---
title: "Attribute certificates"
description: "How to issue attribute certificates with Amplia's API, such as the Brazilian student ID card (CIE): a CA for attribute certificates, the order, and issuance without a CSR."
canonical: "https://docs.lacunasoftware.com/en-us/articles/amplia/integration/attribute-certificates"
locale: "en"
product: "Amplia"
last_updated: "2026-10-12"
---

# Attribute certificates

An attribute certificate doesn't bind a key pair to its holder: it attests a characteristic of the holder, such as a professional ID
(*PrivateID*) or a Brazilian student ID card (CIE). 

## Before you start

Attribute certificates are issued by a CA set up to issue them, which is not the CA that issues public-key certificates: the samples
keep its id in a separate setting, `attributeCaId`. Operators can create such a CA on the dashboard. 

TODO(docs): no page explains how to create a CA for attribute certificates.

## Flow

1. [Create the order](https://docs.lacunasoftware.com/en-us/articles/amplia/integration/orders) on the attribute CA, with `kind` set to `Attribute` and the parameters of the certificate's format.
1. Issue the certificate without a CSR, since an attribute certificate has no key pair of its own.
1. Store the certificate's content.

| Format | Order endpoint | Required parameters |
|---|---|---|
| Brazilian student ID card (CIE) | `POST /api/orders/cie` | `name`, `registrationNumber`, `degree`, `course` and `institution` (`name`, `city`, `state`) |
| PrivateID | `POST /api/orders/private-id` | `name`, `cpf`, `idNumber` |

A CIE order also takes `eea`, `cpf`, `birthDate`, `idNumber`, `idIssuer` and `idIssuerState`. 
Since Amplia 4.15.0, operators can also create CIE orders on a dashboard form. 
TODO(docs): what the CIE and PrivateID fields mean (for example `eea`).

## Example

The only sample is in PHP. It creates a CIE order and issues the certificate with a `null` CSR: 

```php
use Lacuna\Amplia\CreateOrderRequest;
use Lacuna\Amplia\CertificateKinds;
use Lacuna\Amplia\CieCertificateParameters;
use Lacuna\Amplia\CieInstitution;

$client = Util::getAmpliaClient();
$createOrderRequest = new CreateOrderRequest();
$createOrderRequest->caId = getConfig()['amplia']['attributeCaId'];
$createOrderRequest->validityEnd = Util::getDateYearsFromNow(2);
$createOrderRequest->kind = CertificateKinds::ATTRIBUTE;
$parameters = new CieCertificateParameters();
$parameters->name = $name;
$parameters->cpf = $cpf;
$parameters->eea = $eea;
$parameters->degree = $degree;
$parameters->course = $course;
$parameters->registrationNumber = $registrationNumber;

$institution = new CieInstitution();
$institution->name = $institutionName;
$institution->city = $institutionCity;
$institution->state = $institutionState;
$parameters->institution = $institution;

$createOrderRequest->parameters = $parameters;
$order = $client->createOrder($createOrderRequest);
$cert = $client->issueCertificate($order->getId(), null);
$fileId = StorageMock::store($cert->getContentRaw(), '.ac');
```

The PHP client sends the `null` CSR to `POST /api/v2/certificates`, as for any other certificate; none of the client libraries has a
method of its own for attribute certificates. 
An attribute certificate has no standard file extension: the sample stores it as `.ac`. 

## Use the certificate

[PKI SDK](https://docs.lacunasoftware.com/en-us/articles/pki-sdk) decodes, validates and issues X.509 attribute certificates in .NET applications. 
Attribute certificates can be [revoked](https://docs.lacunasoftware.com/en-us/articles/amplia/integration/revocation) like any other. 

## See also

* [Create certificate orders](https://docs.lacunasoftware.com/en-us/articles/amplia/integration/orders)
* [Revoke certificates](https://docs.lacunasoftware.com/en-us/articles/amplia/integration/revocation)
* [Errors](https://docs.lacunasoftware.com/en-us/articles/amplia/integration/errors)

**Demos and samples**

- Issue an attribute certificate using Amplia: [PHP](https://github.com/LacunaSoftware/PkiSuiteSamples/blob/master/php/plain/public/issue-cert-attribute-amplia/index.php)