IBCC
Attestation

IBCC Attestation in Pakistan

If your Matric, Intermediate, O/A Level, or diploma certificate is going to be used outside Pakistan - for a visa, a foreign university application, or overseas employment - it needs to be attested by the Inter Board Committee of Chairmen before it can go any further in the chain. This is the step that confirms your school-level certificate was genuinely issued by a recognised Pakistani board, and it's a different authority and a different process from HEC attestation, which only covers Bachelor's-level documents and above.

This page walks through what IBCC actually attests, the step most people miss before they even get to IBCC, and what the process looks like in practice.

What IBCC Attestation Is

IBCC - the Inter Board Committee of Chairmen - is the coordinating body for Pakistan's examination boards (BISEs), technical boards, and a number of recognised religious and Wafaq boards. IBCC attestation is its official confirmation that a certificate was genuinely issued by one of these recognised boards.

It's worth being clear about where IBCC sits relative to the rest of the chain:

• IBCC handles school and intermediate-level documents - Matric/SSC, Intermediate/HSSC, technical diplomas, and O/A Levels.
• HEC handles everything from Bachelor's level upward. If you need both your Matric certificate and your degree attested (common for embassy or visa submissions), you need both IBCC and HEC one doesn't cover the other.
• MOFA comes after IBCC, not instead of it. IBCC attestation is a prerequisite for MOFA attestation on school-level documents, the same way HEC attestation is a prerequisite for MOFA on degree-level documents.

Who Needs IBCC Attestation

• Students applying to study abroad who need their Matric and Intermediate certificates verified as part of admissions
• Workers applying for jobs overseas, particularly where the employer or labour ministry asks for attested school-level qualifications alongside any technical diploma
• Diploma of Associate Engineering (DAE) and other technical-board diploma holders applying for skilled work abroad
• O/A Level students whose certificates need to be recognised as equivalent Pakistani qualifications before further attestation
• Anyone assembling a full document set for MOFA or embassy attestation where school-level certificates are part of the required list

Which Documents IBCC Attests

• Secondary School Certificate (SSC/Matric)
• Higher Secondary School Certificate (HSSC/Intermediate)
• Technical diplomas from Boards of Technical Education (DAE, D.Com, and similar 1-3 year programmes)
• O Level and A Level certificates
• Shahadat ul Sanwia Aama and Shahadat ul Sanwia Khasa (recognised religious qualifications)
• School Leaving Certificates up to Class 8, in specific cases

IBCC does not attest Bachelor's degrees, Master's degrees, or any higher-education document - those go to HEC.

Before IBCC: Getting Your Board's Verification

This is the step that trips up more applications than anything else in the IBCC process.

Before IBCC will attest your certificate, the board that actually issued it your BISE, technical board, or Wafaq - needs to have already verified it. IBCC doesn't independently re-check your academic record from scratch; it confirms that the issuing board itself stands behind the document.

In practice, this means: if your certificate is from BISE Karachi, BISE Lahore, BISE Multan, or any other board, that board's own verification or attestation needs to be sorted out first, before you take the certificate to IBCC. Skipping this step or assuming IBCC will handle it is the single most common reason an IBCC application gets held up.

For Intermediate/HSSC certificates specifically, IBCC also expects to see your SSC/Matric certificate alongside it (or an already-attested copy), since your Intermediate result is built on your Matric record. Diploma attestation similarly expects both SSC and HSSC certificates plus a board verification letter.

The IBCC Attestation Process

1. Get board-level verification first. Confirm with your issuing board that your certificate is verified/recorded correctly on their end. This varies by board, so it's worth checking directly rather than assuming it's already done.
2. Register on IBCC's online portal (attest.ibcc.edu.pk) and complete the application form.
3. Gather your documents: original certificate, a clear photocopy, CNIC or B-Form of both the applicant and father/guardian, a passport copy if you have one, and - for Intermediate or diploma applications - your SSC certificate as well.
4. Submit your application and pay the fee. Unlike HEC's new fully remote system, IBCC's process currently still involves booking an appointment and, in most cases, an in-person or courier-based submission step - it hasn't moved to the same fully online model yet.
5. Attestation and collection. Once IBCC has verified the certificate against your board's records, the attested document is issued, either for collection or through the courier option if you selected that.

IBCC Attestation Fee

Public information on IBCC's exact current fee is genuinely inconsistent - different sources quote different figures depending on document type, urgency, and whether you're using the courier option, and none of it is confirmed on an official fee schedule I could independently verify. Rather than state a number that might be wrong, the honest answer is: expect a per-document fee in the low thousands of rupees, with an additional charge for express/urgent processing, and confirm the exact current amount either on IBCC's portal or with Rasmi before you commit to a timeline or budget. This is one of the areas where using a facilitation service can genuinely save you a wasted trip we check the current fee schedule before you pay anything.

How Long IBCC Attestation Takes

Processing time depends on the service level you choose (standard vs. urgent/same-day appointment) and, as with HEC, on how quickly your issuing board responds to verification requests. Standard processing typically runs longer than HEC's current online timeline, since IBCC's process still has an in-person or courier component. If you're on a deadline, ask about urgent/same-day options specifically - they exist, but availability and cost vary.

Common Mistakes That Delay IBCC Attestation

• Skipping board verification. Covered above, but worth repeating: this is the number one cause of delay.
• Applying for Intermediate attestation without the Matric certificate. IBCC expects to see both.
• Name or date-of-birth mismatches between CNIC and certificate - the same issue that affects HEC applications affects IBCC ones.
• Using a damaged, faded, or laminated original. Boards issued paper certificates over many years in different formats; older or poorly stored certificates sometimes need a duplicate from the board before attestation is possible.
• Not checking which boards are currently supported for online verification. Some boards' records are more fully digitised than others - worth confirming before you assume the process will be quick.

What Happens After IBCC Attestation

Once your certificate is IBCC-attested, the next step is MOFA - either a MOFA apostille (if your destination country is a Hague Apostille Convention member that recognises apostilles from Pakistan) or traditional MOFA attestation followed by embassy attestation (for UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, and a handful of other cases). Our MOFA Apostille & Attestation page explains exactly which route applies to which destination.

How Rasmi Helps with IBCC Attestation

• Confirming with your specific board what verification you need before IBCC will accept your application, so you're not turned away for a missing prerequisite
• Checking your full document set - including the SSC-before-HSSC and diploma-specific requirements - before submission
• Getting the current fee and processing-time information directly, since public figures for IBCC are inconsistent
• Managing the application and appointment process on your behalf
• Coordinating the handoff to MOFA (and embassy attestation, if your destination requires it) so you're not starting from scratch at each stage

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between HEC and IBCC attestation?
HEC attests Bachelor's-level documents and above. IBCC attests Matric, Intermediate, technical diplomas, and O/A Levels. If you need both a degree and a school certificate attested, you need both authorities not one instead of the other.

Do I need my board's verification before applying to IBCC?
Yes, in effect. IBCC attests based on the issuing board's own confirmation of your record, so getting that sorted first is the most important preparation step.

Can O Level and A Level certificates be attested by IBCC?
Yes, O/A Level certificates are attested by IBCC.

Do I need my Matric certificate attested before my Intermediate certificate?
You need your Matric/SSC certificate available - attested or verified - when applying for Intermediate/HSSC attestation, since IBCC checks the two together.

How long does IBCC attestation take?
It varies by service level and by how quickly your board responds to verification, and currently runs longer on average than HEC's new fully online process, since IBCC still involves an appointment and in most cases a physical submission step.

Is IBCC attestation required before MOFA attestation?
Yes. For Matric, Intermediate, diploma, and O/A Level certificates, IBCC attestation is a required step before MOFA will attest the document.