On this page
Admission forms, scholarship portals and counselling notices in India often ask for "self-attested copies" of your documents. The phrase sounds official, but the job is simple: you vouch for the copy yourself, with your own signature, and show the original when the office asks for it.
What does self-attested copy mean?
A self-attested copy is a photocopy of your own document that you have signed to declare it a true copy of the original. No officer, notary or teacher is involved. Your signature is the guarantee, and the office relies on checking it against the original later.
The rule comes from the Government of India. A 10 May 2013 Office Memorandum from the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (No. K-11022/67/2012-AR) set out the provision, as a Delhi government order adopting it records. Instead of a copy attested by a gazetted officer or an affidavit, a person may submit self-attested copies of documents like a marksheet or birth certificate, with the originals produced at the final stage.
On 1 August 2014 the Prime Minister's Office asked all Union ministries, departments and state governments to move to self-certification, noting that attested copies and affidavits cost poor citizens money and time, according to the press release as reproduced by StaffNews. The same release said that relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code would apply to false self-certification, so a self-attested copy is a real declaration, not a formality.
How do you self-attest a photocopy?
The orders we read do not prescribe exact wording. A common format is:
Make a clear, complete photocopy. Every edge, seal and signature on the original should be visible.
Write "Self-attested" in a blank area of the copy, away from marks, photos and seals.
Sign below it, the same way you sign the application form.
Write your full name and the date under the signature.
Repeat on every page. A two-sided marksheet is two pages, so sign both.
Keep the original ready. Offices compare copies with originals at verification.
If you are a minor, follow the form's instructions on who signs. Some schools ask a parent or guardian to self-attest the child's documents, as in the Kendriya Vidyalaya example below.
When is a gazetted officer's attestation still asked for?
Self-attestation is the default, not a universal law. You will still meet other requirements in a few situations:
The form or rule names someone else. Some applications ask for a certificate or photograph signed by a school principal or a gazetted officer. If the official instructions say so, follow them; self-attestation does not override a specific rule.
Affidavits. An affidavit is a sworn statement, not a copy. The Ministry of External Affairs' 2014 passport circular dropped attested photocopies entirely but kept its affidavit annexures because they "have evidentiary and legal value".
Documents for use abroad. Foreign universities and embassies may want an apostille or attestation, a separate process that runs through state authorities and the Ministry. The MEA apostille page covers degrees, diplomas and school certificates, and notes that the Ministry does not legalise photocopies.
The passport example shows how far the shift has gone. The same MEA circular says passport offices had accepted self-certified birth, educational and address documents since 2000. Its 5 August 2014 order ended the remaining cases that still needed attested copies, such as parents' passports for minors, with originals produced at verification.
What if an office insists on gazetted attestation?
First, re-read the official instructions. If they clearly ask for a gazetted officer, the quickest route is to comply. If they only say "attested copies", you can ask politely. You could say:
"Sir or Madam, the Government of India's 2013 memorandum on self-certification allows self-attested copies with originals shown at verification. I have the originals here. Could you check them against my copies?"
Some institutions have written this into their own rules. Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan's February 2016 order told its schools to accept a date-of-birth certificate self-attested by the child's parent or guardian at admission, with the principal verifying it against the original and recording that on the copy.
A checklist for document day
Two or three self-attested copies of each document, unless the notice gives a number
Originals in a separate folder, in the order the notice lists them
Passport-size photographs, and a pen in the ink colour the form asks for
Scans of every self-attested page on your phone, in case a portal asks for uploads later
For the bigger picture, read our guides on how to get marksheets attested for college applications, how to prepare for document verification in counselling and getting Class 10 and 12 marksheets on DigiLocker.
Once the paperwork is done and you are unsure where to start on next year's physics or maths, Fermi's AI tutor can work out what you already know and build a plan for the session.
