Does the UAE accept an apostille?

Not on its own. The UAE hasn't joined the Apostille Convention, so after the steps in Pakistan 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

HEC degree attestation for the UAE from Pakistan

HEC e-attestation, MOFA Pakistan and the UAE embassy's digital attestation: the order, the fees in rupees and dirhams, the time, and doing it from Dubai.

6 min readUpdated 27 September 2026

Short answer

To use a degree from Pakistan for a UAE work visa, it needs HEC attestation, then the UAE embassy's and MOFA's digital attestation: 3 steps in a fixed order. Allow 3⁠–⁠6 weeks and about AED 380 (≈ ₹9,900) to AED 430 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 Pakistan

HEC attests the degree online, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Pakistan attests it, then the UAE embassy and MOFA attest it together online.

1
HEC e-attestation
The Higher Education Commission, online at eservices.hec.gov.pk. Upload your CNIC, degree and transcript; the university verifies them and HEC issues an e-attestation certificate instead of a stamp. Each document (degree, transcript) is paid for separately.
2
MOFA Pakistan
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad or its offices in Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta and Gujrat, or an authorised courier. Register online first (required for apostille requests since 27 July 2026). Have each document done separately: the UAE embassy refuses documents apostilled in a bundle.
3
UAE embassy and MOFA: digital attestation
The UAE embassy in Islamabad, 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.

HEC is now paperless

HEC now issues a downloadable e-attestation certificate instead of a stamp, and no longer attests photocopies.

The MOFA step has to be done in Pakistan

The UAE embassy only takes Pakistani documents already attested by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Pakistan, so that step is done there: in person, by a relative or by courier.

How long it takes and what it costs

Doing it yourself, all steps take 3⁠–⁠6 weeks and cost about AED 380 (≈ ₹9,900) to AED 430 for one degree (PKR 29,000–33,000 in all), plus couriers. MOFA's own fee in the UAE step is AED 150 per document.

Through an agency it costs about AED 525 (≈ ₹13,600) to AED 660.

Doing it from abroad

HEC is online, but you need your CNIC. At MOFA a blood relative can act for you with proof of relationship; anyone else needs an authority letter attested by the Pakistani embassy where you live.

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

Your university and programme must be HEC-recognised; MS and MPhil programmes launched after 7 November 2013 need an HEC NOC.
Details must match your CNIC exactly, and fees for a wrong selection aren't refunded.
IBCC is for school certificates, not degrees.
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 Pakistan

HEC attestation

HEC attests the degree online, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Pakistan attests it, then the UAE embassy and MOFA attest it together online.

Time, all steps

3⁠–⁠6 weeks

Cost for one degree, doing it yourself

AED 380–430 ≈ ₹9,900–11,200

About PKR 29,000–33,000 in all

Through an agency

AED 525–660 ≈ ₹13,600–17,100

1
HEC e-attestation
The Higher Education Commission, online at eservices.hec.gov.pk
Upload your CNIC, degree and transcript; the university verifies them and HEC issues an e-attestation certificate instead of a stamp. Each document (degree, transcript) is paid for separately.
2
MOFA Pakistan
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad or its offices in Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta and Gujrat, or an authorised courier
Register online first (required for apostille requests since 27 July 2026). Have each document done separately: the UAE embassy refuses documents apostilled in a bundle.
3
UAE embassy and MOFA: digital attestation
The UAE embassy in Islamabad, 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.

HEC is now paperless

HEC now issues a downloadable e-attestation certificate instead of a stamp, and no longer attests photocopies.

The MOFA step has to be done in Pakistan

The UAE embassy only takes Pakistani documents already attested by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Pakistan, so that step is done there: in person, by a relative or by courier.

HEC is online, but you need your CNIC. At MOFA a blood relative can act for you with proof of relationship; anyone else needs an authority letter attested by the Pakistani embassy where you live.

Your university and programme must be HEC-recognised; MS and MPhil programmes launched after 7 November 2013 need an HEC NOC.
Details must match your CNIC exactly, and fees for a wrong selection aren't refunded.
IBCC is for school certificates, not degrees.
Laminated certificates are refused.

HEC: degree attestation MOFA Pakistan: attestation UAE embassy Islamabad: digital attestation

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HEC degree attestation for the UAE from Pakistan

Short answer

Why your employer asks for it

The steps for a degree from Pakistan

HEC e-attestation

MOFA Pakistan

UAE embassy and MOFA: digital attestation

HEC is now paperless

The MOFA step has to be done in Pakistan

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 Pakistan

Read the rest of this guide, free

Questions

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