HEC
Attestation of your degree, transcript and provisional certificate.
HEC Attestation: step-by-step procedure
Once your Matric and Intermediate certificates are cleared through the board and IBCC, the next link in the chain is your university degree — Bachelor's, Master's, or PhD. That gets attested by the Higher Education Commission (HEC), not IBCC.
What is HEC attestation
HEC attestation is the official verification confirming that your degree, transcript, or provisional certificate is genuine and matches the record held by the issuing university. It's a required step in the document legalisation chain before MOFA and the German embassy will accept your academic credentials for a Master's application.
Official portal: eservices.hec.gov.pk
Step-by-step attestation process
Step 1: Create your account and complete your profile
Register on HEC's e-services portal and fill in your profile details. This replaced the older “eportal” system, so make sure you're using the current link rather than an outdated one you may find in older guides.
Step 2: Submit your application for scrutiny
Enter your complete academic history from Matric onward, along with scans of your degree, transcript, and CNIC. HEC runs an initial screening and notifies you by SMS and email once it clears this stage.
Step 3: Pay the attestation fee
Fees are paid online through the 1-Link payment system, and you'll need to verify the payment in your profile before moving forward. Since the online system replaced the old manual one, HEC charges a flat Rs. 3,000 per document — separately for your degree, transcript and provisional certificate, so budget roughly Rs. 9,000 for the usual set of three. That is a large jump from the old manual-era rate of Rs. 1,000, which no longer applies — ignore any guide quoting it. Rates can still be revised, so confirm the current figure on the portal rather than relying on a fixed one.
Step 4: Choose how you'll submit and receive your documents
HEC offers two paths:
- Walk-in / urgent service: available at select regional centres (Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Quetta) for applicants who need faster turnaround, such as an approaching visa deadline. You book a specific appointment slot for in-person submission.
- Courier service: the default route for most applicants — documents are sent to the relevant HEC centre and processed on a first-come, first-served basis, then returned to you via courier.
Step 5: Submit your documents
For walk-in appointments, bring your original documents (all qualifications from Matric onward) plus photocopies and your payment receipt. For courier submissions, send the same set of originals and copies along with your printed application to the HEC centre handling your case.
Step 6: Collect or receive your attested documents
Walk-in submissions are typically processed and returned the same day as the scheduled visit. Courier submissions are returned by post once processing is complete, with HEC notifying you by SMS and email.
⏱️ A tip on appointment timing
If you're going the walk-in route, book your appointment for the morning rather than later in the day. Morning submissions give HEC staff the full day to process and attest your documents, so there's a much better chance you can collect them the same day instead of having to return to the office the next day.
⚠️ A tip on avoiding the postal service
Wherever possible, go in person rather than sending your documents by courier or post. Your original degree, transcripts, and certificates are irreplaceable — couriers and postal services can lose packages, and if that happens with your originals, replacing them can mean going back to your university for duplicates, which is a far bigger headache than an in-person visit. An in-person appointment also means you know exactly where your documents are at every stage, instead of waiting on a tracking number.