What can we notarise during the restrictions in Greater Sydney? (July 2021 update)

We are currently closed for face-to-face appointments

Thanks for your continued interest in our services and our support. Unfortunately, due to the extended restrictions across Greater Sydney, our office is still closed to face-to-face appointments until further notice.

What does this mean?

We're still providing legal and notary public services, however, they're limited to services that don't require face-to-face appointments. These services include:

• Attesting or certifying copies of documents. Generally, this still means that you must arrange for the original document to be delivered to our office*. We do NOT recommend posting important original documents like passports but if it's urgent and absolutely necessary, then you should arrange for your document to be couriered to our office. Once notarised, our office will arrange for a return courier to ensure that your original documents and notarised copies are returned to you safely and securely.
• Verifying documents. If you have certain electronic documents that must be verified (such as Australian visa documents (ie, VEVO), Australian educational documents, Australian medical documents, Australian employment documents), these documents can be verified (before being notarised) with whoever issued the documents. Alternatively, if these documents are not electronic documents and there are only original documents, then the same applies as attesting and certifying. We require the original documents to be delivered to our office* before we can contact whoever issued the documents to verify them.

*If you personally deliver original documents to our office, you may be subject to a fine for breaching the current 'stay-at-home' orders. Any documents must be able to be slipped under our door as our office will NOT receive you or open the door for you when you arrive.

Accordingly, we can only recommend that you arrange for your document to be sent by courier (or if you are not concerned that the document could be lost, arrange for it to be posted) otherwise we suggest waiting until the restrictions have been lifted.

Importantly, during the current restrictions, we are not providing services that require a face-to-face appointment, mainly this refers to services that include witnessing. This means we cannot notarise documents such as:

• Power of attorney, both general power of attorney and special power of attorney.
• Declarations and affidavits (including the Indian Drivers Licence Verification)
• Passport renewal forms such as Form V, Form I, or Form J
• Australian visa renewal such as Form 1229
• Life certificates
• Court documents

For this service or for any of these documents that require witnessing or a face-to-face appointment, you must wait until the restrictions have been lifted before calling our office to make an appointment.

Update

Restrictions for Greater Sydney have now been extended to 30 July 2021.

Do you need witnesses for the General Power of Attorney or Special Power of Attorney for India?

Why do you need witnesses?

Many clients ask us whether they need to have witnesses for their power of attorney (both General Power of Attorney and Special Power of Attorney) for India. If you find yourself in the same situation, the simple answer is that you should ask your lawyer in India.

Many of the 'standard' forms and templates for the power of attorney that clients show us (either provided to them by their lawyer, by their bank or by a government office) include a place for 1 or 2 witnesses.

If you were to sign these powers of attorney in India, then presumably you would just follow the requirements in the documents and sign it in front of those witnesses. Those witnesses would then include their details (ie, full name and address) and sign in the spaces provided once you have signed in front of them. Signing in their presence is generally necessary as that is the obligation of the witness to verify that you have signed in front of them.

But what if you are signing the power of attorney here? Do these same requirements apply when you are living in Australia and you are signing the power of attorney for India? Your lawyer in India should be able to advise you on this specific requirement.

Signing the Power of Attorney in Australia

In most cases, if you are living in Australia but you are signing the power of attorney to be used in India, then you would need to sign that power of attorney in front of a notary public (perhaps in addition to the witnesses).

The General Power of Attorney and the Special Power of Attorney must be attested. While the word 'attested' does not clearly indicate what needs to be done to the document, generally this will mean that you must sign the document in front of the notary public and the notary public certifies that you identified yourself by photograph identification and that you signed the document in front of the notary public.

In addition to notarisation, sometimes the notarised power of attorney must also be attested by VFS on behalf of the Indian Consulate. If you are not sure, then these are the questions that you need to ask your lawyer in India. If you have been asked to have your document attested by VFS, then you will also need to check the VFS requirements on their website (ie, there are checklists for documents such as the power of attorney) and ensure that you satisfy them before you visit VFS. These requirements could also include having the notarised power of attorney stamped with an apostille from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (but if you want to know more about this, maybe look through some of the other articles that we have written on this blog).

Get the right advice

Whatever transaction you are planning in India, whether it is to do with property dealings, financial and money matters, or court and legal action, your lawyer who is assisting you with those things will be the best person to advise you as to the specific requirements that they must satisfy in order for your document to be accepted in India. If you do not satisfy these requirements, then you run the risk of having your document rejected and starting all over again - not only a waste of money but a waste of time as well.

Unfortunately, in our experience, many clients do not obtain the right (or clear) advice from their lawyer in India. If this happens to you too, there is not much that we can do to assist in this process and it is up to your lawyer in India to either inform themselves of the specific requirements of whatever they are doing for you - in the context of you being in Australia but signing documents for India - or potentially refer you to another lawyer in India who might be more familiar with the requirements.

Some clients have approached us with documents, like the power of attorney, prepared by lawyers in Australia. We generally do not recommend doing that if those lawyers are not familiar with the laws or the process and procedures in India (keep in mind that there can also be differences between each state and various localities as well as various courts and government offices). A lawyer in Australia is going to be so detached from whatever you are actually doing in India that they are only really guessing what is required without actually knowing what is required. Accordingly, your best advice is always going to be from your lawyer in India especially the lawyer who will actually be using the power of attorney to assist you in whatever you are hoping to achieve in India.

Who can be your witness?

We only provide the services of the notary public and not of other witnesses. If you need to have additional witnesses, you will need to bring them with you - preferably someone that you know rather than a 'stranger'. Your witnesses will also need to be able to properly identify themselves (ie, passport) and be present at the same time as you when you come for your appointment. When we notarise your document we will also confirm that you AND your witnesses both appeared and signed the document in our presence.

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.

Will you prepare my General Power of Attorney or my Special Power of Attorney for me?

The General Power of Attorney and the Special Power of Attorney are some of the most common documents that we are asked to notarised for use in India. In addition to the relatively large percentage of people of Indian origin living in Western Sydney, the reality is that a large proportion of the hardworking migrant population send money 'back home' to invest in property for themselves or their parents. Respect! (Being from a migrant family having migrated to Australia young in the late 1970s, I can relate to this.)

Our goal is to help our clients do what they need to do and in most cases, they wish to appoint someone in India to handle their property transaction or related banking and lending activities on their behalf. The most appropriate document to achieve this goal is called a 'power of attorney'.

The power of attorney is a formal legal document that appoints someone else to do things on your behalf. The nature and scope of their authority is entirely up to you. You can appoint and authorise them to represent you on all things, or you could limit that appointment and authorisation to a few things - obviously depending on the nature of what you want them to do and your relationship and level of trust with the person that you appoint as your attorney (the person receiving the power). There are general legal principles around the rights and obligations of donor (the person giving the power) and the attorney, however this largely relies on the content of the document - the power of attorney.

Knowing what is included in the power of attorney is important because it determines the attorney's powers and responsibilities. The main types of power of attorney documents that we notarise for clients sending them to India are the General Power of Attorney and the Special Power of Attorney. Each type of power of attorney would be used for a different purpose and appropriate for different situations. In most cases, you will need to obtain advice from whoever requires the authority to be given to determine which power of attorney is appropriate.

Sometimes clients will ask whether we can prepare a power of attorney for use in India. The simple answer is 'no'. The power of attorney should be prepared according to the laws of India and in a way that is appropriate to the purpose of the power of attorney. As we are not qualifies lawyers for India or practice in Indian law, we are unable to assist with this - however, we have provided on this and various other websites a copy of the power of attorney templates that many of our clients have used in the past. While we cannot guarantee that these templates are appropriate to your situation or assist you with completing any blank spaces with the relevant information regarding your situation, our experience has been that sometimes the legal requirements in India can be unclear, depending on who you are dealing with - but sometimes they can be extremely strict and pedantic.

The best advice that we can provide is be clear on what documents will need to be signed, if and how they need to be notarised by a notary public, whether they need to be countersigned by the Indian Consulate/VFS (which may also mean they need to be stamped with an apostille from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade) and whether you must follow any other formal requirement before returning the document to India. If the person receiving the power of attorney is strict in their requirements, be aware that sometimes they may even require the document to be printed on 'foolscap green paper' or stamped paper or bonded paper - all of which are various legal requirements that exist in India as part of their normal protocol in preparing legal documents, however these requirements or the materials do not generally exist in Australia and are difficult if not impossible to source.

Edit 2017 (see updated video)


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.

Who prepares the General Power of Attorney or Special Power of Attorney?

Preparing the Power of Attorney for India

Time and time again, clients sending a power of attorney to India have asked us to help them prepare a General Power of Attorney or a Special Power of Attorney - or even in some cases, a Special General Power of Attorney. Whether these documents are the same, similar or completely different depends largely on their purposes and the person or organisation intending to use it or rely on it.

This website contains a number of templates that our clients have used in the past, however they are by no means the limit of what is available or any indication of what you should be using when sending the power of attorney to India.

Visit the following previous posts for Power of Attorney templates:

• Completing the General Power of Attorney
• General Power of Attorney for India

If you have a lawyer in India, you should ask that lawyer to prepare the power of attorney that would be relevant and appropriate to your requirements in India. They may send you the hard copy, which may have been printed on stamped paper or the 'green' foolscap folio sized paper (both of which are not readily available in Australia), or they can send you an electronic file for you to print keeping in mind that if you print your document in Australia, it would likely be on normal white A4 paper. In our experience, the kind of paper has not affected the validity or acceptance of the power of attorney in India (although unstamped documents may need to be subsequently stamped before they can be used in India).

Our role in this process is strictly limited to witnessing the power of attorney being signed, and then notarising the power of attorney. If required so that the power of attorney can be used in India, we can lodge your power of attorney with Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade for authentication or apostille. You may also need to make arrangements for your document to be lodged at the Indian consulate in your closest capital city.

Edit 2017 (see updated video)

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.

General Power of Attorney - Sending your notarised document to India

After notarisation

As much as most enquiries that we receive focus on how a general power of attorney for India must be notarised, unfortunately many times clients do not take the appropriate care when returning the general power of attorney to India - and the result is the document is lost!

The general power of attorney on behalf of someone living in Australia but used in India requires that power of attorney to be notarised by a notary public. That is what we do. We provide low cost fixed fee notary public services to ensure that any document that is going to be used in India will be recognised in India by other parties, banks, government departments or the courts.

In fact, many clients focus on this aspect asking whether the general power of attorney needs to be notarised, whether it should be printed on bonded paper, whether it requires 2 witnesses, or whether it needs to be counter signed by the Indian Consulate.

If it needs to be counter signed by the Indian Consulate, then the general power of attorney must be submitted to VFS which provides consular services to Indian nationals on behalf of the Indian Consulate. One of the requirements specified by VFS is that the general power of attorney must be stamped with an apostille before it can be submitted to VFS for processing.

In Australia, the apostille can only be issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), and DFAT will only issue an apostille on the general power of attorney if it has been notarised by a notary public. Fortunately, we assist many clients around Parramatta and across all of Sydney with notarising their general power of attorney for India.

Edit 2017 (see updated video)

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.

Apostille for documents going to India

VFS.Global provides consular services

Clients who have used our services before know that we notarise many documents intended for India. Sometimes those documents are just notarised and returned to India without needing further attestation. Other times, clients are asked to also have their documents attested by the Indian Consulate. VFS.Global provides consular services on behalf of the Indian Consulate, including attestation of documents going to India. VFS provides clear instructions as to their requirements to attest documents to be used in India.

For documents that have been notarised, VFS also require the documents to be stamped with an apostille. In Australia, the apostille will only be issued by the Australian Government (through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade or DFAT) on documents that are original government documents or documents that have been notarised by a notary public.

We work closely with DFAT to assist clients with notarising documents and having those documents stamped with an apostille (or an authentication as the case may require).

What is an apostille?

In Australia, an apostille is a certificate issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) certifying that a document has been notarised by a notary public. An apostille will only be recognised in a country that is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention (officially known as the Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents). For more information, please contact DFAT on 02 9207 6904.

For more information, also visit

• http://smartraveller.gov.au/services/legalising-documents.html or
• http://www.dfat.gov.au/sydney/authentications.html

If the intended destination country is not a party to the Hague Apostille Convention, then you may need to have your document ‘authenticated’ by DFAT once it has been notarised by a notary public. See the related FAQs: What’s the Apostille Convention? and What’s ‘authentication’?

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.

Notarisation shouldn't be this easy, should it?

Making an appointment to see a notary public is easy

One of the biggest complaints that we hear from our regular clients is that it is difficult to make an appointment to see a notary public - that is why they keep coming back.

As a leading provider of notary public services in Sydney, we pride our selves in offering readily available and easily accessible notary public services to the community. In many cases, our clients are in need of urgent assistance because whatever is happening overseas needs to happen as soon as possible. Taking into account the processing times for other steps in the process, such as stamping with an apostille in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade or legalisation through the Indian Consulate or VFS, as well as the delivery times to India, documents need to be notarised as soon as possible and as quickly as possible without delay. That is where we can assist.

With our offices located in the heart of the Sydney metropolitan area and available appointments to attend to urgent requests, there is no other choice when considering who will assist you with your notary requirements.

Being familiar with the various requirements for documents intended for India is an important factor deciding who you should rely on for advice and guidance. Over the years, we have become familiar with the specific requirements of affidavits and applications under the Hindu Marriage Act, the various forms of the general power of attorney and special power of attorney required by banks and other parties in property transactions, changing your name or details on your passport and a variety of other specific tasks undertaken by the Indian Consulate or VFS including the Indian Drivers Licence Verification (IDLV) process.

IDLV is one of the unique processes that exists for Indian citizens in Australia who intend to convert their Indian Drivers Licence to an Australian drivers licence. Accordingly, we have developed a fixed fee cost for notarisation as well as authentication through DFAT with the added pricing flexibility for clients to arrange for authentication themselves should they wish. This kind of service offering is as unique as the requirement, which means it is tailored to the specific needs of the Indian community in Sydney.

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.

Do I need Stamped Paper for my General Power of Attorney?

Stamping the General Power of Attorney

What is a General Power of Attorney

The General Power of Attorney is a legal document that allows someone to authorise someone else to do certain things on their behalf. The power granted by the General Power of Attorney is generally limited to financial dealings, such as transacting property or handling bank accounts and loans.

If you have property in India but you are living in Australia, you may need to appoint someone in India to look after your property and do certain things on your behalf. The way in which you can do this is through a General Power of Attorney. In most cases, your lawyer (or maybe even your bank) and provide you with the General Power of Attorney for you to sign in Australia without requiring you to travel back to India. If you sign the General Power of Attorney in Australia it must be notarised by a notary public.

Depending on the specific requirements and intended use of your General Power of Attorney, you may also need to consider whether it must be countersigned by the Indian Consulate, or with an apostille or other authentication from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The requirements can vary depending on who you might be dealing with in India, however there remains a very formal process in Australia if you were to do it properly.

Understanding the process and especially the timing of the process is important in ensuring that your General Power of Attorney is completed in time to meet the requirements of your transaction in India. Unfortunately, many clients are only aware of the requirements too late and by the time they seek notary public services, the document should have been returned to India 'yesterday'.

You can find more information regarding the General Power of Attorney for India in the articles contained in this website.

What is stamped paper?

Stamped paper is a type of paper used to write legal documents. Any taxes or duties owed to the government for that legal document has already been prepaid as shown by the 'stamp' on the stamped paper. In our experience, it is very common for documents such as the General Power of Attorney used in India and prepared in India to be printed on stamped paper.

Stamped paper does not exist in Australia. Stamped paper is a form of pre-paid duty, but in Australia, if a document attracts some sort of duty it must be submitted to the relevant state's duty office for payment of duty and stamping. Further duty whether pre-paid or post-paid duty, paid in Australia has no relevance to the obligation to pay duty in India. Accordingly, if your General Power of Attorney is going to India, you will need to buy the stamped paper in India. However, if the General Power of Attorney is just emailed to you and printed on 'normal' A4 paper (which is usually the case in Australia), then the person who wants to rely on that document in India must pay the tax or duty in India and have the General Power of Attorney stamped accordingly.

Some clients have mistakenly used Australian postage stamps on their document thinking that this satisfies the stamping requirement for India. It does not.

Do I need Stamped Paper for my General Power of Attorney?

No. If you are signing the General Power of Attorney in Australia, and your lawyer (or your bank) has provided the General Power of Attorney to you by email for you to print in Australia - it is unlikely that you will be able to print it on stamped paper. No problem. You can still print your General Power of Attorney on A4 paper and have it properly notarised by a notary public. Not printing your General Power of Attorney on stamped paper just means that the duties or taxes owing on the General Power of Attorney would need to be paid within 3 months from when the document arrives in India and before it can be used.

What next?

For more information regarding notary public services for documents going to India, view our notary publications at http://www.notary-parramatta.com.au/tag/india/. For Hindi to English translation services by NAATI accredited translators, see http://hindi-naati-translation.blogspot.com.au/.

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.

What's the difference between a public notary and a justice of the peace?

In Australia, the most important difference between a public notary and a justice of the peace is that a public notary is recognised overseas (ie, outside of Australia) while a justice of the peace is generally only recognised in Australia. The role of a public notary can be best described as an 'international justice of the peace'.

You are probably reading this page because you have a document that you need to send to India, and someone has asked for you to have it witnessed or certified by a public notary. In that case, signing it or having it certified by a justice of the peace may not be sufficient and will mean that your document may not be accepted in India.

Other important differences between a public notary and a justice of the peace are:

• A public notary will generally charge a fee for their services while a justice of the peace cannot.
• A public notary must be a lawyer, but not all lawyers are or must be notaries while a justice of the peace does not have to be a lawyer.
• There are more justices of the peace than public notaries and generally justices of the peace can be easily found and more available than public notaries.

In our experience, most documents which are signed, witnessed or originate from Australia and sent to India will need to be notarised by a public notary but occasionally we are advised that documents can also be certified by a justice of the peace. For example, if you are signing documents to apply for a loan from a bank, the bank will generally need you to sign your application or the special/general power of attorney in front of us so that we can notarise it but that copies of other supporting documents (ie, identification, payslips, utility bills) can be certified by a justice of the peace. This may not apply in all cases, so before you engage our services or approach a justice of the peace, you should confirm the specific requirements.

Documents intended for India make up the clear majority of our public notary services. Accordingly, we are proud to announce that we frequently assist the local Indian community in Sydney to ensure that their documents are notarised and legally valid in India and maintain some of the lowest and most competitive rates available in Sydney.

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.

Power of Attorney - Authorising your family in India

Indian Power of Attorney

Working or studying overseas

One of the biggest challenges of working or studying overseas is being able to practically and legally continue to manage your personal and financial affairs in India. In many cases, other people expect you to be present in India to provide instructions or to sign and verify documents, but if you are now working or studying overseas the prospect of traveling home just for that purpose is expensive and impractical.

Authorising a family member to look after your personal and financial affairs in probably the safest and easiest option, which avoids the need to travel back to India regularly. According to the law, authorisation must be in the form of a General Power of Attorney or a Special Power of Attorney prepared by your lawyer in India and signed by you. If you are not in India when you sign the Power of Attorney, then you need to sign the Power of Attorney in front of a notary public or similarly qualified person. You may also find that depending on the country, you may also need to have the Power of Attorney countersigned by the Indian High Commission or consular office after the Power of Attorney has been notarised.

If you reside in Sydney, Australia, and you want to appoint someone in India to look after your personal and financial affairs, then the Power of Attorney that you sign in Sydney must be notarised by a notary public in Sydney.



Examples of the General Power of Attorney used in India. We have prepared these examples of the General Power of Attorney based on similar documents commonly used by our clients for various dealings with banks in India.

Before using these documents you must check with your lawyer (or whoever you may be dealing with) in India that they are legally valid and will be acceptable for their purposes.

• Power of Attorney for India(DOCX)
• General Power of Attorney for India (DOCX)
• Power of Attorney for India (PDF)
• Basic Power of Attorney for India (PDF)

Completing the templates for the General Power of Attorney for India

The templates contained on this website are incomplete. If you download the WORD versions (see here), the template will prompt you to fill in the key details of the executant's name and address (ie, the person who is giving the power), as well as the attorney's name and address (ie, the person who is receiving the power), as well as the attorney's father's name. If you do not fill in these details while editing the WORD versions, the template will be left with blank spaces for you to complete before signing the General Power of Attorney.

Filling in all the details, whether on the computer or by hand, is important as the information required determine who is giving the power and who is receiving the power. If at any time you feel that the power granted by the General Power of Attorney is too wide, or not wide enough, then you should make your own changes to the document to properly reflect your wishes. However, you should check the proposed changes with your attorney and/or your lawyer in India to ensure that it is legally valid according to their laws as well as practically possible to fulfill.

If you provide powers that are too wide, you may be exposing yourself to too much risk in terms of an 'abuse of power' by your attorney, but if you make the powers too narrow you can potentially restrict and limit your attorney in being able to complete the tasks that you require them to complete on your behalf. Again, when in doubt, check with your lawyer in India before making the changes.

Disclaimer

We disclaim any liability arising in connection with the use of these documents or reliance on their contents either in original or altered form. We give no warranties and we make no representation in respect of the documents including, without limitation, any warranties as to quality, standard or legal efficacy.

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.

Completing the General Power of Attorney for India

India General Power of Attorney

A Guide to using the General Power of Attorney for India

In previous posts, we have provided templates for the General Power of Attorney used in India. These templates are based on forms commonly used by our clients with various dealings in India and should only be relied upon or used as a guide. You should still seek advice from your lawyer in India before using them.

The form suggested by these templates may vary from the form used in India. In India, the General Power of Attorney is commonly printed on foolscap paper bearing a bond or seal with duty payable (bonded paper). In Australia, the bonded paper is not readily available and A4 is the widely accepted paper size, not foolscap. Accordingly, the form suggested by these templates should only be used in the context of non-resident Indians or people who reside in Australia but need to send their General Power of Attorney to India.

Completing the templates for the General Power of Attorney for India

The templates contained on this website are incomplete. If you download the WORD versions (see here), the template will prompt you to fill in the key details of the executant's name and address (ie, the person who is giving the power), as well as the attorney's name and address (ie, the person who is receiving the power), as well as the attorney's father's name. If you do not fill in these details while editing the WORD versions, the template will be left with blank spaces for you to complete before signing the General Power of Attorney.

Filling in all the details, whether on the computer or by hand, is important as the information required determine who is giving the power and who is receiving the power. If at any time you feel that the power granted by the General Power of Attorney is too wide, or not wide enough, then you should make your own changes to the document to properly reflect your wishes. However, you should check the proposed changes with your attorney and/or your lawyer in India to ensure that it is legally valid according to their laws as well as practically possible to fulfill.

If you provide powers that are too wide, you may be exposing yourself to too much risk in terms of an 'abuse of power' by your attorney, but if you make the powers too narrow you can potentially restrict and limit your attorney in being able to complete the tasks that you require them to complete on your behalf. Again, when in doubt, check with your lawyer in India before making the changes.

Another example of a basic General Power of Attorney for India can be found here.

Disclaimer

We disclaim any liability arising in connection with the use of these documents or reliance on their contents either in original or altered form. We give no warranties and we make no representation in respect of the documents including, without limitation, any warranties as to quality, standard or legal efficacy.

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.

India General Power of Attorney

Example of General Power of Attorney

General Power of Attorney with wide powers

In response to numerous requests, we have prepared another precedent General Power of Attorney that can be used in India. Unlike previous versions, this power of attorney grants wide powers to the attorney to effectively "do all such acts, deeds, matters and things all at my cost and expense as my Attorney deems fit and proper."

For more information visit our other pages that deal with the issue of the Power of Attorney.

There are many kinds of power of attorney available for different situations. Be aware that this template for this kind of power of attorney may not be suitable to your situation. You should obtain advice from your lawyer in India before using this template.

Power of Attorney for India (DOCX)

We disclaim any liability arising in connection with the use of these documents or reliance on their contents either in original or altered form. We give no warranties and we make no representation in respect of the documents including, without limitation, any warranties as to quality, standard or legal efficacy.

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.

General Power of Attorney for India

Power of Attorney for India

Precedent examples of the General Power of Attorney

Examples of the General Power of Attorney used in India. We have prepared these examples of the General Power of Attorney based on similar documents commonly used by our clients for various dealings with banks in India.



Before using these documents you must check with your lawyer (or whoever you may be dealing with) in India that they are legally valid and will be acceptable for their purposes.

• WORD DOCUMENT
• PDF DOCUMENT

Disclaimer
We disclaim any liability arising in connection with the use of these documents or reliance on their contents either in original or altered form. We give no warranties and we make no representation in respect of the documents including, without limitation, any warranties as to quality, standard or legal efficacy.

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.

Notary Public for General Power of Attorney for India

Notary Public for General Power of Attorney for India

One of our most common requests for notary services is to notarise the General Power of Attorney used in India. Generally, clients are buying or selling property in India, taking loans from Indian banks, or conducting legal proceedings in the courts in India. However, because they are not physically present in India, they need to appoint someone (an attorney) to act and do all things necessary on their behalf in India.



For those people who are in Sydney, Australia (especially around the Parramatta area and Sydney’s western suburbs), we provide notary public services to assist them with the General Power of Attorney intended to be used in India. A General Power of Attorney prepared for use in India but signed in a foreign country (such as Australia) must be notarised in order for it to be valid and accepted in India.

If the General Power of Attorney is prepared in India, it is generally printed on ‘bonded’ or ‘stamped’ paper bearing a mark indicating that some sort of duty or fee has been paid to the government. This type of official paper is not readily available in Australia. If you have been told that your General Power of Attorney must be on this kind of paper, then you will need to arrange for a hard copy of the General Power of Attorney to be prepared in India by your lawyer in India and physically sent to you in a hard copy format. If you lawyer in India emails a copy of this document to you, you will not be able to print it on the official paper in Australia.

Many of our clients have the General Power of Attorney prepared for them by their lawyer in India and sent to them by email. In Australia, they then print it on normal A4 paper (which is commonly used in Australia) before bringing it to our notary public for notarisation. Our experience with the formal requirements of the General Power of Attorney for India varies. For example:

• Some the General Power of Attorney must include a photograph of the ‘executant’ or ‘donor’, sometimes they also need to provide a photograph of their attorney.
• Sometimes the photograph of the executant or donor must be signed by them (across the photograph) and then notarised, and other times the notary public just needs to place a seal over the photograph.
• Sometimes the General Power of Attorney must be witnessed by 2 people and the notary public (and the notary public must witness your witnesses).
• Sometimes the General Power of Attorney must be witnessed by the notary public alone.
• Sometimes the General Power of Attorney must be lodged with the Indian Consulate, and sometimes it needs to be processed by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade first with either authentication or apostille.
• We have had clients include their thumbprint, and we have also had a client who had to place a print of ALL fingers and thumbs!

We also encourage our clients to check with their lawyer in India whether their General Power of Attorney must be authenticated and legalised with the Indian Consulate. We understand that this requirement may vary depending on what the General Power of Attorney is intended to do, and whether it is used for a personal or commercial purpose. For more information, we encourage you to contact the Indian Consulate in your state after obtaining advice from your lawyer in India.

Our notary public has extensive experience in assisting Indians, non resident Indians, person of Indian origin, or anyone with property dealings in India with the General Power of Attorney for India. See examples of the General Power of Attorney used by banks in India.

If you are looking for assistance with legal proceedings, including divorce proceedings under the Hindu Marriage Act, please see this previous post.

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.