Public Services
Document Authentications
Documents issued in one country which need to be used in another country must be "authenticated" or "legalized" before they can be recognized as valid in the foreign country. Authentication does not verify the contents of a document. Authentication simply verifies that the document was issued by the agency/organization that is claimed by the seals. Such documents range from powers of attorney, affidavits, birth, death and marriages records, educational degrees, incorporation papers, deeds, patent applications, home studies and other legal papers.
The Consular Section at the U.S. Embassy in Doha, Qatar, provides two forms of authentication services: Authentication of Qatari documents and Authentication of certain U.S. Documents.
Authentication of Qatari Documents
An authentication generally refers to the placing of the consular seal over the seal of a foreign authority whose seal and signature is on file with the U.S. embassy or consulate. A consular authentication in no way attests to the authenticity of the contents of a document but merely to the seal and signature of the issuing authority.
To have a Qatari document authenticated, please visit the Consular Affairs Department of Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, located in the Old Salata area behind the Al Seef Hotel on Al Mathaf (Museum) Street, not far from the Museum RA. The MFA Consular Affairs Department will authenticate the document. Once the MFA authenticates the document, please make an appointment to bring your document to the U.S. Embassy through our online appointment system.
Please note that the U.S. Embassy can only provide an authentication service after the MFA Qatari Consular Affairs Section seal and signature are placed on the document. We also will not provide this service if the "chain" of authentication has been broken.
Authentication of U.S. Documents
Nearly all U.S. documents, including academic credentials and degrees, birth, marriage and death certificates, state and local police records, trademarks, transcripts, articles of incorporation, etc., are issued by state, city, county or other local authorities in the U.S. To use these documents overseas, each must first be authenticated by the local and state authority that issued them, by the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., and then by the appropriate foreign embassy.
U. S documents must first be authenticated by the local authority that issued them, such as a city, town or county. For academic credentials and degrees, the school registrar should execute an affidavit attesting to the validity of the document before a notary public in the registrar's office or elsewhere at the university.
These must then be authenticated by the respective Secretary of State from the state in which the document was issued. Please visit the website for the Secretaries of State of your state to learn how obtain the appropriate state level authentication. Once a U.S. document has been authenticated by the state in which it was issued, you must then send the document to the U.S. Department of State's Authentications Office.
After the U.S. Department of State has authenticated a document, the document must be forwarded to the Embassy of Qatar in Washington, D.C. Finally, you must take the document to the Consular Affairs Section of Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs as listed above. Once the MFA Consular Affairs Section authenticates the Embassy of Qatar's seal and signature, your document is ready for use in Qatar.
Please visit the links below for information on how to send a document to be authenticated by the U.S. Department of State:
http://www.state.gov/m/a/auth/
http://travel.state.gov/law/info/info_606.html
http://travel.state.gov/law/info/judicial/judicial_701.html
http://travel.state.gov/family/abduction/hague_issues/hague_issues_562.html
For the Embassy of Qatar in Washington, D.C.:
http://www.qatarembassy.net
For Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs:
http://english.mofa.gov.qa/index.cfm