A Notary Public (also referred to as a Public Notary) is a lawyer authorised to draw up or certify documents for overseas jurisdictions.

A Notary Public is not the same as a Justice of Peace. A Justice of Peace is only recognised in Australia while a Notary Public is recognised all over the world. When you have a document notarised in Australia by a Notary Public a foreign government or person may sometimes need proof the signatures and stamp of the notary on documents are genuine before they can be accepted. 

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) holds a specimen stamp and signature of each Notary and will certify that a signature, stamp or seal on a document is genuine by checking it against a specimen held on file, and print or attach a certificate in the form of an ‘authentication’ or an ‘apostille’ stating certain facts.

Many deceased estate, marriage documents and business transactions and contracts require the contract to be notarised by a Notary Public when the document will be used overseas.

We charge our fees in accordance with the scale as outlined by the NSW Public Notaries Act, 1997.