Power of attorney and document attestation
Signing a power of attorney for use in Pakistan has two routes, and most people are only told about the slower one.
The online route
NADRA runs an online attestation service at poa.nadra.gov.pk. It handles powers of attorney without a consulate visit, which for anyone in Alaska, Hawaii, Montana or Florida is the difference between a form and a flight.
It is worth checking whether your document qualifies before you plan anything else, because the in-person route asks for considerably more.
In person at the consulate
Attending in person is still available and is sometimes necessary. The consulates ask for the document itself, your Pakistani identity document, and identification issued in the United States.
If you send papers by mail rather than attending, they have to be notarised first by a US notary public. Attending in person removes that step, because the consular officer witnesses the signature.
Attesting other documents
The same counter attests documents generally, not only powers of attorney. Educational certificates, commercial paperwork and personal documents all follow the same path.
The requirement that trips people up is proof of your own identity as a Pakistani. Bring the original CNIC, NICOP or passport, not a photocopy, and not an expired one unless the office has told you otherwise.
Getting the wording right the first time
A power of attorney is only as useful as the powers it actually grants. The consulate attests that you signed it. It does not check that the wording achieves what you want in Pakistan, and it will not redraft it for you.
If the document is for a property sale, an inheritance matter or a court case, having it drafted by someone who knows Pakistani practice before you bring it in saves the trip you would otherwise make twice.
What to bring if you attend
- The document itself, in the form you want attested.
- Your Pakistani identity document in the original: CNIC, NICOP or passport.
- Identification issued in the United States, such as a state ID or driver's licence.
Photocopies of the Pakistani document are not a substitute. This is the requirement that sends people home more often than any other at this counter.
Which office, and how far it is
You use the consulate whose jurisdiction covers your address. The distances involved are the reason the online route matters so much: Atlanta to Houston is close to fifteen hours by road, Miami further still, and Alaska and Hawaii have no road at all.
Check the boundaries rather than the map. Wyoming and Kentucky belong to New York despite three closer offices, and Florida and Georgia belong to Houston rather than to Washington.
Notarised, attested, apostilled
Three words that get used interchangeably and mean different things.
- Notarised: a US notary confirms you signed. Required before mailing documents to a consulate.
- Attested: the consulate confirms the signature for use in Pakistan. This is what the counter does.
- Apostilled: a certification under the Hague Convention. It is not what Pakistani authorities are asking for here, and paying a service for one instead of consular attestation is money spent on the wrong document.
Sending it on
An attested power of attorney still has to reach whoever will use it in Pakistan. If you are applying by mail, include a prepaid return envelope with tracking, and keep a scanned copy of everything before it leaves your hands.