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Nigerian degree attestation makes a bachelor's, master's, HND or other qualification from a Nigerian university or polytechnic valid for a UAE work permit, professional licence or equivalency. The chain has three Nigerian links and one UAE link: your institution, the Federal Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abuja, then the UAE Embassy in Abuja, which attests together with MOFA attestation.
We are a private document service in Dubai, not MOFA, an embassy or a government office. Pickup and delivery of your documents anywhere in Dubai is free.
Price: there is no fixed price for Nigeria. Send a copy on WhatsApp and you get the total price plus VAT, all official fees included, before any work starts.
What changed at the Federal Ministry of Education
The education check used to mean a trip to Abuja or a runner standing in a queue. The Federal Ministry of Education has now moved the authentication and evaluation of academic credentials online. Applicants register and upload their documents on essverify.education.gov.ng, and the awarding institution sends the transcript from its official email to the ministry's verification inbox. Physical verification visits are no longer needed.
That makes the institution the real bottleneck. If your university's records office is slow to send the transcript, the whole chain waits.
Which documents you need
- The original degree certificate, not laminated.
- Your official transcript, sent by the university directly to the ministry.
- A copy of your passport data page.
- Your matriculation number and graduation year, so the records office can find you.
- If the UAE side also wants your school results, the WAEC or NECO certificate.
Step list for a Nigerian degree
- Transcript request to your institution. Ask the university or polytechnic to send your transcript to the Federal Ministry of Education's verification email. We tell you exactly what to ask for.
- Federal Ministry of Education. The degree is authenticated through the online portal once the transcript arrives.
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Abuja. The ministry authenticates the education stamp. Nigeria is not in the Apostille Convention, so this replaces an apostille.
- MOFA portal application. The UAE application is filed with UAE PASS, with Nigeria as the issuing country.
- UAE Embassy in Abuja and MOFA. A MOFA approved provider collects the original, both offices attest it digitally, the attested degree is emailed and the original is returned by courier.
Degree, transcript and school certificate
UAE requests differ. A general work permit usually names the degree only. Nursing, medicine, engineering and teaching regulators often ask for the transcript too, and some ask for secondary school results. Each paper you want attested goes through the chain on its own. Read the request from your employer or regulator before you start, so everything moves in one round. WAEC results can be checked online by employers through WAEC's own verification service, but that check is not an attestation.
After attestation
For many jobs the attested degree is enough. If you need degree recognition from the UAE Ministry of Higher Education, see equivalency certificate in the UAE. If your employer has asked for the degree for your visa, see attestation for an employment visa.
Common problems with Nigerian degrees
- Transcript never reaches the ministry. Some records offices take weeks, or send it from a personal email address that the ministry does not accept. Follow up with the registry and keep the confirmation.
- Name changed after marriage. A degree in a maiden name and a passport in a married name needs supporting papers. Usually that is the attested marriage certificate or a sworn affidavit. See Nigerian marriage certificate attestation.
- Degree from an institution the UAE does not recognise for equivalency. Attestation proves the paper is genuine, not that the UAE will grant equivalency. If equivalency is your goal, we check this first.
Working in the UAE already?
You do not need to fly to Lagos or Abuja. The Federal Ministry of Education step is online, and MOFA allows anyone to file the UAE application for you. Only the original needs to travel, and it comes back to you. For other countries, see degree certificate attestation. For the full Nigeria chain for every document, see Nigeria certificate attestation.
