Attesting Portuguese Documents for the UAE
Before you can a document that was issued in Portugal in the UAE, it will need to be attested. Whether it is a birth, marriage or death certificate, an educational qualification or in fact any other personal or company document from Portugal, let us take the hassle away for you and process this for you.
Phone
0208 609 4852
Office
Office 10, Unit 1-3 Redburn Estate. Woodall Road EN3 4LF, UK
Hours
Monday-Friday:
8am – 5pm
hello@locatetranslate.co.uk
How does it work?
Attesting documents from Portugal can be complicated, especially as the process is different depending upon the type of document you have, and who you need to present it to. As most documents will be written in Portuguese, and these are not accepted by the UAE authorities, they will also need to be translated into English. We’ve outlined below the usual process that documents need to go through, but bear in mind that this can vary according to what you need to attest. Request your free personal quotation to be sure that you have the most accurate advice.
Initial
Certification
Ministerial Certification
For some documents, the first step is to have the document certified by a relevant authority. In the case of requiring an educational qualification to be attested, these need to be certified by the Directorate-General for Higher Education (DGES) known in Portugal as the Direcção Geral do Ensino Superior. Common personal documents such as birth, marriage and death certificates do not require this step.
Legal
Translation
Translation from Portuguese to English
Documents that are written in Portuguese will need to be translated into English. The translation is then bound together with the original document, and this multi-page bundle is what is attested.
Notarial
Certification
Certification of the Translation
Once the translation has been completed, it must then be certified by a Notary Public. This step of the process provides assurance that the translation has been completed by a qualified person or company, and that they have sworn (attested) as to the accuracy of the translation.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
in Portugal
Portuguese Legalisation
Once the translation has been notarised, it can then be legalised by the Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Ministério dos Negócios Estrangeiros) in Lisbon (Lisboa). During this process, the officials at the Public Service Office (Gabinete de Atendimento ao Publico) will add a declaration page to the document which is their validation that the Notary Public is genuine and registered with them.
UAE Embassy
in Portugal
UAE Embassy Attestation
The final step in Portugal is to have the document stamped, known as attested, by the UAE Embassy in Lisbon (Lisboa). During this stage an official UAE-government sticker and seal is applied to the document. This confirms to the authorities in the UAE that the document has completed all the required steps in Portugal.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
(UAE)
MoFA Attestation (UAE)
Once the document has reached the UAE, it requires a further attestation stamp by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the UAE which validates that your document has been processed correctly in Portugal. Some employers make arrangements to handle this for you, so you should check whether this needs to be completed by you or not. If you prefer to handle this process yourself, we can arrange for the required PCR test to be carried out before you attend. If your document does not require a final Arabic translation (see the next section), then once this stamp has been applied you can then use the document in the UAE.
Notarial
Certification
Translation from English into Arabic
In certain circumstances, your document may also require translation into Arabic. Again, your employer may handle this for you so best to check. If required, the whole document and its relevant stamps are translated from English into Arabic by a recognised certified translator. Once the translation has been done, then everything has been completed to make it fully useable within the UAE.
Reminders
- Birth, marriage or death certificates need to be less than 3 months old to be able to be processed. We are able to arrange for new official copies to be produced as part of the attestation process if required.
- Arabic translation is usually required for use in all emirates other than Dubai, and also if the document is to be used within one of the Dubai Free Zone authorities including (but not limited to) the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC).
Documents from any Country.
We’re able to attest a range of documents for use in the UAE, no matter where you’re from. You can rest assured that by using our service, your attested documents will be accepted within the UAE.
United Kingdom
Portugal
Italian
Netherlands
German
Spain
French
Irish
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