You have filled out your forms and sent in all the appropriate documents. You are eager to receive word that your credential evaluation is in process. But instead, you get a status update that your report is on hold. What does that mean?

This post explains some common reasons that WES might put your credential evaluation on hold and what you can do—if anything—to restart the process.

Once your documents arrive at WES, evaluators review them to ensure that they have come from the appropriate source and contain all the information necessary to complete a thorough evaluation. The evaluators can take a few weeks to review documents because this represents the core of the evaluation process.

When documents do not come in the correct format, our evaluators send a status update in an email that identifies the issue and specifies how to remedy it.

Here are some messages we may send if we require additional or alternative documentation for your report:

1. WES received your document, but it is not legible and cannot be used to prepare your evaluation.

If you received this status update via email, it means that evaluators could not read important details, such as course titles, grades, your name, or your date of birth. We need all of these documents to be legible in order to conduct our analysis and produce an accurate evaluation. Please resend higher quality documents in the format stated on our Required Documents page.

2. The document received contains only a partial record of your study program. You might not have included some of your subjects or grades.

WES requires a full record of all courses and grades for each year of your program. To proceed with the evaluation, we need a complete document that includes all this information. Send this document to WES according to the requirements for your country of education.

3. WES received your document in an envelope that was NOT stamped or signed across the back flap by the appropriate official. Therefore, WES is not able to determine that the document was issued and sent directly by your institution.

WES requires that envelopes arrive stamped and/or signed by the appropriate official as part of the document authentication process. Please refer to our Required Documents page to determine the appropriate official for your country of education. To learn more about how to send us sealed envelopes, watch the following video on this topic.

4. The document sent to WES was in an open envelope. WES requires that academic documents come in a sealed envelope that is stamped or signed across the back flap by the appropriate official. If the envelope is open, WES cannot accept the document.

WES requires sealed envelopes as part of the document authentication process. If you have not sent a sealed envelope, we cannot proceed. The only exception to this rule is if Customs opens your envelope for a security check. They will leave us a note specifying what they have done, so we can usually proceed in this circumstance. If you receive this status update via email, please send your documents in an envelope that is appropriately sealed.

5. WES received your translations, but they are not precise, word-for-word translations. Therefore, we cannot use them to prepare your evaluation.

If you received this status update via email, the translations we received do not correspond to the original language document(s).  We cannot proceed unless the documents and translations match. Please send us a new set of translations that match the original language document(s). We accept any word-for-word translation from your academic institution or a certified translator. You may need to request new academic documents to ensure that the translator can provide an accurate translation.

6. WES received your translations, but they are missing information. Therefore, we cannot use them to prepare your evaluation.

If you received this status update via email, the translations we received are missing pages. Please send a complete translation that corresponds to the original language document(s) so we can proceed with your evaluation report. We accept any word-for-word translation from your academic institution or a certified translator. You may need to request new academic documents to ensure that the translator can provide an accurate translation.

If you received any of these messages, please follow the instructions stated in our correspondence and send us the required documents as soon as you can. WES has no deadline and will keep your file open until we receive all documents. However, we need to receive, review, and accept all necessary documentation before issuing an estimated date of completion for your report.

For further clarification on our document requirements, please consult our Required Documents page.

Ready to begin your credential evaluation? Start your application here.