Who can certify a document
Your document must be certified by a professional person or someone well-respected in your community (‘of good standing’). You could ask the following if they offer this service:
bank or building society official
councillor
minister of religion
dentist
chartered accountant
solicitor or notary
teacher or lecturer
The person you ask should not be:
related to you
living at the same address
in a relationship with you
Check with the organisation that needs the certified copy - they may have specific rules for who can certify a document.
How to certify a document
Take the photocopied document and the original and ask the person to certify the copy by:
writing ‘Certified to be a true copy of the original seen by me’ on the document
signing and dating it
printing their name under the signature
adding their occupation, address and telephone number
The person certifying the document may charge you a fee.
Certifying a translation
If you need to certify a translation of a document that’s not written in English or Welsh, ask the translation company to confirm in writing on the translation:
that it’s a ‘true and accurate translation of the original document’
the date of the translation
the full name and contact details of the translator or a representative of the translation company