Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi.
UAE Embassy attestation
The UAE Embassy in New Delhi applies its stamp.
UAE MOFA attestation
The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs completes the chain — the same step for Dubai as for every other emirate.
Documents
Documents commonly attested for Dubai
| Document | Usually needed for |
|---|---|
| Degree & diploma certificates | Employment in Dubai, and UAE degree recognition where the job requires it |
| Mark sheets & transcripts | Further study and credential checks |
| Birth certificates | Family and dependant residence, school admission |
| Marriage certificates | Spouse sponsorship and family residence |
| Police clearance certificates | Employment and residence applications |
| Commercial documents | Company registration and trade licences in Dubai |
Clients outside India
Apostille & Attestation from Abroad, Simply Send by Courier or Scanned Copies
Most of our clients live outside India. There is no need to travel: send your Indian documents to our New Delhi office and we handle every stamp.
Message us first
Tell us the document and destination country. We confirm exactly what to send before you courier anything.
Courier your originals
Send them to our New Delhi office by DHL, FedEx or any courier you prefer.
We handle every stamp
State verification, MEA apostille or attestation, and embassy legalisation, with an update at each stage.
Returned to you
Your completed documents are couriered back to your address anywhere in the world.
Courier charges for sending documents to us and for returning them are paid by the client.
Guides
Read the guide
Questions
Frequently asked questions
No. Dubai is part of the UAE, and the attestation chain is the same for every emirate: state verification, MEA attestation, UAE Embassy attestation in New Delhi, then the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
DHA licensing relies on primary source verification, where DHA validates documents directly with the institution that issued them. That is a separate process from attestation. Your employer or visa process may still ask for attested certificates, so confirm what each side has requested before starting.
Some jobs require it. Since June 2023 the UAE Ministry of Education uses a University Certificates Recognition system, which removed the requirement to attest previous degrees; for top-200 ranked universities, verifying the certificate is enough. Engineering, medicine and law have additional conditions.
The attestation chain is identical across the UAE. What differs is the authority that reviews the document afterwards — for healthcare, for example, Abu Dhabi has its own Department of Health.
Not sure where to start?
Send us the document and the destination country. We will reply within one working hour with the exact process, timeline and cost.