Quick answer

An affidavit is a written statement of facts made under oath or solemn affirmation. For an ordinary paper affidavit in the Philippines, the affiant should:

Complete the affidavit accurately and leave no material blanks.
Bring a current identification document issued by an official agency and bearing the affiant’s photograph and signature.
Personally appear before a duly commissioned notary public.
Sign the affidavit in the notary’s presence.
Swear or affirm that its material statements are true.
Ensure that the notary completes the jurat, records the act in the notarial register, and affixes the proper signature and seal.

A signed affidavit sent by email, courier, or messenger is not validly notarized merely because a notary later stamps it. Electronic or remote notarization is a separate process for electronic documents and must be performed by a commissioned Electronic Notary Public through an accredited electronic notarization facility.

The exact contents, deadline, attachments, number of copies, and acceptable form depend on the affidavit’s purpose. A court, government agency, bank, school, employer, insurer, or foreign recipient may impose additional requirements.

What an affidavit should contain

There is no single form for every Philippine affidavit. A straightforward affidavit ordinarily contains:

The place of execution, commonly shown in a territorial caption.
The affiant’s complete name and sufficient identifying details, such as citizenship, age or legal capacity, civil status when relevant, and present address.
A clear title identifying the affidavit’s purpose.
Numbered statements setting out the material facts.
Dates, places, names, document numbers, and amounts necessary to make those facts understandable.
An explanation of how the affiant knows each material fact. If a statement comes from an authentic record rather than personal observation, identify that record.
The specific purpose for which the affidavit is being executed.
References to supporting documents, with attachments properly labeled when needed.
The affiant’s signature.
A complete jurat executed by the notary or other officer authorized to administer the oath.

Use the prescribed form when the receiving office supplies one. Affidavits involving loss, discrepancies in civil records, support, guardianship, corporate authority, immigration, land, inheritance, or court testimony often require facts or attachments not found in generic online templates.

Do not use “for whatever legal purpose” as a substitute for explaining the actual reason for the affidavit when the recipient requires a specific purpose.

A jurat is different from an acknowledgment

Notarial act	What the signer does	Typical use
Jurat	Appears before the notary, is properly identified, signs in the notary’s presence, and swears or affirms that the document is true	Affidavits, sworn statements, verifications
Acknowledgment	Appears before the notary and declares that the signature was voluntarily affixed and the document is the signer’s free act and deed	Deeds, contracts, special powers of attorney and similar instruments
Signature witnessing	Appears, is identified, and signs in the notary’s presence	Documents requiring witnessed signatures but not an oath

An affidavit normally requires a jurat, not merely an acknowledgment. The notary should actually administer an oath or solemn affirmation; the jurat is not just decorative wording at the bottom of the page.

An affirmation may be used instead of a religious oath. The legal obligation to tell the truth is the same.

Requirements for traditional paper notarization

Complete the document first

A notary must not notarize a blank or materially incomplete document or attach a signature and seal to an incomplete notarial certificate. Before appearing:

Fill in every material date, name, address, amount, document number, and factual statement.
Use “N/A” where appropriate instead of leaving suspicious blank spaces.
Attach every document referred to in the affidavit.
Check that names and dates agree with the supporting records.
Do not make unexplained erasures, insertions, or alterations.
Do not sign until the notary directs you to do so.

If a correction is necessary after notarization, do not alter the notarized original yourself. Ask whether a corrected or supplemental affidavit must be executed and notarized.

Appear before the notary

For a paper affidavit, physical personal appearance remains the general rule. The notary must be able to identify the affiant, witness the signature, administer the oath or affirmation, and assess whether the act is voluntary.

A notary must refuse when there is reasonable doubt that the signer understands the consequences of the transaction or is acting freely. If the affiant does not understand the affidavit’s language, obtain an accurate translation or a competent interpreter and ask that the circumstances be documented.

Notarial acts are ordinarily performed at the notary’s regular place of work or business. The rules permit certain exceptional locations within the notary’s territorial jurisdiction, including hospitals for confined patients and places of detention.

Sign the register

At the time of notarization, the affiant signs or places the permitted mark in the notarial register. The entry should identify the act, document, date and time, principal, evidence of identity, fee, and other required details.

The completed document should contain the notary’s signature and official seal, as well as the document, page, book, and series information and the notary’s commission and professional details.

Identification requirements

If the affiant is not personally known to the notary, competent evidence of identity generally means at least one current identification document issued by an official agency and bearing the person’s photograph and signature. Examples recognized in the rules include a passport, driver’s license, PRC ID, SSS or GSIS card, senior citizen ID, government-office ID, seaman’s book, and qualifying clearances or government certifications.

Because designs and verification systems change, confirm the particular ID with the notary before attending. Bring the original, not only a screenshot or an unverified photocopy.

A community tax certificate or cedula alone is not competent evidence of identity under the notarial rules. The Supreme Court has disciplined notaries who relied solely on community tax certificates. See the Court’s discussion in Guzman v. Atty. Guzman.

If no qualifying ID is available, the rules allow identity to be established through credible witnesses:

One credible witness who is not involved in the document or transaction, is personally known to the notary, and personally knows the affiant; or
Two credible witnesses who are not involved in the document or transaction, each personally knows the affiant, and each presents documentary identification to the notary.

This is not an automatic workaround. Arrange it with the notary beforehand.

If the affiant’s name differs across records, bring the documents explaining the difference. Do not change a name or identity detail merely to make the affidavit match one preferred record.

Affiants who cannot sign conventionally

The rules provide safeguards for a person who signs by thumbmark or another mark. The mark must be made in the presence of the notary and two disinterested and unaffected witnesses, who must also sign. The notary must add the prescribed statement identifying the affiant and witnesses.

If a person is physically unable to sign or make a mark, the notary may sign on that person’s behalf only upon the person’s direction and in the presence of two disinterested and unaffected witnesses, with the required statement and signatures.

These procedures address physical inability. They do not cure lack of understanding, legal capacity, or free consent.

Who may notarize

A document should ordinarily be notarized by a Philippine lawyer holding a current notarial commission issued by the Executive Judge of the proper Regional Trial Court. A lawyer’s bar membership alone does not authorize notarization.

Before relying on a notary, particularly for land, inheritance, corporate, immigration, or high-value transactions, check:

The name and office address stated in the notarial certificate.
The commission number, territorial jurisdiction, and expiration date.
The lawyer’s Roll of Attorneys and IBP details.
Whether the notarial seal and register information are complete.
Whether the notary—not an unsupervised secretary, fixer, or document preparer—personally conducted the notarial act.

A notary is disqualified when, among other circumstances, the notary is a party to the document, has a prohibited financial interest in it, or is the principal’s spouse, common-law partner, ancestor, descendant, or relative within the fourth civil degree by blood or affinity.

Court clerks and judges acting as ex officio notaries have limited authority connected with their official functions. Do not assume that any court employee can notarize a private affidavit.

Documentary stamp tax and notarial charges

Section 188 of the National Internal Revenue Code imposes a ₱30 documentary stamp tax on a notarial certificate or other covered certificate used to provide information or establish a fact. Under Section 201 and BIR Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 56-2025, the proper documentary stamp must be affixed and cancelled before a notary adds a jurat or acknowledgment to a taxable document.

Exceptions exist, including specified court-related certificates and affidavits of poor persons made to prove poverty. The tax treatment of another instrument attached to or combined with the affidavit may also be different. Ask the notary which tax applies rather than adding an arbitrary stamp. The current statutory rate appears in Republic Act No. 10963.

Notarial charges may vary according to the permitted fee schedule, document, professional work required, and agreed travel expenses. Ask for the posted schedule, the total charge in advance, and a BIR-registered receipt.

A notary may not charge separately for digitizing, transmitting, storing, or processing the electronic copy required by the amended notarial rules.

Your electronic copy after paper notarization

The 2025 amendments to the 2004 Notarial Rules require the notary to transmit an exact electronic copy to each signatory, without an additional charge, through email or another mutually agreed file-sharing method. The rule specifies transmission within five days from completion of the notarial act or from the applicable deadline for transmitting the duplicate original to the clerk of court.

A signatory may waive this copy, but the waiver also affects objections concerning the completeness of the reproduction. It is usually prudent to receive and review it.

Compare the PDF immediately with the paper original. If a material discrepancy could affect anyone’s rights, notify the notary promptly in writing, identify every discrepancy, request correction, and retain proof that the notice was received.

Electronic and remote notarization

The Supreme Court’s Rules on Electronic Notarization, A.M. No. 24-10-14-SC, supplement traditional notarization. They provide for:

In-person electronic notarization, where the principal is physically present but the document and notarial process are electronic; and
Remote electronic notarization, where the principal and necessary witnesses appear through synchronous videoconferencing.

These procedures apply to electronic documents and require a duly commissioned Electronic Notary Public and an accredited electronic notarization facility. Remote appearance must permit real-time interaction; a prerecorded video is insufficient.

Electronic notarization is not accomplished by:

Emailing a scan of a paper affidavit to an ordinary notary;
Showing an already signed paper over an informal video call;
Pasting an image of a signature or notarial seal into a PDF; or
Using a platform that lacks the required accreditation and commissioned electronic notary.

Confirm current service availability through the Supreme Court’s eNotary Services page. Also ask the intended recipient whether it accepts an electronically notarized document and how its authenticity must be verified.

Affidavits executed outside the Philippines

A person abroad should first ask the Philippine recipient which route it accepts. Depending on the country and transaction, an affidavit may be:

Executed before a Philippine embassy or consulate offering the relevant notarial service; or
Executed before an authorized local notary and then apostilled by the competent authority of a country that is party to the Apostille Convention; or
Authenticated through the applicable consular process when the Apostille Convention does not apply.

Requirements, appointments, fees, witnesses, and processing periods vary by foreign post and country. Philippine consular notarization generally requires personal appearance. A foreign apostille authenticates the origin of the foreign public document; it does not prove that the affidavit’s factual statements are true.

The DFA explains that foreign documents cannot be apostilled by the Philippine DFA because Philippine apostille services apply to Philippine public documents for use abroad. See the DFA Authentication Division FAQs and confirm the foreign-document route with both the issuing country and the Philippine recipient.

Special affidavits may have different rules

Judicial affidavits

A judicial affidavit is not an ordinary narrative affidavit. Under the Judicial Affidavit Rule, it normally contains questions and answers, witness and examination details, identified exhibits, a jurat, and the examining lawyer’s sworn attestation.

In covered proceedings, judicial affidavits and attached evidence generally must be filed and served not later than five days before the pre-trial, preliminary conference, or scheduled hearing for a motion or incident. Criminal cases have additional rules, including different deadlines for prosecution and defense affidavits. Late filing can result in waiver, subject only to the rule’s limited relief for a valid reason, lack of undue prejudice, and the prescribed fine.

Have litigation counsel prepare or review a judicial affidavit. A generic affidavit should not be relabeled as one.

Agency and transaction-specific affidavits

An office may require a particular form, recent execution, named attachments, multiple originals, witnesses, or a separate police report or certification. Examples include affidavits concerning:

Lost passports, titles, licenses, checks, or official IDs;
Discrepancies in civil-registry records;
Support, consent, or travel of a minor;
Heirship, estate settlement, or property ownership;
Corporate authority or beneficial ownership;
Bidding, tax, immigration, employment, or regulatory compliance.

The receiving office’s current checklist controls. Notarization cannot supply a missing statutory fact or attachment.

What notarization does—and does not—prove

Proper notarization gives a document public character and creates a disputable presumption concerning its authenticity and due execution. A defective notarization may strip the document of that public character and leave it as a private document. For transactions that legally require a public instrument, the consequences can be more serious.

Notarization does not automatically:

Prove that every factual statement is true;
Establish ownership or legal entitlement;
Cure fraud, forgery, incapacity, coercion, or illegality;
Correct a defective contract or missing legal requirement;
Bind a person who did not execute the document; or
Prevent the document from being challenged with sufficient evidence.

The Supreme Court has emphasized that even a notarized document’s presumption of regularity is rebuttable and that notarization does not guarantee the validity of its contents. See Heirs of Amado Celestial v. Heirs of Editha Celestial.

Evidence to preserve

Keep the following for as long as the affidavit or underlying transaction may matter:

The complete notarized paper original.
The exact electronic copy transmitted by the notary.
The notary’s receipt and contact information.
The document, page, book, and series numbers.
A record of the ID presented, while protecting unnecessary ID data from disclosure.
Every attachment in the same order as when notarized.
Emails or messages transmitting the document.
Proof of submission to the intended recipient.
Any written notice of a discrepancy and the notary’s response.
Drafts and source records showing how material dates, figures, and statements were established.

For a suspected forgery, preserve the document in its existing condition. Do not write on it, remove the seal or stamp, or replace pages.

Common mistakes to avoid

Signing a paper affidavit before meeting the notary.
Sending a relative, messenger, or fixer to obtain the notarial seal.
Relying only on a cedula.
Leaving blanks for someone else to complete later.
Using an acknowledgment when a jurat and oath are required.
Copying a template that omits facts required by the recipient.
Swearing to conclusions or rumors as though personally observed.
Using attachments that contradict the affidavit.
Backdating the affidavit or asking the notary to do so.
Ignoring an expired or territorially improper notarial commission.
Waiving the electronic copy without understanding the effect.
Assuming an affidavit has a universal validity period.
Treating notarization as proof that the transaction itself is lawful.
Missing a filing deadline while trying to perfect the affidavit.

When legal help is urgent

Consult a lawyer promptly if:

Someone signed, notarized, or submitted an affidavit in your name without authority.
The affidavit concerns land, inheritance, corporate control, a large financial obligation, or surrender of legal rights.
You are being pressured, threatened, or told to sign without reading.
A named affiant was absent, incapacitated, or already deceased when the supposed notarization occurred.
The affidavit may expose you to criminal, tax, immigration, employment, or administrative liability.
You discover a material falsehood after signing.
A court or agency deadline is approaching.
A document has been rejected because of defective notarization.
You need to retract or correct a statement already submitted in an official proceeding.

A complaint concerning a notary’s misconduct may be brought before the Executive Judge supervising the notary’s commission. Suspected forgery, falsification, identity theft, or use of a false document may also require immediate advice on preserving evidence and reporting the matter.

Qualified persons may seek free assistance from the Public Attorney’s Office or inquire about the Supreme Court’s Unified Legal Aid Service.

Consequences of a knowingly false affidavit

An honest mistake is not automatically perjury. The precise offense depends on the statement, its materiality, the required oath, the affiant’s knowledge and intent, the authorized officer, and the proceeding or purpose involved.

Knowingly making an untruthful statement under oath about a material matter in a legally required affidavit may constitute perjury under Article 183 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended by Republic Act No. 11594. The statute provides the serious penalty of prision mayor in its minimum to medium periods, with special treatment for public officers or employees, and also provides for a fine of up to ₱1 million and disqualification from government office. Other offenses and civil or administrative liability may apply depending on how the affidavit was prepared or used.

Read every statement and attachment before taking the oath. If you later discover a material error, obtain advice before submitting a correction, withdrawal, or supplemental affidavit.

Frequently asked questions

Can I sign the affidavit at home?

For a traditional paper jurat, sign in the notary’s presence. If you signed prematurely, tell the notary and follow the notary’s lawful instructions rather than concealing it.

Is one valid ID enough?

One current official-agency ID bearing your photograph and signature can satisfy the general rule. A notary or receiving office may reasonably request additional records when identity, authority, or a name discrepancy requires clarification.

Is a cedula a valid ID for notarization?

A cedula alone is not competent evidence of identity under the notarial rules.

Does an affidavit expire?

There is no universal expiration period for every affidavit. Its usefulness may end when facts change, a receiving office requires recent execution, or a transaction-specific deadline passes.

Can any lawyer notarize my affidavit?

No. The lawyer must have a valid notarial commission for the proper territorial jurisdiction, unless acting under another lawful authority to administer the oath.

Can the notary prepare the affidavit?

A lawyer may provide drafting services, but preparation and legal advice are separate from the notarial act. The notary must remain impartial and cannot notarize an unlawful, incomplete, involuntary, or prohibited transaction.

Do all attachments need separate notarization?

Not automatically. They should be clearly identified and securely associated with the affidavit. A law, agency checklist, or recipient may require certified or separately authenticated attachments.

Can I notarize through a video call?

Only through a compliant remote electronic-notarization process involving an electronic document, a commissioned Electronic Notary Public, and an accredited facility. An ordinary video call with a paper document is not enough.

Can I obtain another copy later?

Ask the notary for a certified true copy of the notarial record upon payment of the applicable legal fee. If the notary is unavailable or the commission has ended, inquire with the Office of the Clerk of Court of the Regional Trial Court that supervised the commission.

What if the PDF from the notary differs from my paper original?

Notify the notary promptly in writing, identify each material discrepancy, request rectification, and preserve both versions and proof of notice.

Official references

This article provides general Philippine legal information, not legal advice for a particular affidavit, transaction, or case. Requirements can depend on the governing law, documents, recipient, and facts. Official sources and procedures were checked as of August 1, 2026.