Help & FAQ's
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What is a Notary Public? What is a Notary Public? A notary practicing in England and Wales holds an office which is internationally recognised. The signature and official seal of a Notary are recognised as evidence of a responsible legal officer in most countries of the world. A Notary mainly acts as an impartial and legally trained witness to authenticate and certify the execution of documents required or intended for use outside the UK. You probably know if you need the services of a Notary Public; it is usually whenever a legal transaction has an international element. The following is a list of some of the Notarial work undertaken by MyNotary members; it is provided as an illustration only and not as a definitive list.
Use the interactive Google map on the home page of this site. The notaries depicted by a balloon are notaries that definitely want to be found! And want your business. How to use the interactive Google map. Note: in Scotland there is no actual published list of notaries. Almost all solicitors are one. We have or are in the process of putting together a list of lawyers that are ready wiling and able to assist with international documentation work – so although a full list of firms in Scotland can be obtained on The Law Society of Scotland's website at www.lawscot.org.uk you are best advised to use the notaries listed with MyNotary. If you cannot find one convenient to you; email us. We will source your work for you.
Once the relevant Notary has been found, their name and address is displayed. Some Notary listings also provide email and website addresses as well as contact telephone numbers and a description of other services that their respective firms provide. Please contact the notary directly or email admin@Mynotary.co.uk
What proof of Identity is required? In order to maintain the internationally recognised high standards of Notaries Public, the Notary is required to make certain checks. Individuals should produce a current passport or, in exceptional cases, other proof of similar validity and reliability. Other proof could include certificates of birth, baptism, marriage, divorce, deed poll on change of name, statutory declaration, full driving licence, National Insurance Card or some other official document bearing a full name and signature. In the case of companies, details of the proof and information required, depending on the circumstances and service required, should be discussed in advance with the Notary. Proof of any represented legal capacity and authority will be required
You may have been asked to make sure that your document is ‘legalised’. Legalisation means that the Foreign and Commonwealth Office puts a certificate on the document confirming the Notary's credentials. The Foreign Office certificate, for some countries, is known as an Apostille and it is attached under the terms of the Hague Convention (see at foot of page). For some countries even Foreign Office legalisation is not enough and they require a stamp from their own embassy or consulate before the document is sent abroad. Your notary will advise you what legalisation your document needs, (if any). However we are finding that most documents, other than certified copies of educational or professional qualifications, do require to be legalised; certainly most Powers of Attorney and international trade documents do. If you or your notary is unsure we may be able to help as we are familiar with the varying requirements of most countries. Please email any queries to admin@MyNotary.co.uk
Why is legalisation necessary? Legalisation is a double check to make sure that the notary signature is genuine and recognised and this is done by government departments and embassies. Documents are checked by foreign embassies to make sure that the notary's signature matches the one on their records.
What happens if the document is not in English? In some cases the documents are in a language other than English but it is possible that the English notary will still witness these documents if he is satisfied that there is a valid translation annexed to the deed that is understood by the person signing. In exceptional cases he may be satisfied to fix his seal of office and signature on documents in a foreign language if he is fully satisfied that the person signing is conversant with the language of the document. But if the person signing does not understand the foreign language of the document and there is no English translation attached to it, then it is necessary for the document to be translated by an official legal translator who will then have to sign a statutory declaration certifying that it is a true translation and this declaration itself will have to be witnessed by the notary and sealed.
Which Countries are signatories (members states) to the Hague Convention? Countries that are signatories to the Hague Convention are referred to as member states. In theory, documents relating to legal transactions in any of the member states should not need to be legalised; unfortunately this is not always the case. And the person or parties requiring the notarised documents call the tune! Please email info@MyNotary.co.uk if you have any specific and immediate enquiries relating to the legalisation of documents. For more information about The Hague Convention see http://www.hcch.net/index_en.php?act=text.display&tid=26 Members of the Hague convention are: -
Non members are:-
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