Fees and steps checked on
To use a US professional licence in the UAE, ask the state board that issued it for a signed verification letter, have the signature notarised or certified as that state requires, and send it through the Secretary of State, the US Department of State and the UAE Embassy in Washington, which attests it together with MOFA. Nurses, teachers and engineers moving to the UAE are the people who ask for this most, usually because a UAE regulator or employer wants proof of the licence beyond an online lookup.
Price: AED 1,025 per letter plus VAT, about 1 month and 3 weeks from the day the board's letter is ready. Federal, embassy, MOFA and courier fees are included; the board charges its own fee for the letter. See attestation fees.
Nursing: the state board, not Nursys
Nursing licences sit with each state board. Nursys handles verification for endorsement between US boards only, and the free QuickConfirm report is stated to be not sufficient for licensure elsewhere. For the UAE, ask the board for an out of country verification. Maine, for example, publishes a fee for out of country requests on its licence verification page, and Arizona publishes its own on its verification page.
UAE health regulators also verify licences at the source through Dataflow. See Dataflow verification and attestation for medical professionals.
Teaching: each state does it differently
- Texas. The Texas Education Agency has issued no paper certificates since 2011. The virtual certificate in your TEA account is the official record, and TEA offers a verification of certification letter.
- New York. NYSED says it does not provide letters verifying certification or good standing. It completes official licensure forms that another authority sends to it.
For UAE schools, your licence is checked along with your degree and good conduct certificate. See teacher certificate attestation.
Engineering: the state PE board
The NCEES Records program sends your record to US state boards, not foreign authorities. For the UAE, ask the state board of professional engineers that licensed you for a signed verification letter.
The chain for a licence letter
- Board letter, signed by a board official.
- Notary or state certification, as the Secretary of State of that state requires for the board's signature.
- Secretary of State of the board's state.
- US Department of State, Office of Authentications.
- UAE Embassy and MOFA through VFS Global, issued digitally.
Some board letters are signed by a state official that the Secretary of State can authenticate directly. Others need a notary first. We check the letter before it goes anywhere.
Documents to send
- A scan of the board's verification letter, or the licence certificate if the board issued one on paper
- The state and board name, and the licence number
- Your passport copy, and the UAE regulator or employer it is for
What goes wrong
- Online lookup printouts. No signature, nothing to authenticate.
- Letters sent straight to a UAE regulator. Some boards will only send to an authority. If the regulator wants an attested copy from you, say so when you ask the board.
- Expired or lapsed licences. A UAE regulator wants a current licence. Renew first.
- Wrong document attested. Your degree may matter more than the licence for the work permit. See USA degree attestation.
Transcripts often travel with licence files; see USA transcript attestation.
