If you need to provide legal paperwork for use abroad you may require the services of a notary public. A notary public is a specialised public certifying officer who can verify or certify facts, events or documents.
The office and seal of a notary public is recognised around the world and so the involvement of a notary can assist in documents and forms being accepted overseas and, in some cases, is a requirement of foreign law in order for these documents to be valid.
Our notary public is able to draft documents in both English and Spanish and can deal with documents in any other language if an appropriate translation of the document is provided or can be obtained.
If you need a notary to verify and witness signatures or take oaths you will need to appear before the notary in person. This would usually be at our offices in Central London but, if necessary, arrangements can be made to do this at your home, offices or elsewhere.
Advice for businesses
- Corporate powers of attorney
- Certifying and verifying the execution of legal documents
- Certifying and verifying compliance with company procedures
- Certifying and verifying copy documents
- Certificates of Good Standing
- Swearing affidavits, statutory declarations and acknowledgements
- Documents for conveyancing and transfer of property abroad
- Bills of Exchange and Shipping Protests.
Advice for individuals
- Swearing affidavits, statutory declarations and acknowledgements
- Adoption, immigration, marriage and civil partnership forms
- Documents for conveyancing and transfer of property abroad
- Wills and documents for the administration of estates abroad
- Powers of attorney
- Certifying and verifying documents
- Verification of academic certificates
- Parent and child travel permissions.
Legalisation
After being notarised, some documents must be legalised in order to be accepted in the country in which they are to be used.
Legalisation is the process by which the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office attaches a certificate to a notarised document to certify that a signatory holds the office of the notary public and to certify the genuineness of the notary’s signature and seal of office on a document.
If required, some embassies and consulates can provide further certification of the office and genuineness of the signature of the UK FCO consular officer. The extent of legalisation required depends on the requirements of the country in which the notarised document is to be used. The time that embassies and consulates take to legalise documents varies and can be unpredictable.
Our fee is calculated by reference to the nature and complexity of the work and the amount of time spent, knowledge required and responsibility involved. Our fees will be subject to an agreed scope of work.
Our minimum fee for any notarial matter is £250 plus VAT.
We will be required to incur third party expenses on your behalf which we will include on our invoice to you. We will endeavour to provide an estimate of all third party costs at the outset of the matter. Third party costs and taxes are not included in our fee estimate.
How long will my matter take?
The appointment with the notary will generally take no more than one hour.
How long the matter will take from start to finish will depend on a number of variables including whether any of the following are required: legalisation of the notarised documents; translations; additional ancillary documentation from third parties; the drafting of additional documents by the notary; and/or liaising with your overseas lawyers or other advisors.
We will endeavour to provide an estimated time frame for completion of the matter once a scope of work is agreed. However, for the reasons set out above, timings cannot be guaranteed.
Regulatory information
Our notarial services are provided by a notary whose practice is regulated through the Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Further information
Further information on our fees, third party costs, the stages involved in a notarial matter and redress procedures can be found here.
