A death certificate is an emotional but important document issued by the Government to the nearest relatives of the deceased. The document states the date, location, and cause of death. Issuance of a death certificate means you are relieved from social, legal, and official obligations, you can settle the property if left behind the deceased person and can collect insurance and other benefits.
In India, you can complete many government and non-government cases using a death certificate. But in case the settlement has to be done abroad or you have to obtain the benefits of the deceased person from foreign countries, you will need an attested copy of the death certification. In other words, you have to go through the death certification attestation process.
What is death certificate attestation?
Death certificate attestation is one of the significant procedures to prove the realness of the certificate. The document is legalized after an attestation stamp from the designated officials and is accepted worldwide. According to experts, it’s an international procedure which is conducted to travel and take the benefits from foreign countries. Also, it is processed in the issuing country but as per the rules of the foreign countries.
Death certificate attestation falls under the sub-category of non-educational certificate attestation.
Documents required for death certificate attestation
No matter which country you are planning to travel to, the required documents for death certificate attestation are the same. The list of documents is:
- Original death certificate
- Copy of your passport
Death certificate attestation procedure
We already mentioned that the certificate is attested by designated officials. But the twist is these officials do not fall under one department. The certificate will go through different departments to complete the attestation procedure. The departments are:
Notary– It’s the first and most basic necessity of any law legalization procedure. The officials from the local notary check the details about the certificate at the ground level. They try communicating with the issuance department or the crosscheck with the immediate relatives.
Home department– After the notary, the document is moved to the home department. It’s the second step of the legalization procedure where the document is verified by the appointed officials only. After verification, the document is stamped at the home department.
SDM or sub-divisional magistrate- It’s a standalone department of the main state government and operates separately. It’s considered as an alternative for the home department and the document is processed through only if it mandatory. If not, then you can skip SDM attestation in the death certificate attestation process.
MEA or ministry of external affairs– For home government, MEA or ministry of the external affair is the last stage of the certificate attestation procedure. It’s the central authorization that deals with the external affairs of the country.