Why do you need to notarise your utility bill?
Recent changes at VFS now means that if you live in New South Wales and you need to prove your address (or change of address), you need to provide VFS with a notarised copy of your utility bill. Previously, these documents could be certified by a justice of the peace, but not anymore. Involving a notary public in this process potentially means a higher level of formality to verify the documents being notarised to confirm their authenticity - ensuring that the process and the checks required by VFS are taken to a higher standard.
What's the problem with notarising utility bills?
Notary public services generally deal with original documents and this presents a bit of a challenge when many documents (especially utility bills) are only being produced and sent as electronic documents by email or by download. The process of notarising electronic documents still means printing the electronic document as a paper document for it to be notarised.
What do we offer to help you satisfy this process?
Notarising your utility bill can be quick and easy, but it depends on what you're prepared to do and what you're able to do (and how your utility provider can assist you in this process). Currently, our notary public service offering is tailored towards the following arrangement as being the fastest and cheapest method that more and more of our clients are electing to follow.
Fastest and cheapest - arrange for your utility provider to email a copy of the utility bill to us directly. When the email comes to us directly from the utilty provider, we'll print the attach statement and provide a notary certificate confirming that we received the documents directly from the utility provider. Provide your utility provider with this email and call us to make an appointment.
If you can't arrange for your utility provider to email us directly, you can either print your utility bill or email it to us and we'll verify the information with the utility provider. Due to the steps in this process, it potentially takes longer and will cost more than the first method.
What next?
To obtain a quote on our notary public services for India, please visit https://www.notary-parramatta.com.au/notary-fees/.
Acknowledgements
This blog is supported and maintained by Phang Legal. Phang Legal is a leading provider of notary public services in Sydney. With offices conveniently located in Parramatta, Phang Legal supports and services the Indian community across Sydney with readily available and easily accessible notary public services at highly competitive rates.
For more information regarding notary public services for documents going to India, view our notary publications at https://www.notary-parramatta.com.au/jurisdiction/india-notary/.
Frequently asked questions regarding our notary public services can also be found at https://www.notary-parramatta.com.au/faqs/.
For Hindi to English translation services by NAATI accredited translators, see https://hindi-naati-translation.blogspot.com.au/.
Ern Phang
Notary Public
Ern Phang is the solicitor director of Phang Legal and a notary public. Ern regularly writes about his experiences as a notary public, including the kinds of problems and solutions that his clients face when sending documents to India.
IMPORTANT: the information in this article is correct at the time of publication, however the law constantly changes. This means you should always refer to the most recent articles because we try to update this blog on a regular basis with the most current information.
