Marriage Certificate Attestation in Oman
Marriage is an important incident in a person’s life. A marriage certificate is a legal document confirming your marriage status which is a mandatory document for marriage for official purposes. A marriage certificate must be submitted to official authorities if you wish to proceed with smooth processes. However, a plain marriage certificate cannot be used if you intend to visit a foreign country. Attestation of the certificate is essential for it to be accepted by the official authorities.
Marriage certificate Attestation is necessary for several reasons. From obtaining a visa for your family to getting married in a foreign country, Marriage certificate Attestation serves a number of purposes.
Significance of Marriage certificate Attestation in Oman
Attestation of certificates is a meticulous procedure followed to ensure the authenticity of the documents. This process involves numerous authorized government officials and offices. After thorough verification, the authorities affix stamps and seals on the document. Marriage certificate Attestation is like any other attestation process establishes the credibility of the certificate enabling it to be used abroad for legal purposes.
Attestation of a Marriage Certificate is necessary for several purposes. These include:
- Visa Processing
- To travel or live with your spouse
- To get a passport for your child
- Admitting wife for delivery
Process of Marriage Certificate Attestation in Oman
Attestation of certificates in Oman generally follows a particular procedure. This involves regional level attestation starting from the notaries and concluding with the Oman Embassy attestation.
The preliminary level attestation begins at the notary level. Notaries are official authorities appointed by the government and entrusted with the right to verify the authenticity and attest to the documents. For educational documents, universities can carry out the attestation. It is the responsibility of the Chamber of Commerce to certify the authenticity of commercial documents.
After the completion of regional attestation by local notaries, the second level of attestation is followed by Home Department Attestation. Home department attestation is performed by the State Home Department, Human Resource Department and Sub-divisional Magistrate. Sub-divisional magistrate works independently of the State Home Department.
The Ministry of External Affairs plays an important role in the external affairs of a country. It has an irreplaceable role to play in the Attestation process. This applies to Oman too. However, Oman being a party of the Hague Convention, has to follow Apostille instead of Attestation. Apostille is a simple process that enables the use of documents in all the member countries of the Hague Convention to use foreign documents without further verification processes.
Almost 106 countries follow the Hague Convention. Among the GCC countries, Oman is the only one that requires an Apostille.
Attestation for Oman ends with Embassy level attestation. Once the attestation is completed by the MEA, the Omani Embassy performs the attestation. With this attestation, the process gets completed and the certificate becomes usable in Oman for all official purposes.
Documents for Marriage Certificate Attestation in Oman
Regardless of the document you intend to attest, certain documents are required to be submitted to authorities. These documents are needed for verification and authentication. Marriage Certificate Attestation also demands certain documents. These include:
- Original Marriage certificate
- Passport Copy
- Visa Copy
A few photographs might be asked for by the attesting officials along with contact details. You have to submit an authorization letter in particular cases.
Time for Marriage certificate Attestation in Oman
Attestation of the marriage certificate requires almost one week similar to other attestation procedures. However, with impediments this process may take longer. A high number of applications may decrease the operational efficiency of the attestation offices and authorities. The process may even take a month.