Is It Normal for Companies to Keep Your Original Experience Certificate? Seeking Advice on Retrieval

Hi, I joined a company a couple of years back, and at the time of recruitment, they took my "original" experience certificate from my prior employer into their custody. Since I had never encountered such a process in my previous experiences, I was a bit reluctant but was eventually convinced that this was a standard practice at this company. Upon my resignation, when I requested the return of my old experience certificate along with the relieving order/experience certificate, the HR team politely declined to give it back, stating that it was part of their "records." Despite my best efforts to argue, I could not retrieve my old original certificate.

Questions Regarding HR Practices and Experience Certificates

Could someone enlighten me on the following:
(1) Is this a standard HR practice, and what is the logic behind it?
(2) How does the "experience" certificate issued by another company to an ex-employee of a company become a "record" for the current company?
(3) Is there a forum through which I can lodge a complaint and retrieve my original certificate? (In situations like obtaining a US Visa, one must possess all original experience certificates.)

Regards,
Suren

Dear Suren,

Do you have documents to prove the submission of the "Original Experience Certificate"? If yes, you can challenge this legally. Normally, such a practice is not followed in most industries. Keeping the Original Marks Card in their custody to avoid unanticipated labor attrition is common in industries, but not the Original Experience Certificate of the Ex-Employer. As far as my knowledge goes, this is not a standard HR practice. To record your profile, I don't think they require the originals in their custody. You can lodge a complaint with the concerned authority only if you can prove the submission of the Original Experience Certificate.

Regards,
[Name Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Thank you, Felix. Two questions:

Appointment Letter Requirements

(1) The appointment letter given by this company clearly asks to submit "the experience certificate from the previous employer - in original" as a part of joining formalities (of course, along with a few other things like a copy of mark sheets and academic certificates). I am unsure if this letter - by itself - is the proof that you are indicating.

Authority Clarification

(2) Who is the concerned authority?

Regards,
Suren