OCI Card Documents from Australia and How Each Is Certified

An Indian OCI card application from Australia uses up to four kinds of certification: copies you sign yourself, copies attested by a Justice of the Peace or notary, documents apostilled by DFAT, and forms needing no attestation. Most delays come from putting the wrong certification on the wrong document, so match each item to the current checklist.

Key takeaways

• The current checklist for your Indian office in Australia decides everything. It changes, and older web pages often contradict it.
• Your own Australian passport and citizenship certificate copies are usually self-attested: you sign them yourself, free.
• Many other copies need attestation by a JP or a notary. Some checklists have asked residents of one state for notary attestation only, so read the note for your state.
• For spouse applications, an Australian marriage certificate has been required apostilled by DFAT. A registry certificate can usually go to DFAT directly, with no notary.
• Some forms say on their face that they need no attestation at all. Do not pay to have those witnessed.

Who sets the rules

The OCI scheme is run by the Government of India. In Australia, applications are handled through the High Commission of India in Canberra and the consulates, with a contracted service provider receiving applications and publishing the document checklists. You complete the online application on the Government of India's OCI portal, upload your documents, and then lodge the application with the service provider, choosing the Indian office that covers the state you live in. A wrong selection usually means starting the form again.

Lodgement arrangements have changed over time, including whether postal lodgement is accepted and whether originals must be shown at the counter. Follow the dated checklist on the service provider's site, not an older page or a friend's experience. None of this is set by Australian law, and no Australian notary or JP can tell you what India will accept. What they can tell you is what their own certification means.

The four levels of certification

1. Self-attested: sign it yourself

Recent checklists ask for self-attested copies of your Australian passport and Australian citizenship certificate. You sign the photocopy yourself. If a document is marked self-attested, you do not need a JP or a notary for it, and paying one buys nothing.

2. Attested by a JP or a notary

Many copies must be attested by a JP or a notary. On recent checklists these have included:

• proof of Indian origin, where you no longer have your old Indian passport;
• a change of name certificate, or a marriage certificate showing a name change;
• for children, the Australian birth certificate and both parents' passport pages;
• for separated or single parents, the custody papers;
• for spouse applications, the Indian or OCI spouse's passport, card or origin documents;
• statutory declarations the checklist asks for, for example about a lost Indian passport, a changed appearance, or a name that differs from the old Indian passport.

The state note. Some checklists have said that residents of New South Wales should submit documents attested by a notary public only, without saying why. If a note like that appears on the checklist for your state, a JP's attestation is likely to be turned back, so use a notary. Where the checklist accepts either, a JP is free. This is an Indian requirement for this application, not an Australian rule about JPs. See JP or notary in New South Wales.

3. Apostilled by DFAT

For spouse-based applications, recent checklists have asked for the Australian marriage certificate to be apostilled by DFAT. An apostille confirms the signature and seal on the certificate, never its contents. A registry-issued marriage certificate can usually go to DFAT for an apostille directly, without a notary; confirm the current position on Smartraveller before booking anyone. Commemorative or ceremonial marriage certificates, the decorative ones handed out at the wedding, are not accepted by DFAT, and neither are laminated certificates. Order a standard certificate from the registry.

India was a member of the Hague Apostille Convention when we last checked, which is why an apostille rather than embassy legalisation applies. Confirm on the HCCH status table when you apply. A marriage registered in a third country needs that country's own certification, not DFAT's. See apostilles for India from Australia, and our apostille and authentication page for the DFAT step.

4. No attestation at all

Some forms, including an undertaking used in spouse applications, have stated on their face that they need no attestation by a notary or JP. Read the form. If it says so, sign it and do not pay to have it witnessed.

Documents by applicant type

The table below brings the common items together. It reflects recent checklists and is a starting point for reading yours, not a replacement for it.

Document	Usual certification on recent checklists	Who does it
Your Australian passport copy	Self-attested	You
Your Australian citizenship certificate copy	Self-attested	You
Child's Australian birth certificate copy	Attested	A JP or notary, as your state's note says
Change of name or marriage certificate showing a new name	Attested	A JP or notary, as your state's note says
Statutory declarations and the minor's affidavit	Witnessed	A JP or notary, as the form says
Australian marriage certificate for a spouse case	Apostille on the original	DFAT, usually with no notary first
Forms marked as needing no attestation	None	You sign

Former Indian citizens, now Australian

• The surrender certificate. Former Indian passport holders are generally asked for proof that Indian citizenship was surrendered, with a copy of the old passport. Surrender is a separate application and usually comes first, so check the current rule for your circumstances.
• A copy of the old Indian passport's first, photo and last pages, and any cancellation page.
• If the old passport is lost, a statutory declaration attested by a JP or notary, as the checklist specifies.
• Any other declaration the checklist asks for, for example about voter or ration cards.

Children born in Australia

• The child's birth certificate, attested by a JP or notary as the checklist requires.
• Both parents' passport bio pages, attested, and proof of Indian origin for at least one parent.
• The affidavit for minor children, on the prescribed form. Recent versions say it must be signed by both parents in the presence of a JP or notary. Both parents attend the witness, each with photo ID.
• Custody documents if you are a single or separated parent, attested.

If one parent cannot sign, because they are overseas, cannot be contacted or do not agree, ask the service provider what it will accept before booking anything. Where there is a dispute about the child, speak to a family lawyer.

Foreign spouses of Indian citizens or OCI holders

• The marriage certificate, apostilled by DFAT if issued in Australia.
• Evidence that the marriage is registered and has lasted for the minimum period Indian rules set, including any statutory declaration the checklist asks for.
• The Indian or OCI spouse's documents, attested.
• The spouse undertaking form.

Spouse applications also involve additional checks by the Indian authorities, so allow extra time.

Preparing the bundle, in order

1. Download the current checklist for your Indian office and applicant type, and note its date.
2. Mark each item self-attested, JP or notary, DFAT apostille, or none.
3. Order a standard marriage certificate from the registry if you need an apostille, and lodge it with DFAT early.
4. Book one JP or notary visit for every attested copy and declaration, with all originals and, for a child, both parents.
5. Sign your self-attested copies and any form that needs no attestation.
6. Complete the online form, upload, and attend lodgement with originals if the checklist asks for them.

Translations and name differences

Most documents in an OCI application from Australia are already in English. If any are not, ask the checklist or the service provider what translation it accepts. Name differences are more common: a spelling that differs between an old Indian passport and an Australian passport, or a surname changed on marriage. Recent checklists have asked for a statutory declaration or supporting documents to explain the difference. A JP can usually witness a statutory declaration for this purpose, unless your state's note asks for a notary. See who can witness a statutory declaration.

After you have the card

When you get a new passport, the rules on whether the OCI card must be re-issued or only updated online have changed more than once. Check the current rule on the Government of India's OCI portal each time you renew a passport, particularly for children and for spouse-based holders, whose rules have differed from others'.

Here is an illustration, not a real case

A couple in Parramatta are applying for OCI cards for their Australian-born daughter and for the husband, who is not of Indian origin. The checklist for their state says attested copies must be done by a notary. They book one notary appointment and both attend with their passports, the daughter's birth certificate and the blank minor's affidavit. They order a standard marriage certificate from the registry, since theirs is the decorative ceremony version, and lodge it with DFAT for an apostille. The husband's undertaking form says it needs no attestation, so they sign it at home. Everything goes to one lodgement appointment together.

In short

An OCI application from Australia mixes four kinds of certification. Sign your own passport and citizenship copies. Have the listed copies and declarations attested by a JP or notary, using a notary if your state's note says so. Have an Australian marriage certificate apostilled by DFAT for a spouse case. Leave forms that need no attestation alone. Above all, work from the current dated checklist.

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Send us your OCI checklist and the documents you have, and we will explain each step before you book.