Hi everyone,

I have put down my experience of getting my degrees attested from The Secretariat and The Ministry of External Affairs, Chennai, hoping it would help anyone looking for information and guidance on how to go about it, and as unbelievable as it may sound, it took me only 10 days to get this entire work done on my own! This is for degrees from State universities(Eg. Madras University) or State deemed universities(Eg. Annamalai University). For private institutions like NIFT, you will need to get information from your college authorities.

So, the first stop is The Secretariat, which is on the beach road(for those who don't know). The barricades open at 9.30 a.m but you're allowed inside the secretariat only by 10.00 a.m. Head all the way straight and left to the HRD(also called Public/Foreigners Department) where you need to submit your documents.
Following are the requirements for submitting your documents for verification. Lamination needs to be removed before submitting. Carry a copy of your offer letter(print-out of a scanned copy is accepted, but not of an e-mail), and a copy of your passport.

Verification fee to the university can be paid from the Indian Overseas Bank(building opposite the HRD) inside the secretariat. List of Universities and their corresponding fees, account no.,IFSC code, are given in the bank.

PIC 1

After paying the fees, you get the application form in the HRD(from the man who checks all your papers), fill it and get it signed from the Under-Secretary. Collect the SUBMISSION token and submit your documents at the counter and collect the acknowledgement slip. They take your e-mail ID, so you get the status of your application. While collecting your documents, you will need to show the acknowledgement slip.

Some universities offer e-verification, so you bypass the entire bank-challan payment. Following are universities that offer verification online, and are accepted by the HRD.

PIC 2

Log on to www.directverify.in, you can scan and upload your degree, pay via credit/debit cards, net banking options. You will get a verification request no. with which you can track the status of your application. Once processed(mine was processed in 1 and half hours!!), you will get a verified copy of your degree via e-mail, which you need to print and submit of its two copies along with your original, and photocopies of the offer letter and passport at the HRD.
A photocopy of the filled-in application form needs to be taken and all these need to be submitted to the Under-Secretary(who gives you a request no. on the application form), which is signed and verified by the end of the day. To know if your document is verified, check if your request no. is there in the book near the token machine. Even if its not there you can ask at the collection counter.

Since its a government office, timings are not really followed to the T, so although submission timings are between 10-12.30, it may start well after 11. Collection of documents can be done in the mornings, its not restricted to 2-5 p.m. But again since its a government office, you never know when they might start following it.

Next stop is the Ministry of External Affairs on College Rd. The MEA in Chennai is one of the four branches in the country that is authorised for Attestation and Apostille of documents. The MEA in New Delhi does NOT accept documents directly from individuals. Check http://mea.gov.in/apostille.htm . Working hours are 9 to 5.30, but they allow people in only by 10. Following are countries for which Apostille is required (for the others a general attestation will do).

PIC 3

For a general attestation, you need to submit the original document(without lamination), photocopy of the document and photocopy of your passport between 10 a.m and 1 p.m. It is verified by the evening and can be collected between 4.30 p.m and 5 p.m( they are punctual here).

For apostille, same set of papers need to be submitted as for general attestation with a demand draft for the apostille sticker. Contact information of the MEA office is given below.

PIC 4

PIC 5

My suggestions

1) Time is of the essence, so reaching early is better than being on time(Secretariat by 9.15 a.m, MEA by 9.45 a.m). Queues at the entrance become really lengthy even if you're a few minutes late. It has a domino effect on you as you end up standing in lines for payment, checking of papers, signing and finally submission. Officers might not start working on time but they definitely stop when its lunch time, so you might end up having to come again the next day for submission. 

2) Organise your papers well before hand as there is not much space in the HRD to sit(sometimes stand) and search for papers. Saving time from the beginning can make the difference between waiting a few minutes to waiting an hour for every slowcoach before you! No one is going to wait while you check your bag for papers, or carefully remove the lamination off the certificates, or go get photocopies and print-outs. Its best to go with extra copies of all your documents. Carry your own stationary!

3) At first it may seem like a daunting task, but its actually very simple if you prepare before hand. So I would really recommend doing it yourself and not use any agents for such work. They charge anywhere around Rs 8000-10000 per document, and they insist on sending it to Delhi which is not needed. Its not at all worth the money or the risk of losing your certificates. I did not have to pay any more than the university fees(no tips too!), which was less than Rs 3000 for both my documents. 

4) To be on the safer side, get a True Copy attestation done before you submit your documents to the Secretariat, in case they get lost or damaged in the process. True Copy attestation can be done at a Notary's office, EB, and even your school principal's office. It'll be helpful, in case you lose your originals and need to apply for new certificates.

If you have any more queries regarding the attestation, please leave them in the comment box.

Good luck!