How to Get a Document Notarised in the Philippines (Cost, IDs, Steps)

In short

Typical cost: Roughly ₱100–₱300 for a simple affidavit; more for deeds, and often a percentage-based fee for high-value conveyances.
How long: Usually under 15 minutes if your document and ID are in order.
What to bring: Three unsigned copies and at least one current government ID with your photo and signature.
Where: Law offices, notarial services near city halls and courts, malls with legal service desks, PAO and IBP legal aid for qualified indigents.
Electronic option: Eligible electronic PDF documents may be notarised under A.M. No. 24-10-14-SC, with remote appearance by videoconference. Notarial wills and depositions are excluded.

What notarisation actually is

Notarisation is not a rubber stamp. A notary public is a lawyer commissioned by the Regional Trial Court to perform specific acts within a defined territory, and the commission carries real duties. When a notary notarises your document, they are certifying that you personally appeared, that they satisfied themselves of your identity, and — for an affidavit — that you took an oath as to the truth of its contents.

The legal effect is that a private document becomes a public one. It becomes admissible in evidence without further proof of its execution, it enjoys a presumption of regularity, and, for deeds affecting land, it becomes registrable. That is why the Register of Deeds will not touch an unnotarised deed of sale, and why an unnotarised affidavit gets refused at agency counters.

1
Print three copies — do not sign them yet
A notary public must see you sign. Signing at home and bringing it in defeats the jurat, and a careful notary will make you sign again in front of them.
2
Bring a competent evidence of identity
Under the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice, that means at least one current government-issued ID bearing your photograph and signature — passport, driver's licence, PhilSys ID, UMID, PRC, postal ID, voter's ID. A company ID or a photocopy is not enough. If you have none, two credible witnesses who personally know you and who themselves have IDs can identify you.
3
Sign in front of the notary and take the oath
You will be asked to swear that the contents are true of your own knowledge. The notary then completes the jurat, stamps the document, and records it in the notarial register.
4
Check the notarial details before you leave
The jurat should carry the date, the place, your ID, the notary's name, commission number and expiry, PTR and IBP numbers, roll number, and the Doc. No. / Page No. / Book No. / Series entries. An office will reject an affidavit with a blank Doc. No.

IDs that count as competent evidence of identity

The 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice require at least one current identification document issued by an official agency, bearing your photograph and signature. In practice notaries accept:

Philippine passport
PhilSys national ID
Driver's licence
UMID / SSS or GSIS ID
PRC professional licence
Postal ID
Voter's ID or voter's certification
Senior citizen or PWD ID issued by an LGU
Government office and GOCC IDs, and for seafarers the SIRB

What it costs

There is no single national tariff. Notarial fees vary by city, by the length and nature of the document, and by the notary's own schedule; the Integrated Bar of the Philippines chapters publish suggested schedules that many notaries follow. As a practical guide, a simple affidavit commonly runs about ₱100–₱300. Deeds and contracts cost more, and for a conveyance of real property many notaries charge a percentage of the consideration, which on a multi-million-peso sale is a significant amount — agree the fee before you hand over the document.

Document	Typical range	Notes
Simple affidavit (loss, undertaking, discrepancy)	₱100–₱300	Varies by city and notary
Joint affidavit (two affiants)	₱150–₱400	Both affiants must appear
Special power of attorney	₱200–₱500	More if it covers a sale of real property
Deed of sale of a motor vehicle	₱300–₱800	Often bundled with LTO processing services
Deed of absolute sale of land	Often 1%–2% of the price, or a negotiated flat fee	Ask for the basis in writing
Extrajudicial settlement of estate	Negotiated; commonly several thousand pesos	Depends on the number of heirs and properties

Indicative ranges drawn from ordinary Philippine notarial practice, not an official tariff. There is no single nationwide schedule of notarial fees; Integrated Bar of the Philippines chapters publish their own suggested schedules and they differ, and a notary may charge outside them. Agree the fee with the notary before you hand over the document.

Where to go

Law offices — the most common route; most have a commissioned notary.
The cluster of notarial services around city halls, Halls of Justice, and Registers of Deeds.
Mall-based legal service desks in larger cities.
Your barangay or city legal office, which sometimes offers free or low-cost notarisation for residents.
The Public Attorney's Office and IBP chapter legal aid desks, which notarise free of charge for qualified indigent clients — bring a certificate of indigency from your barangay.
Philippine Embassies and Consulates, if you are abroad.

Notarising from abroad

1
Option 1 — the Philippine Embassy or Consulate
Appear personally at the post with jurisdiction over where you live, bring your Philippine passport and the unsigned document, and sign in front of the consular officer. Consular notarisation has the same effect as notarisation in the Philippines. Book an appointment — most posts require one — and expect a fee in local currency.
2
Option 2 — a local notary plus an apostille
Have the document notarised by a notary in your country of residence, then have that notarisation apostillised by that country's competent authority. Since the Philippines joined the Apostille Convention, an apostillised document is accepted here without consular authentication — the old 'red ribbon' step is gone for member countries.
3
For non-member countries
Countries outside the Apostille Convention still require consular authentication by the Philippine Embassy after local notarisation.

Legal basis: 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice (A.M. No. 02-8-13-SC), Rule II sec. 12 and Rule IV; Rules on Electronic Notarization (A.M. No. 24-10-14-SC, 4 February 2025); Rules of Court, Rule 132 secs. 19–20; the Hague Apostille Convention, in force for the Philippines since 14 May 2019.

When a notary must refuse — and why that protects you

A commissioned notary is not free to notarise anything put in front of them. The 2004 Rules require refusal in defined situations, and a notary who ignores them risks revocation of their commission and disciplinary action from the Supreme Court. Knowing the list saves you a wasted trip.

The signer is not personally present. There is no exception for 'my sister will bring it'.
The signer cannot be identified through competent evidence of identity, or through the credible-witness route.
The signer appears not to understand the document, or not to be acting of their own free will.
The document is incomplete or contains blank spaces — anything could be inserted after notarisation.
The notary is a party to the instrument, or has a direct interest in it, or is related to a principal within the fourth civil degree.
The notarial act would fall outside the notary's territorial commission.
The notary's commission has expired, or their notarial seal or register is not available.

How to check that a notarisation is real

Fake notarisation is common enough that receiving offices check, and you should too before you rely on a document someone hands you.

1
Look at the notarial details
The block should show the notary's name, commission number and the date it expires, their PTR (professional tax receipt) number and date, IBP number and chapter, and roll of attorneys number. Missing details are the first red flag.
2
Check the Doc. / Page / Book / Series entries
These correspond to the notary's notarial register. All four blank means the document was never entered in any register — which means, formally, that it was never notarised.
3
Check the venue against the commission
A notary commissioned for Quezon City cannot notarise in Cebu. If the acknowledgment says one place and the commission covers another, the act is void.
4
Verify with the Executive Judge's office
The Regional Trial Court that issued the commission keeps the roll of notaries public for its territory, and the Office of the Clerk of Court can confirm whether a person holds a current commission.
5
For a high-value document, get a certified copy from the notarial register
Notaries file copies of notarised instruments with the Clerk of Court. For a deed of sale or an SPA over property, a certified copy from that file is the strongest confirmation available.

Electronic notarisation, and when remote appearance is allowed

There are now two parallel systems, and which one you are in depends on the document, not on your preference. A paper document you sign by hand is notarised the way it always was, under the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice, and that requires you to appear personally before the notary. An eligible electronic document can instead be notarised under the Supreme Court's Rules on Electronic Notarization, A.M. No. 24-10-14-SC, promulgated on 4 February 2025 and effective fifteen days after its publication on 9 March 2025.

	2004 Rules on Notarial Practice	Rules on Electronic Notarization (A.M. No. 24-10-14-SC)
What it covers	Paper documents and instruments signed by hand — a wet signature or a mark	Electronic documents in PDF or PDF/A format
Who performs the act	A notary public commissioned by the Regional Trial Court for a city or province	An Electronic Notary Public, acting through an accredited electronic notarization facility provider
How you appear	Personally, in front of the notary, within their territorial commission	Either in person with the electronic notary (in-person electronic notarization), or by videoconference through the authorised system (remote electronic notarization)
What you end up with	A signed and sealed paper original, with the notarial register entries	A notarised electronic document with the electronic notarial certificate and register entries
Never available under it	n/a	Notarial wills, the taking of depositions, and paper documents bearing wet signatures or marks — these stay under the 2004 Rules

Legal basis: 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice (A.M. No. 02-8-13-SC); Rules on Electronic Notarization (A.M. No. 24-10-14-SC, 4 February 2025). The electronic rules apply only to electronic documents; they do not change how a paper affidavit is notarised.

So the honest answer to “can I be notarised without appearing in person” is: for a paper document, no. For an eligible electronic document, appearance by videoconference is possible through remote electronic notarization — but only where an Electronic Notary Public and an accredited facility provider are actually available to serve you, and only for a document the rules cover. Do not assume every document can be notarised remotely.

What if…

1
…there is no notary in your municipality
The Rules allow a notary commissioned for a province to act anywhere within that province. If none is available at all, the Executive Judge may authorise a nearby notary; in practice people travel to the nearest city. Municipal judges may also administer oaths in matters within their jurisdiction. Where the document can be produced and kept as an electronic PDF, electronic notarisation under A.M. No. 24-10-14-SC is the other route worth asking about — but confirm that the office receiving it will accept an electronically notarised document.
2
…the notary refuses to notarise your document
A notary must refuse if you do not appear, cannot be identified, appear not to understand the document, or if the document is incomplete or contains blanks. Fill in the blanks, bring proper ID, and appear in person.
3
…the document was notarised without you appearing
That notarisation is defective and the document can be attacked on that basis. The notary is also exposed to disciplinary action. Do not accept 'just send it over and I'll have it notarised'.
4
…you need many copies notarised
Have each original copy notarised — a photocopy of a notarised document is not itself notarised. For agencies that accept certified copies, the notary can also certify a copy as a true copy of the original.

Frequently asked questions

+How much does a notary public charge in the Philippines?

There is no single national tariff. A simple affidavit commonly costs about ₱100–₱300; deeds cost more, and for real property sales many notaries charge a percentage of the price. Fees vary by locality and by the notary's discretion, so ask before you hand over the document.

+What IDs are accepted for notarisation?

At least one current government-issued ID with your photograph and signature — passport, PhilSys ID, driver's licence, UMID, PRC, postal ID, voter's ID, senior citizen or PWD ID. Company and school IDs, photocopies, and expired IDs are not competent evidence of identity.

+Can I get a document notarised without appearing in person?

For an ordinary paper document with a wet signature, no — personal appearance before the notary is the core of the act under the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice, and a notarisation done without the signer appearing is defective and a disciplinary offence for the notary. Since the Supreme Court's Rules on Electronic Notarization (A.M. No. 24-10-14-SC) took effect in 2025, an eligible electronic document in PDF or PDF/A may instead be notarised by an Electronic Notary Public, and remote electronic notarization allows the principal to appear by videoconference through the authorised system. That route is not open to every document — notarial wills and depositions are expressly excluded — and it depends on an electronic notary and an accredited facility provider being available to you, and on the receiving office accepting an electronically notarised document.

+Can I notarise a document abroad?

Yes — at the Philippine Embassy or Consulate with jurisdiction over your residence, or before a local notary followed by an apostille from that country's competent authority.

+Is free notarisation available?

Yes, for qualified indigent clients through the Public Attorney's Office and IBP chapter legal aid programmes, and sometimes through city or barangay legal offices. Bring a certificate of indigency from your barangay.

+Should I sign the document before going to the notary?

No. For an affidavit the jurat certifies that you signed in the notary's presence, so bring it unsigned. Notaries will ask you to sign again in front of them anyway.

The law behind this

What an affidavit is, and what makes one valid

Read →