Here comes the nitty gritty…
In part 1 of this blog, I explained the basics of document legalisation, introduced you to some key terms and explained how Vital Legalisation can help you. In this part I’m going to try and cover the requirements for some of the more popular destinations for overseas teachers. There’s no real fun way to cover this subject in detail, so *adopting a look of seriousness and a general air of authority*… the best place to start is at the beginning…
The Hague Convention
In short, the Hague Convention is an agreement to standardise the legalisation requirements between member countries. If you are moving from one of these countries to another then all that is required is an Apostille from the country of origin. An Apostille is basically a statement that lets the authorities in another Hague country know your document is totally legit. Generally speaking, anything that isn’t a government issued document will also need to be certified/notarised prior to this.
One thing I can’t stress enough for those of you from the UK – notarisation is not a requirement in the UK. We get so many people coming to us who have already had their documents notarised thinking this will save them money. I totally commend you for grabbing the bull by the horns, but a Notary will charge you 5 times more than a Solicitor will for a perfectly acceptable certification. As a side note to this, if you use your own Solicitor, please make sure they are registered with the FCO beforehand to avoid complications.
So, that’s the easy bit done with. Below are a few country specific requirements for some of the more popular destinations. Deep breath, we’re going in…..
The UAE
Like most non-Hague members, the UAE will require you to jump through a couple of extra hoops for them to not laugh your important documents out of town. In addition to an Apostille they will also want to see Consular legalisation. This is carried out at the UAE Embassy in the country of origin after the Apostille stage. As with all the countries on this list, you will also need to have your attested document stamped by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in your destination country on arrival. In addition to this you may also need to have it translated into Arabic depending on where and for which company you will be working for.
Important note: As of the 4th of Feb this year, you are also now required to submit a Police clearance certificate (please see below for more info on these).
Qatar
What can I say about Qatar? Lovely place, been there myself, the people are very friendly and accommodating. Unfortunately, the authorities are a little more uptight. Whereas the UAE will accept your hard-won educational certificate on its own merits, Qatar want to make you work that bit harder. Along with the certificate, you must also submit the related transcript and a confirmation letter from the issuing body. This letter must follow a strict set of rules and include some very specific information about your study. All 3 of these documents must then be attested separately but submitted together and any discrepancies will result in the certificate being rejected. If you happen to have obtained your certificate through online or distance learning, then I’m afraid it will be automatically rejected without exception or appeal.
Read about Qatar and other places you can teach tax free.
Kuwait
Kuwait are more chilled out than Qatar and perhaps even a little more relaxed than the UAE. They have no issues with distance learning and seem to be happy to stamp anything with an Apostille on it. The usual MoFA/Arabic translation rules apply once the document is in country, however.
Oman
There’s a running joke in our office that’s probably only (debatably) funny to those who work in document legalisation. If anyone ever exclaims in frustration the phrase “Oh Man!”, some comedian will inevitably respond with “doesn’t need attesting, all done in country”. Both hilarious and topical I know… Still, it’s true though. Educational documents are dealt with by the authorities in Oman with no prior attestation required. For all other types of document, only an Apostille is needed as Oman is a Hague member.
China
China is such a popular destination for overseas teachers these days and we have certainly been dealing with more and more Chinese legalisations over the past couple of years. It’s not hard to see why, it’s a huge and beautiful country with a rich culture, friendly people and almost unlimited demand for ESL tutors. Similar to Kuwait, there is little that the Chinese authorities will reject. You will however need to fill in and submit an application form to support your documents. You will also need to sign a permission letter before the Chinese Embassy will deal with a third party such as ourselves. Nothing too demanding though. One thing that has come to light recently is the gradual tightening of restrictions regarding TEFL certificates (please see below).
So hopefully that explains a few of the more tricky destinations, before we end though there are a couple of additional points that are worth noting…
Read ten reasons why living in China is so exciting…
Police Clearance Certificates
It’s to be expected that your destination country wants to make sure you’re a model citizen before they welcome you in with open arms. In some cases you will be required to provide a background check to prove your credentials as an asset to society. These certificates need to be obtained from your previous country or countries of residence and usually need to cover the past 5 years. They can usually be applied for online through official sources, although in some countries you may be required to visit in person. Please note, they also generally need to be no more than 3 months old when presented in your destination country so make sure you get the timing right.
TEFL Certificates
Very recently we have encountered a number of issues with TEFL certificates issued in the UK. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office have refused to apply Apostilles to several certificates due to new rules that are a little unclear at present. There is a work-around for certificates not meeting the criteria which involves attaching a Notarial cover sheet. As mentioned above though, those Notaries really know how to charge! A further issue is that some schools will not accept them as they are not a qualified teaching course and as such can cause insurance issues.
As with everything above, and as mentioned in part 1, you are always best off confirming things with your prospective HR department first and foremost. Once you are confident that you know your personal requirements, we can take care of the nitty gritty so you can concentrate on being excited about your awesome adventure.
And that’s it… Well done to anyone who made it all the way through! If this blog doesn’t answer your questions, please feel free to get in touch on andrew.howden@vitalcertificates.co.uk and I will do my best to steer you in the right direction. Remember to quote Teacher Horizons for a discounted rate.
