Saudi Arabia Certificate Attestation

Saudi Arabia certificate attestation requirements depend on whether the document is educational, personal, or commercial, as well as the country where it was issued. University degrees, marriage certificates, birth certificates, police clearance certificates, powers of attorney, and corporate documents each have separate Saudi legalisation requirements.

1. Educational Documents: Degree, Diploma and Transcript Attestation

• Document types: degree certificates (Bachelor’s, Master’s and PhD), diplomas, and academic transcripts.
• Saudi MOFA requirement for foreign university documents: A university certificate or academic record issued outside Saudi Arabia must be attested by the Saudi Cultural Attaché and by the Saudi Embassy, or the nearest Saudi Embassy, in the country where the certificate was issued.
• Mosadaqa verification: Mosadaqa is the Saudi Ministry of Education and Saudi Cultural Mission verification service for non-Saudi qualifications. It contacts the issuing university to verify the certificate, mode of study, and course details. It covers diploma, bachelor’s, higher diploma, master’s, and PhD qualifications.
• Saudi MOE equivalency: The recommended-university list and the 75% study / 25% transfer-credit rules apply to Saudi Ministry of Education degree-equivalency applications. They should not be stated as a blanket rule for every Saudi work-visa attestation.

2. Personal and Vital Records

• Document types: marriage certificates, birth certificates, police clearance certificates, single-status certificates, and experience certificates.
• No SACM requirement: Saudi Cultural Attaché and Mosadaqa verification apply to non-Saudi educational qualifications, not to marriage, birth, single-status, or police clearance certificates.
• Documents issued in the UAE: Before UAE MOFA attestation, the original document must bear the seal of the relevant UAE issuing government entity. Whether a Saudi Embassy or Saudi Consulate endorsement is required depends on the Saudi authority receiving the document.
• Documents issued outside the UAE: Saudi MOFA applies different conditions according to the document type, issuing country, and nationality of the holder. Foreign marriage and birth certificates should not be described as following the same educational-document procedure.

3. Commercial and Corporate Documents

• Document types: Memorandum of Association, articles of association, trade licences, commercial registrations, commercial invoices, certificates of origin, board resolutions, and commercial powers of attorney.
• Saudi MOFA requirement: Commercial and industrial documents submitted for Saudi MOFA ratification must first be certified by the relevant Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Do not state that Dubai Chamber certification is compulsory for every document without checking the issuing authority and Saudi recipient requirement.
• Commercial invoices and certificates of origin: UAE MOFA directs these documents to its eDAS service rather than the standard document-attestation service.
• Power of Attorney: A Power of Attorney must be classified by its purpose. UAE MOFA treats personal POAs separately from commercial-nature and general POAs, so a personal POA should not automatically be placed in the Chamber-certified commercial category.