Does the UAE accept an apostille?

Not on its own. The UAE hasn't joined the Apostille Convention, so after the steps in India the UAE embassy and MOFA still attest the degree.

Do I still need MOFA attestation after I arrive?

No, if the embassy attested it digitally: the embassy and MOFA do it together in one online application. Only papers stamped by hand before the switch need MOFA in the UAE.

Can I start before I have an offer?

Yes, and it is the best time: nothing in the process needs an offer, and it is the slowest paper in the move.

Do I need to attest my transcript too?

Only if your employer asks. Most ask for the degree certificate alone; some regulated jobs and the equivalency application want the transcript as well.

Visas and paperwork

Degree attestation for the UAE from India (2026)

State verification, MEA attestation and the UAE embassy's digital attestation: the order, the cost in rupees and dirhams, the time, and doing it from Dubai.

6 min readUpdated 27 September 2026

Short answer

To use a degree from India for a UAE work visa, it needs MEA attestation, then the UAE embassy's and MOFA's digital attestation: 3 steps in a fixed order. Allow 2⁠–⁠6 weeks and about AED 300 (≈ ₹7,800) to AED 350 for one degree if you do it yourself.

Why your employer asks for it

A UAE employer registers you under a job title, and skilled titles such as software engineer need your degree on file, attested. Without it the permit goes under a lower title, and you lose the route to the Golden visa for skilled professionals. So HR asks for the attested degree as soon as you accept an offer.

The employment visa itself takes 1⁠–⁠4 weeks once your papers are ready. Attestation often takes longer, so people who start it while they are still applying move sooner.

The steps for a degree from India

Your state checks the degree with the university, the Ministry of External Affairs attests it, then the UAE embassy and MOFA attest it together online.

1
State verification
The higher education (or general administration) department of the state where your university is. The state confirms the degree with the university and stamps it. This is the slow step.
2
MEA attestation
The Ministry of External Affairs, through its outsourced centres. You can't hand papers to the ministry yourself: an authorised centre takes them. Ask for attestation, not an apostille; the attestation itself is free, the centre charges a small fee.
3
UAE embassy and MOFA: digital attestation
The UAE embassy in New Delhi or consulate in Mumbai, with the UAE foreign ministry. One online application on the MOFA website or app with UAE Pass. A courier collects the original, and the document comes back by email, attested by both; the original is returned.

MEA attestation, not the MEA apostille

The MEA's cheap apostille is for countries in the Apostille Convention. The UAE isn't one, so ask the centre for attestation for the UAE.

eSanad, if your university is on it

Some universities have put their records on eSanad, the MEA's online verification and attestation service. Most degrees still start with the state.

Already in the UAE?

After the state and MEA steps in India, the Indian embassy in Abu Dhabi or the consulate in Dubai can attest the degree, and MOFA then attests it in the UAE.

How long it takes and what it costs

Doing it yourself, all steps take 2⁠–⁠6 weeks and cost about AED 300 (≈ ₹7,800) to AED 350 for one degree (₹7,800–9,200 in all), plus couriers. MOFA's own fee in the UAE step is AED 150 per document.

Through an agency it costs about AED 700 (≈ ₹18,200) to AED 1,200.

Doing it from abroad

The UAE step is online. The state and MEA steps need the original in India: an agency or a relative with an authority letter can take it for you.

If you use an agency, pick one your employer or the embassy recommends, and scan every page before the original leaves your hands.

Mistakes that cost weeks

A provisional certificate isn't the degree: attest the final one.
Mark sheets are separate documents; attest them only if your employer asks.
If your name differs from your passport, you need an affidavit or a gazette notification first.
Laminated certificates are refused.

Your family's papers

To sponsor your spouse and children later, your marriage certificate and their birth certificates go through the same steps. Doing them with your degree saves a second round of couriers and fees.

Attestation isn't equivalency

The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research (MOHESR) recognises foreign degrees, online, in about 30 working days. An ordinary IT work permit doesn't need it; the Golden visa for skilled professionals does. See degree attestation for the UAE for other countries.

The whole route on one card

Degree from India

MEA attestation

Your state checks the degree with the university, the Ministry of External Affairs attests it, then the UAE embassy and MOFA attest it together online.

Time, all steps

2⁠–⁠6 weeks

Cost for one degree, doing it yourself

AED 300–350 ≈ ₹7,800–9,100

About ₹7,800–9,200 in all

Through an agency

AED 700–1,200 ≈ ₹18,200–31,100

1
State verification
The higher education (or general administration) department of the state where your university is
The state confirms the degree with the university and stamps it. This is the slow step.
2
MEA attestation
The Ministry of External Affairs, through its outsourced centres
You can't hand papers to the ministry yourself: an authorised centre takes them. Ask for attestation, not an apostille; the attestation itself is free, the centre charges a small fee.
3
UAE embassy and MOFA: digital attestation
The UAE embassy in New Delhi or consulate in Mumbai, with the UAE foreign ministry
One online application on the MOFA website or app with UAE Pass. A courier collects the original, and the document comes back by email, attested by both; the original is returned.

MEA attestation, not the MEA apostille

The MEA's cheap apostille is for countries in the Apostille Convention. The UAE isn't one, so ask the centre for attestation for the UAE.

eSanad, if your university is on it

Some universities have put their records on eSanad, the MEA's online verification and attestation service. Most degrees still start with the state.

Already in the UAE?

After the state and MEA steps in India, the Indian embassy in Abu Dhabi or the consulate in Dubai can attest the degree, and MOFA then attests it in the UAE.

The UAE step is online. The state and MEA steps need the original in India: an agency or a relative with an authority letter can take it for you.

A provisional certificate isn't the degree: attest the final one.
Mark sheets are separate documents; attest them only if your employer asks.
If your name differs from your passport, you need an affidavit or a gazette notification first.
Laminated certificates are refused.

MEA: attestation eSanad UAE embassy New Delhi: digital attestation

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Degree attestation for the UAE from India (2026)

Short answer

Why your employer asks for it

The steps for a degree from India

State verification

MEA attestation

UAE embassy and MOFA: digital attestation

MEA attestation, not the MEA apostille

eSanad, if your university is on it

Already in the UAE?

How long it takes and what it costs

Doing it from abroad

Mistakes that cost weeks

Your family's papers

Attestation isn't equivalency

The whole route on one card

Degree from India

Read the rest of this guide, free

Questions

Is Dubai right for you?