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Authenticate an Indian Document

Authenticate an Indian Document for Use in the United States

India is party to the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents ("Hague Legalization Convention").  As such, some Indian documents can be authenticated/legalized for use overseas by the issuance of an "apostille" sticker at the Ministry of External Affairs, Consular-Passport-Visa (CPV) Division in New Delhi.  Documents with apostille stickers do not require further authentification at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate General. 

Apostille
Apostille stickers apply to public documents such as birth, death, and marriage certificates, affidavits, powers of attorney, court documents, notarial acts, degrees, diplomas, matriculation and secondary level certificates. 

All documents should first be authenticated by the designated agency in the state of the document’s origin before requesting an apostille.

For educational documents, state governments have now opened Regional Authentication Centers (RAC’s) where the document should first be attested. Documents attested by these authorities then need to be presented to MEA for issuance of the apostille sticker.

Apostilles do not apply to:

  • Commercial documents
  • Customs operations documents
  • Documents executed by diplomatic or consular agent

To authenticate these documents for use in the United States, you must

  1. Have the document attested at the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA)
  2. Make an appointment at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate for authentification.

Fees
Complete fee information is available here. If applying in person, you may pay with cash dollars, cash rupees (at the current exchange rate), demand draft or a major U.S. credit card. Personal checks are not accepted.

Directions and Hours of the MEA
To receive an Apostille on an Indian document or for attestation of documents before you present them at the Embassy or Consulate, you must go in person to:

   Attestations Office
   Ministry of External Affairs (CPV Division)
   Patiala House, Tilak Marg (near India Gate)
   New Delhi - 110 001
   Tel. +91-11-2338-7931

The office's hours for dropping off documents are 9:30 am - 12:00 pm Monday through Friday (excluding Indian public holidays). You can collect finished documents between 4:00 pm and 5:00 pm.  

Questions?
Email:  chennaics@state.gov