What is APS Certificate in Germany?

APS Certificate Germany: All Indian students applying for a Long Stay Student Visa in Germany must have an APS Certificate. An APS Certificate for Germany is proof of the authenticity of their Indian academic documents and is a prerequisite for your German Study visa application. The APS Certificate Germany is in place to simplify your application process to German universities and accelerate your student visa application.

Students are advised to complete the APS process prior to their application with the German university to keep processing times at a minimum. Candidates should note that APS does not issue visas but an original APS certificate is an integral part of the German student visa application process. APS certificate is not required for short-term courses (less than 90 days). However, for courses having a duration longer than 90 days, an APS certificate is mandatory.

So what does the APS Certificate for Germany do? Facilitated by the Academic Evaluation Centre (APS India) facilitate a hassle-free admissions process for Indian students to German universities by authenticating their documents. The successful completion of document verification allows APS India to issue a certificate which is a pre-requisite for the visa application when applying to study in Germany. Read: Why APS Certificate is mandatory for Indian students in Germany?

First established in 2001, APS has a presence in China (2001), and Vietnam (2007) and has been recently introduced in India (2022). Academic Evaluation Centre (APS India) is a service provider of the Science section of the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, New Delhi in cooperation with the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD).

Latest Update: APS Certificates Mandatory in Germany from Nov 1, Have you applied?

From November 01, 2022, onwards, Germany has made it mandatory for all Indian students to get their academic documents verified by the Academic Evaluation Centre (APS India) and obtain authenticity certificates (APS Certificate in Germany) before applying for their German Student Visas via VFS Global Services. Indian students applying for their Germany Student Visa should note that the APS certificate has become a mandatory document that needs to be submitted as part of their Germany Study Visa application process. Read More

How to get APS Certificate in Germany?

Step 1: Candidates who are looking to pursue higher education in Germany would be first required to get their academic documents verified by APS India to get their APS Certificate for Germany

Step 2: Candidates are advised to go through the APS India official website, https://aps-india.de/ and go through the guidelines provided on the website. Candidates would have to keep the original and photocopies of their academic documents for the APS Certification process. Only documents translated into the English language from any of the Indian regional languages must be notarized.

Step 3: Candidates would be required to the APS Certificate Germany fees. Once the authorities have received your APS Certificate Germany fees they will be able to start processing your application

Step 4: Candidates would be then required to submit the required documents via courier or hand over the documents personally at the APS India office reception during stipulated office timings.

APS Certificate for Germany from India: Application Process

source:  Academic Evaluation Centre

APS Certificate Germany requirements: In this section, we are going to be discussing the application process for applying for the APS Certificate for Germany from India

• Candidates would be required to register online at www.aps-india.de 
• Candidates would be required to print and sign the completed application form. Kindly ensure that the entered data is correct and that the form is personally signed by the applicant. Incomplete and incorrect information will invalidate your application.
• Candidates would be required to transfer the APS verification fee of 18,000/- INR to the APS bank account. (NON-REFUNDABLE)
• Candidates would be then required to submit the required documents, including the printed and signed application form via courier or in person at the reception desk of APS India. Kindly keep a record of your courier tracking details. Note: Documents must be in Legible A4-sized coloured photocopies of all original documents and both sides of all the documents must be photocopied. Candidates are not required to courier original documents.
  • Candidates should note that document verification will be conducted by APS India. Only complete applications will be processed.  For Undergraduate students applying for APS Certificate, there could be an interview involved in the process. The same has been mentioned below.
    • Upon successful completion of the document verification, candidates may under certain circumstances, be asked to appear for a personal interview. These candidates will be notified via telephone or email 10 to 14 days prior to the interview date. The date shall not be changed.
    • The interview will last around 20 minutes. It will focus on the candidate's academic history and achievements in India. The interviews will be conducted in English and/or German.
• Within 5 days of the interview, your online profile will be updated with your verification result. Successful candidates will receive five original APS certificates via courier.
• On completion of the document verification, your online profile will be updated with a verification outcome. Successful candidates will receive five original APS certificates via courier.

Remember: APS reserves the right to request additional documents