WARNING: from January 2015, VFS has changed its requirements and will no longer accept documents that have been authenticated. Documents must now be stamped with an APOSTILLE from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Notary assistance only required if your name is different
In response to a number of recent enquiries regarding what we provide in relation to Indian Drivers Licence Verification (IDLV), we advise the following points:- If you have an Indian Drivers Licence and you wish to convert that licence to an Australian state driving licence, you may need to satisfy the local driving authority that your licence is valid and that you are the person who holds that licence.
- VFS provides the service of Indian Drivers Licence Verification to Indian Citizens to assist them in converting their drivers licence. However, if the name on your drivers licence and the name on your Indian Passport, in addition to the 'normal' IDLV process outlined by VFS, you also need to either (1) provide an original notarised affidavit from a court in India (which probably requires you to be personally present in the court in India for this to be issued to you); or (2) provide an affidavit/certificate from a notary public in Australia which has also been authenticated by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Accordingly, as a leading notary public service in Sydney we provide assistance to our Indian clients for the Option 2 in which we will prepare a notary certificate to verify that the person referred to in their Indian Drivers Licence and in their Indian Passport are the one and the same person.
We appreciate that the naming conventions can be different in different countries and generally use other forms of reference such as physical comparison between the photographs on each document against the person attending our office, the date of birth appearing on each document as well as other consistent information such as father/parents names (which often appear on Indian identification documents). If we are satisfied with all checks, we will prepare a notary certification, which in our experience has been accepted by VFS for the countless number of previous applications and clients that we have assisted over the years.
Please note that if the name on your Indian Drivers Licence and the name on your Indian Passport are the same, you do NOT need the notary public service. You should then make enquiries directly with VFS for the Indian Driving Licence Verification.
The notary public service for Indian Driving Licence Verification is part of the VFS process it is not a replacement for VFS.
To obtain a quote on our notary public services for India, please visit https://www.notary-parramatta.com.au/notary-fees/.
Acknowledgements
This blog is supported and maintained by Phang Legal. Phang Legal is a leading provider of notary public services in Sydney. With offices conveniently located in Parramatta, Phang Legal supports and services the Indian community across Sydney with readily available and easily accessible notary public services at highly competitive rates.
For more information regarding notary public services for documents going to India, view our notary publications at https://www.notary-parramatta.com.au/jurisdiction/india-notary/.
Frequently asked questions regarding our notary public services can also be found at https://www.notary-parramatta.com.au/faqs/.
For Hindi to English translation services by NAATI accredited translators, see https://hindi-naati-translation.blogspot.com.au/.
Notary Public
Ern Phang is the solicitor director of Phang Legal and a notary public. Ern regularly writes about his experiences as a notary public, including the kinds of problems and solutions that his clients face when sending documents to India.
IMPORTANT: the information in this article is correct at the time of publication, however the law constantly changes. This means you should always refer to the most recent articles because we try to update this blog on a regular basis with the most current information.
