education-my-equals
Can foreign education documents be legalised through DFAT in Australia?
DFAT does not accept foreign education documents for legalisation simply because they have been notarised in Australia.
Detailed answer
Foreign-issued education documents usually follow the issuing country’s own notarial, apostille, authentication, or legalisation system. Bringing the document to Australia does not usually convert it into an Australian public document. The practical route typically begins with the issuing country and then moves to the Australian receiving authority’s own acceptance rules.
Common risks
- Assuming Australian notarisation alone makes a foreign document DFAT-eligible.
- Skipping the issuing country’s own formalities.
- Ignoring Australian receiver-specific translation or acceptance rules.
What we usually need
- The foreign-issued academic file.
- Issuing country and issuing institution.
- Australian receiving authority or use case.
Implementation note
This is a high-risk misunderstanding and should appear prominently in FAQs, route-check warnings, and inbound-document guides.
Compliance note
EGS is an independent administrative intermediary only. EGS is not a law firm, not a public notary, and not a government authority. Route suitability and document acceptance remain subject to review and to the receiving authority’s own requirements.