HEC Launches Fully Online Degree Attestation System
The Higher Education Commission of Pakistan has launched a fully online and paperless degree attestation system, giving students and graduates a new digital route to verify academic documents without visiting HEC offices. The announcement was made on Monday and immediately became an important update for university students, job seekers and overseas applicants across Pakistan.
Under the revamped Degree Attestation System, applicants will no longer be required to physically submit original documents or travel to HEC offices for routine attestation. The new process allows users to file applications through the HEC e-Services Portal at any time, making the service available 24 hours a day.
According to HEC Chairman Dr Niaz Ahmed Akhtar, the redesigned system introduces a secure and user-friendly paperless mechanism for attestation. Applicants will create an account, enter their personal and academic details, upload transcripts and allow HEC to verify credentials with the relevant universities.
The HEC chairman said the system has been designed to reduce inconvenience for students and graduates. He explained that the new model replaces the older requirement of office visits and hard-copy submissions with online verification, digital processing and electronic certificates.
Payments under the new system can be made online through 1-Link. After scrutiny, university verification and final review, applicants will receive an e-attestation certificate, while updates will be shared through SMS and email. The attested certificate will also be available for download from the applicant’s HEC portal account.
The launch follows HEC’s earlier plan to modernise the attestation process through technology, including blockchain-based verification. The reform had been expected after lawmakers and students repeatedly raised concerns about delays, manual processing and the time required to get degrees attested through the previous system.
Before this change, many applicants had to either visit HEC offices or send original documents by post, creating delays and security concerns. The new system replaces physical stamps with verifiable e-certificates, reducing the cost, time and risk involved in manual documentation.
The decision is particularly important for students applying for foreign universities, scholarships, visas and employment opportunities. Degree attestation is often a mandatory requirement in these processes, and delays can affect deadlines, travel plans and career prospects.
For Pakistan’s education sector, the shift signals a broader move toward digital governance and service automation. If implemented smoothly, the online attestation platform could reduce queues, improve transparency and help universities maintain cleaner verification records.
The next challenge will be ensuring that the portal remains stable, responsive and accessible to applicants from all regions. HEC will also need close coordination with universities so that credential verification is completed quickly and students receive the promised benefit of a faster, paperless system.