Online Notary Public Service Requirements in the Philippines
A comprehensive legal primer (as of June 2025)
Key take-away: The Philippines still treats notarization as a public office exercised by lawyers, but since the pandemic the Supreme Court has allowed secure, audio-video–based “remote/online” notarization of paper documents under strict safeguards. Full end-to-end electronic (“e-notary”) systems are not yet in force nationwide, but enabling bills and pilot projects continue to advance.
1. Classical legal foundations (pre-digital)
| Source | Core rule relevant to all notarization (online or physical) |
|---|---|
| 1987 Constitution, Art. VIII §5(5) | Vests the Supreme Court (SC) with sole authority to regulate admission to, and practice of, law—including notarial practice. |
| 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice (RNP) (A.M. No. 02-8-13-SC, effective July 1 2004) | Still the baseline. Requires personal appearance, a physical notarial seal, written journal, and signature on the same paper presented. |
| Civil Code Arts. 1318, 1358 | Certain contracts (sales of real property, donations, powers of attorney, etc.) must be in a public instrument—i.e., notarized—to be valid or registrable. |
| Rules of Court, Rule 132 §20 | A notarized document is a “public document” and proves its own due execution without further authentication. |
| RA 8792 (E-Commerce Act 2000) | Recognizes electronic signatures and records, but excludes notarization itself from its automatic equivalence list—leaving detailed procedure to the SC. |
2. Pandemic-era breakthrough: Interim Rules on Remote Notarization of Paper Documents (IRRND, 2020)
Legal basis Promulgated by the SC on July 14 2020 (effective until expressly revoked or superseded). The Court relied on its constitutional power and RNP §2(b) (“personal appearance means physical or via video conferencing as may be allowed”).
Scope Paper documents only. The document still ends as a wet-ink original; the rules simply separate the act of signing (at the principal’s location) from the notary’s completion (when the original finally reaches the notary).
Step-by-step procedure
Sequence Requirement a. Real-time audio-video conference Signatory presents ID, shows blank pages, then signs while on camera. Session must be recorded and kept for 10 years. b. Transmission of signed pages Signed document and copies of IDs must be delivered to the notary within 24 hours by courier, personal delivery, or secure scanning plus later exchange of originals. c. Completion Upon physical receipt, the notary: 1) compares signatures; 2) fills in the notarial certificate (must state “executed via videoconference” and the cities/municipalities where notary and signatory were located); 3) stamps seal and signs; 4) updates electronic and paper journals. d. Return of documents Original is released to the principal or their agent following normal practice. Technology & record-keeping
- No specific platform mandated, but encryption, access controls, and retention of the video file and e-journal for a decade are compulsory.
- The e-journal must be printable and include session date-time stamps and hash values of each recording.
Limitations Instruments affecting real property still require physical entry in the notary’s register of deeds; registries were instructed to accept IRRND-compliant notarizations, but only after original ink review.
3. Pilot initiatives toward full e-Notary (2021 – 2025)
| Initiative | Summary |
|---|---|
| House Bill No. 1954 / Senate Bill No. 196-S (“E-Notary Act”) | Pending 19th Congress. Seeks to amend the RNP to allow digital-signature-based notarization, using X.509 certificates issued by a DICT-accredited Certification Authority. |
| DICT Root CA & Public Key Infrastructure (2023) | Operational root CA now issues qualified digital certificates to government entities; pilot batches have been given to selected lawyers as “Notary Digital Certificates.” |
| SC Technical Working Group (TWG) on e-Notarization | Draft rules (circulated 2024) propose: 1) mandatory two-factor identity proofing (video + liveness + e-KYC); 2) blockchain-anchored e-journal; 3) electronic “tamper-evident seal” embedding the notary’s public key. |
| Land Registration Authority (LRA) e-Title sandbox | Accepts e-notarized deeds only from TWG-accredited notaries for testing; not yet mainstream. |
4. Qualifications & licensing of an online notary
There is no separate “online notary” license. A Philippine notary is always a member in good standing of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) who has secured a notarial commission from the Executive Judge of the RTC where their principal place of business lies. Online services merely add compliance duties:
- Hold an active commission (RNP §4).
- Register an electronic signature & digital certificate (once the E-Notary Act or its equivalent rules take effect).
- Maintain secure IT systems (PC, webcam, secure storage).
- File a sworn undertaking with the Executive Judge describing the video platform, storage method, hash algorithm, and encryption keys used.
- Post a new surety bond (SC draft proposes ₱500,000 minimum) to cover cyber-breach-related claims.
- Attend SC-accredited e-notary training every three years.
5. Identity-proofing standards
| Scenario | Acceptable evidence (cumulative) |
|---|---|
| Resident Filipino signatory | One government-issued photo ID with signature plus liveness check during video; additional OTP-based challenge for e-signature documents. |
| OFW abroad | Philippine passport and either a valid visa/residence card or, if inside an embassy/consulate, certification from the consular officer. |
| Corporate signatory | ID of representative, recent SEC GIS or Board Secretary’s Certificate naming authorized signatory, plus visual display of corporate seal (if any) during the session. |
| Special Power of Attorney (SPA) | The principal must appear (physically or through IRRND video). If represented by attorney-in-fact, both the principal (via video) and attorney-in-fact (physically or via second video link) must appear. |
6. Form & content of the remote notarial certificate
A compliant certificate must add:
This instrument was subscribed and sworn to (or acknowledged)
before me via secure video conference pursuant to the Interim Rules
on Remote Notarization of Paper Documents, by [Name], who appeared
before me online from [City/Municipality, Country] while the notary
was physically in [City/Municipality, Province, Philippines],
and who likewise confirmed that he/she signed the foregoing document
during said videoconference. Audio-video recording saved as
[File Name or SHA-256 hash].The notary’s seal remains embossed or rubber-stamped on the physical paper.
7. Mandatory journals & storage
Parallel journals.
- Traditional bound book (for court inspection).
- Electronic journal (CSV/XML/JSON) timestamped and hashed.
Video retention. Ten (10) years from date of act; may be kept off-site in an accredited cloud, provided the private key used to encrypt is escrowed with the Executive Judge in a sealed USB.
Data Privacy Act (RA 10173) compliance. Client must be given a Privacy Notice explaining purpose, retention period, data subject rights, and risk of cross-border transfers if foreign cloud storage is used.
8. Fees
| Item | Ordinary (walk-in) | Remote (IRRND) | Proposed e-Signature (bill) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acknowledgment / Jurat | ₱200 first page; ₱50 each add’l | ₱500 first page; ₱100 add’l (reflects courier & tech cost) | May be market-based but capped at ₱1,000 by Executive Judge |
| Certification of video extract | N/A | ₱300 per 30-minute excerpt | Same |
| E-signature certificate (per document) | N/A | N/A | Charging prohibited; cost is baked into professional fee |
9. Prohibitions & penalties
| Violation | Sanction |
|---|---|
| Failure to save or produce video record | Revocation of commission; up to ₱200,000 administrative fine; possible disbarment. |
| Performing online notarizations outside commission territory (unless SC grants nationwide authority) | Same as above + invalidation of documents. |
| Using unaccredited platform or allowing deep-fakes | Same, plus criminal liability under Cybercrime Prevention Act (RA 10175) if fraudulent intent shown. |
| Overcharging | Administrative sanction; restitution. |
| Misuse of digital certificate | Immediate revocation, listing in SC E-Notary Blacklist, possible prison under RA 8792 §33(a) (hacking/unauthorized access). |
10. Best-practice checklist for practitioners
- Pre-engagement: Verify that the instrument can be notarized remotely (some registries or counterparties may still insist on face-to-face).
- Platform: Use SC-vetted solutions with end-to-end encryption, waiting-room control, and automatic recording.
- Background: Neutral backdrop, adequate lighting; remind signatories to eliminate side-chatter.
- ID capture: Take high-resolution still images of ID front and back during the call.
- Dual screen sharing: Show both the entire document and the notary’s seal being affixed for transparency.
- Hashing: Generate SHA-256 hash of scanned signed pages upon receipt; include value in the e-journal.
- Courier chain-of-custody: Use tamper-evident envelopes; log tracking numbers in the journal.
- Post-notarization: Email a watermarked electronic copy for immediate use, clearly marked “For reference pending release of original.”
11. Looking forward
- Full digital deeds: The Land Registration Reform package (draft 2024) would recognize digitally-native notarized conveyances if executed with qualified electronic signatures and lodged through LRA’s e-Title portal.
- One-stop notary portals: The SC, IBP, and DICT plan a Notary Public Information System (NPIS) holding real-time commission status, sample e-signatures, and QR-verifiable notarial seals.
- ASEAN cross-recognition: Discussions under the ASEAN Single Window for mutual acknowledgment of e-notarial acts are ongoing, focusing on corporate documents and powers of attorney used for trade.
12. Practical tips for clients
| If you need… | Do this |
|---|---|
| Urgent notarization while abroad | Book a remote session during Philippine office hours and prepare to DHL originals within 24 hours. |
| High-value real-estate deed | Check first with the Register of Deeds in the property’s locality; some still want wet-ink, face-to-face notarization. |
| Corporate board resolutions | Secure a secretary’s certificate; many banks now accept IRRND-notarized documents. |
| Authentication (“red ribbon”/Apostille) | DFA has begun accepting IRRND-notarized originals, but processing time is longer (verification of video link). Plan accordingly. |
Conclusion
Online/remote notarization in the Philippines is authorized but transitional. Lawyers must layer the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice with the pandemic-era Interim Rules and forthcoming e-signature frameworks. For now, every remote act still culminates in a physical, wet-ink original, but the legislative and technical groundwork for true paper-less e-notary services is nearly complete. Stakeholders should keep monitoring Supreme Court circulars and congressional developments to ensure compliance and seize the efficiency gains of digital transformation.
(Prepared 27 June 2025. Always check the latest Supreme Court issuances and local registry circulars before relying on this guide.)