5teve

hi there i have just had my forms through to get my skills assesment done. it says i need certified copies of my certificates etc. and lists the type of people that can certify.

this is the list provided

The following classes of persons are authorised to certify copies of documents:

1 A current member of Engineers Australia other than at the grade of student. The Membership number must be shown.
2 A staff member of Engineers Australia
3 An officer of an Australian Diplomatic Post
4 A Notary Public authorised in the country of application
5 A Commissioner for Oaths (Declarations) authorised in the country of application
6 A Solicitor, Barrister or Judge authorised in Australia or in the country of application
7 A Justice of the Peace authorised in Australia or in the country of application

If you employ the services of a legal firm, the solicitor must sign each page. It will not be satisfactory for the name of the law firm to appear in lieu of the actual signature of the solicitor certifying your documents. Collective responsibility implied in the use of “we�, accompanied by the name of the law firm, is not acceptable.

so unless getting a solicitor to certify (who obviously charge) who else in the uk is the best bet.

when it says 'in the country of application' i assume that means the UK as i live here, however the agent is in Oz.

sorry for the simple nature of the post. i just dont wanna get things wrong!

thanks in advance

Steve

DeniseH

Hi Steve,
I've heard that some solicitors don't charge for certifying - best to phone around. Also try asking your local library/bank/county court as some of them are notary public.

A question for everyone - How about putting together a list of all places youve been to where certifying or statutory declarations have been free? We could start a new thread and add to the list, helping all future applicants?

Denise

5teve

thanks for that Denise. i'll ask at the bank later as im going there! if they wont then i best ask around at your other suggested places.

Thanks again

Steve Oliver

xxdebsonlinexx

Hi Steve we went to our local magistrates court and got a jp to do them they dont charge for it so thats good. we rang them first asking if they could do it then we made an appointment to go in, it took about 30 mins in all as we had quiet a few to do. we took origanel to proove we had them and the copies.
hope this helps

Debs xxx

George Lombard

Hi Steve,

You're obviously an engineer. IEAust has more finicky rules than anyone. You're advised to follow the instructions on their website carefully. For other skills assessment and migration purposes it's commonly ok to use a policeperson, but for IEAust you have to follow those rules. If the JP or whoever you use has a business card, best to provide that.

Cheers,

George Lombard

www.austimmigration.com.au

5teve

thanks for that George.... im not sure if thats good or bad! :S i will make sure i get all the credentials i can from them.... whoever i get to sign the copies. im going to ask at my bank see if there are any 'notary public'

thanks for your help so far people!

Steve

edit! just phoned local magistrates court.... tight sods in derby charge £8 per document! typical! just waiting on my solicitor now.

brian0

I just received my positive assessment from IEAust (very quick BTW) and all the copies of documents I sent them were notorized and the notary additionally put her address and email address on them (which I think IEAust asked for specially which is not normally required). No snags with any of them, and (at least here in NC, USA) notaries are not allowed to charge for their services, so a good price as well!

Cheers,
Brian

5teve

Thanks Brian

just for infor..... i have a Bsc in Mechanical Engineering. I have my certificate for this and i have a list of grades and subjects for the final year. i dont have a list of grades and subjects for years 1 and 2. What documentation did you provide assuming you have a degree? i will check with my agent i just thought i would ask as you have just been through the process!

Many thanks

Steve

marco121068

Hi Steve,
I too got my assessment through the IEAust, and yes they've got stringent criteria for certified documents....but from what I've read they're one of the fastest for sending out results. I think mine took 4 weeks (though I've heard of some coming back in 2 1/2). I got mine certified by the solicitor who did conveyancing for my house and was well and truly ripped off. 85 quid for about a dozen or so copies.

For my main application I went to the magistrates and got them all done for nothing. Made an appointment and went with the photocopies and originals. They signed them, and I got a nice little stamp with a crown put on each copy. Hopefully they will be OK with that.

Don't forget to put your timeline on www.austimeline.com

Marco

5teve

thanks for that Marco.... with regard to the info sent.... have you got a degree? if so.... what list of grades and subjects did you provide.... i only have my final year subjects and grades but do have my degree certificate. do they need any qualification certificates / subject / grades prior to degree (ie BTEC in engineering)

thanks again sorry for all the questions

Steve

PhilShila

A notary in the UK will charge a small fortune to noatarise documents - I used one for ACS assessment and got charged £85 for 3 documents (they do come very official-looking and pretty though, as they are bound with the notary's seal, red ribbon, and a hard, parchment-style cover with lots of anachronistic legal wording on it)

Cheapest is a JP, who shouldn't charge. If you get a JP at the local magistrates court to do it then I think there is a small charge of around £5 or so for court admin costs.

If you work for a large company then the legal department will probably be headed by an in-house counsel who is a barrister, and will almost certainly employ qualified solicitors. If you don't mind them knowing what you are up to, one of them will probably do it for you for free, as a fellow employee. After paying my £85 to the notary, I found out in conversation with our in-house barrister that he would have done it for free.

Phil

Jonahs_mummy

Hi Steve,

I rang around and found out that my local JP at the MAgistrates Courts charged £5 per signature, but after much wrangling I managed to cut a deal with a Solicitor for all signatures doing (in total about 30) for the bargain basement price of £50. It is definatley worth ringing around.

5teve

i've just had a call from my solicitor.... they will do it for about £2 a page.... which i have to say i was stunned! sems a bit cheap as there is only going to be about 5 pages i think. i dont have to get my cv certified do i? i hope not as its huge!

brian0

Hi Steve,

In response to your earlier question about grades, I sent an official transcript from my university (I was applying under the Washington Accord) which listed all my grades for all 4 years. I don't know if just the final year's grades would be sufficient, but judging by the other responses regarding IEAust's stringent requirements I would think if you could get an official transcript you might be better off. My university was able to provide me multiple copies for a small fee, and as I sent an original it did not need to be notarized. You do not need to get your CV notarized as it is not an "official" document. The only thing I had notarized was the copy of my degree. Note that you don't get your documents back, so don't send any originals you will need later. I had multiple copies of my transcript so I didn't mind sending one to IEAust.

As for the speed of assessments, I was very happy with the time it took to get my skills assessed. I sent in my application on July 20th and received the approval letter on August 5th, so just over 2 weeks, including time in the mail from North America!

Cheers,
Brian

Moodoo

Hi, I have just shopped around a few solicitors in the area for the best price. It varied between £5 and 50p a certified copy.

FYI Will be using R M Bull & Co on chiswick high road (London) for 50p, seems like a nice guy too.

£5 a sheet - what a rip-off!

Andrew