This can’t be for real.
I’ve been offered a teaching job at a university. My PhD degree has to be stamped by the Min of Ed here before I can qualify.
For the Min of Ed to recognize it it must be stamped by MOFA
For MOFA to recognize it it must be stamped by Taiwan Trade Office in London
For Taiwan Trade Office in London to recognize it it must be stamped by British Foreign Office
For British Foreign Office to recognize it it must be stamped by “a British public official” which apparently means either the British Council (though the British COuncil in Taipei don’t provide the service) or a “British notary public”
What’s one of those? Are there any in Taiwan? Or can I mail the degree to a notary public in England (not that I know of any!)?
Is it normally this complicated? Where did I go wrong?
No, you aint doone anytihng wrong, just welcome to the working wonders of Taiwan.
Almost all Solicitor firms in UK will have a notary public on their staff which would allow you to get the ball rolling.
When I had to do this in 1996 I just sent my degree to the Taiwan office in London who confirmed with the university that it was real, and then posted it back to Taiwan. It came back with an apostile from the Taiwan office saying it was real.
As far as I am aware, the FCO will only legalise UK government documents, such as a marriage certificate. If you need the whole hog, a British solicitor will certify a photocopy for five pounds (fee set down by Law Society), but are unlikely to be able to certify a degree is genuine. FYI, all English solicitors are notaries public.
I don’t understand where the British Council come into this, but when I did it the Taiwan office in London had a procedure and a fee, and I suggest you contact them.
What actually happened was that the Taiwan office in London faxed a cpoy of my degree certificate to the university who certified the degree as genuine. The Taiwan office then attached their seal to the photocopy, stating that the signature of the chap at the university was geniune. This was then sent to an address in the UK, on to me in Taiwan, and I put it in with my work permit application to the Ministry of Ed.
Thanks both.
The FCO does legalise academic documents as well as government ones. The British Council certification is an alternative to notarization in the case of academic documents only.
Anyway I’ll email TRO in the UK and see if they can help.
Oh bloody hell. I emailed them… and then I found this:
tro-taiwan.roc.org.uk/dc/cvfor2.htm
So they do need the FCO stamp (for which you need notarization). And if you don’t go in person, you have to give a letter of authorization and a copy of your passport to the person who does go, and the letter of authorization has to be notarized as well.
The funny thing is, I’m working as a POSTDOC at Academia Sinica at the moment, and all I had to show them was the virgin unstamped PhD certificate.