Quick answer

An affidavit is a written statement of facts made under oath or solemn affirmation. For a paper affidavit in the Philippines, the usual and proper notarial act is a jurat: the affiant must personally appear before a duly commissioned notary public, prove identity, sign the complete affidavit in the notary’s presence, and swear or affirm that its contents are true.

Bring the complete unsigned affidavit, its attachments, and at least one current government-issued identification document bearing your photograph and signature. A cedula or community tax certificate alone is not competent proof of identity. Never ask a notary to notarize a blank document, backdate a certificate, or notarize for someone who is absent.

Electronic and remote notarization are now permitted for electronic documents, but only through a commissioned Electronic Notary Public and a Supreme Court-accredited electronic notarization facility. Sending a signed scan to an ordinary notary is not enough.

What an affidavit should contain

The exact requirements depend on the affidavit’s purpose and the rules of the court, agency, bank, school, insurer, employer, or other recipient. A properly prepared affidavit ordinarily contains:

The affiant’s complete name and information sufficient to identify them;
A clear statement that the affiant is competent to testify to the facts;
Numbered paragraphs stating relevant facts in chronological order;
Facts based on the affiant’s personal knowledge, with the source identified if a statement is based on a record;
Accurate names, dates, addresses, amounts, document numbers, and other material details;
References to supporting documents, with those documents properly marked and attached;
The affiant’s signature over their printed name; and
A jurat completed, signed, and sealed by the notary or another officer authorized by law to administer the oath.

Age, civil status, nationality, occupation, and complete residence address are commonly requested, but they are not universal requirements for every affidavit. Follow the prescribed form when the receiving office has one.

Do not use a general affidavit as a substitute for a transaction-specific document. An affidavit of loss, judicial affidavit, affidavit of support, affidavit of discrepancy, extrajudicial-settlement affidavit, and verification attached to a pleading may have substantially different requirements.

Jurat or acknowledgment?

These notarial acts serve different purposes.

Notarial act	Common use	What the signer does
Jurat	Affidavits, verifications and sworn statements	Personally appears, signs in the notary’s presence, and takes an oath or affirmation concerning the document
Acknowledgment	Deeds, contracts, powers of attorney and other instruments	Personally appears and declares that the signer executed the complete document voluntarily; the document may already have been signed
Signature witnessing	Documents for which witnessing the signature is sufficient	Personally appears and signs in the notary’s presence

An affidavit normally needs a jurat, usually beginning with language such as “Subscribed and sworn to before me.” Merely placing an acknowledgment beneath an affidavit may not satisfy a law or receiving office that requires a sworn statement.

The definitions and requirements for these acts appear in the Supreme Court’s 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice.

What to bring to a paper notarization

Prepare the following before visiting the notary:

The complete affidavit. Resolve all material blanks, missing pages, inconsistent dates and unfinished attachments. The rules prohibit notarization of blank or incomplete documents.
The original document and required copies. Ask the recipient how many originals it needs. A photocopy bearing a copied notarial seal is not another notarized original.
Current proof of identity. The ordinary requirement is at least one current identification document issued by an official agency and bearing the holder’s photograph and signature. Examples include a passport, driver’s license and PRC ID. Bring a second ID if available because a notary or receiving institution may apply additional fraud-prevention requirements.
Supporting records. For example, an affidavit of loss should be checked against any available receipt, serial number, account record, police report or copy of the lost document.
Every affiant. Each person making the affidavit must personally appear. A messenger, relative or lawyer cannot take the oath in the affiant’s place.
Any required disinterested witnesses. Ordinary affidavits do not automatically require witnesses. Bring them only when the applicable law, prescribed form, identity procedure, or signing-by-mark procedure requires them.
A working email address. Under the 2025 amendments, the notary generally must send each signatory an electronic copy within the period prescribed by the rules, at no additional cost. Think carefully before waiving that copy.

What happens before the notary

For a traditional paper affidavit, the notary should:

Examine the entire, complete document and determine the correct notarial act;
Require the affiant’s personal appearance;
Establish the affiant’s identity through personal knowledge or competent evidence of identity;
Determine that the affiant understands the transaction and is acting voluntarily;
Watch the affiant sign the affidavit;
Administer an oath or solemn affirmation;
Complete the jurat with the actual place and date of notarization;
Sign and affix the official seal;
Record the act and identification details in the notarial register; and
Require the affiant—and any applicable credible or signing witnesses—to sign or place the required mark in the register.

A notary may refuse if the transaction appears unlawful, the signer does not appear to understand its consequences, or the signer is not acting freely. The notary must also decline if disqualified by an interest in the transaction or a prohibited relationship with the principal.

Traditional notarial authority is territorial. The notary may act only within the jurisdiction of the commissioning court and generally at the notary’s regular place of work. Limited exceptions exist for specified locations within that jurisdiction, including hospitals where a party is confined and places of detention.

Identification rules and the credible-witness exception

If the affiant is not personally known to the notary, competent evidence of identity ordinarily means a current official identification document bearing the affiant’s photograph and signature. The Supreme Court’s 2008 amendment to the identification rule provides a non-exclusive list of acceptable official documents.

A community tax certificate or cedula alone is not competent evidence of identity under the current rule.

If the affiant has no qualifying ID, the rules allow a narrow credible-witness procedure:

One credible witness may identify the affiant if that witness is personally known to the notary, personally knows the affiant, and is not involved in the document or transaction; or
Two credible witnesses may be used if neither is involved in the document or transaction, each personally knows the affiant, and each presents documentary identification to the notary.

A credible identifying witness is not the same as an ordinary witness to the facts in the affidavit.

Electronic and remote notarization

The Supreme Court’s Rules on Electronic Notarization, A.M. No. 24-10-14-SC, supplement rather than replace traditional notarization. They cover electronic documents and allow:

In-person electronic notarization, where the principal physically appears before an Electronic Notary Public; and
Remote electronic notarization, where the principal and any witnesses appear through real-time videoconferencing.

Electronic notarization must use a Supreme Court-accredited Electronic Notarization Facility. A traditionally commissioned notary is not automatically an Electronic Notary Public.

For ordinary remote electronic notarization, the facility and notary verify that the participants are in the Philippines, including through required location and identity controls. The notary must assess voluntariness, explain the document’s general nature, and confirm that the document notarized is the same document signed, acknowledged, sworn to or affirmed by the principal.

A principal abroad may use the Rules’ limited extraterritorial procedure only while within the premises of a Philippine embassy, consular office, or office of a Philippine honorary consul, subject to verification and the facility’s requirements. Consult the Supreme Court’s official eNotary FAQs and service information before relying on this route.

Do not assume that a video call, emailed scan, pasted image of a signature, or ordinary e-signature makes a document electronically notarized.

If the affidavit is signed abroad

For an affidavit intended for use in the Philippines, the available routes commonly include:

Signing before a Philippine embassy or consulate that offers notarial services; or
Signing before a competent local notary, followed by an apostille issued by the foreign country’s competent authority if that country and the Philippines are parties to the Apostille Convention.

For documents from a non-Apostille country, authentication or legalization requirements depend on the country and intended use. Philippine foreign-service posts may impose appointment, personal-appearance, identification, copy, translation and fee requirements. Check the particular embassy or consulate and the Philippine receiving office before signing. An official example of these alternatives appears in the Philippine Embassy’s consular-notarization guidance.

The DFA apostillizes Philippine public documents for use abroad; it does not apostillize foreign documents. Its current procedures are available through the DFA Authentication Division.

Special signing situations

Thumbmark or other mark

A person who cannot sign may affix a thumbmark or other mark, but the formal safeguards must be followed. The mark must be affixed before the notary and two disinterested, unaffected witnesses. Both witnesses sign, and the notary must place the required notation beneath the mark.

Physical inability to sign or make a mark

The rules permit a notary to sign for a person who is physically unable to sign or make a mark, but only upon that person’s direction, before two disinterested and unaffected witnesses, with the prescribed signatures and notation.

Arrange these accommodations with the notary beforehand. Do not have another person informally sign the affiant’s name.

Hospitalized or detained affiant

Traditional notarization may be performed in a hospital where a party is confined or at a place of detention, provided the location is within the notary’s territorial jurisdiction and the other requirements are satisfied. Travel arrangements and expenses should be agreed upon in advance.

Affiant who does not understand the document’s language

The affiant must understand what is being sworn to. Obtain an accurate translation or qualified language assistance before signing. For a judicial affidavit, the statement must be in a language known to the witness and, if it is not English or Filipino, accompanied by an English or Filipino translation.

Deadlines, validity and copies

There is no universal filing deadline or expiration period for all affidavits. The controlling deadline comes from the law, court order, agency procedure, contract, or recipient’s instructions. Some offices also require a recently executed affidavit even when no statute gives the affidavit a fixed lifespan.

A judicial affidavit is not an ordinary narrative affidavit. When the Judicial Affidavit Rule applies, it must follow the required question-and-answer form, contain the prescribed lawyer’s attestation and jurat, and ordinarily be filed and served no later than five days before the relevant pre-trial, preliminary conference, or scheduled hearing. Criminal cases have additional scope and timing rules. Missing the deadline can result in waiver, subject only to the Rule’s limited relief provisions.

Under the Supreme Court’s 2025 amendments to the traditional notarial rules, a notary must transmit an electronic copy to each signatory, without an additional charge, through email or a mutually agreed file-sharing method within the period stated in the Rules. A signatory may waive transmission, but the waiver also gives up objections to the completeness of the electronic reproduction.

When the copy arrives:

Compare every page, attachment, signature, handwritten entry and notarial detail with your retained document;
Download the file and preserve the original email;
Notify the notary promptly and in writing if there is a material discrepancy; and
Do not alter the received PDF.

Fees

Notarial fees are not a single nationwide market price for every document. The notary must comply with the fees allowed under the rules, post a schedule of chargeable fees, record the fee, and issue a BIR-registered receipt when charging for notarial services. Agreed travel expenses may be separate.

No additional fee may be imposed for the electronic copy

Quick answer

An affidavit is a written statement of facts made under oath or solemn affirmation. For a paper affidavit in the Philippines, the usual valid execution requires the affiant to:

complete and review the entire document;
personally appear before a duly commissioned notary public or another officer legally authorized to administer oaths;
establish identity through personal knowledge or competent evidence of identity;
sign the affidavit in the notary’s presence;
take an oath or affirmation that its contents are true; and
sign or place the required mark in the notarial register.

The notary then completes a jurat, signs it, affixes the official seal, and records the transaction. A messenger cannot bring an already signed affidavit for notarization while the affiant remains elsewhere. Ordinary video calls also do not satisfy the paper-notarization rules. Electronic or remote notarization is valid only through the separate Supreme Court framework for electronic documents, a commissioned Electronic Notary Public, and an accredited electronic-notarization facility.

These requirements come principally from the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice, as amended in 2008 and 2025, and the Rules on Electronic Notarization.

What an affidavit should contain

There is no single form for every affidavit. The law, court, agency, bank, school, employer, or other recipient may prescribe its own wording and supporting documents. Generally, an affidavit should contain:

an appropriate title, such as “Affidavit of Loss” or “Affidavit of Disinterested Persons”;
the affiant’s complete name and enough identifying information to avoid confusion;
the affiant’s address and, where relevant, age, civil status, occupation, citizenship, or relationship to the matter;
clear, numbered statements of facts;
facts within the affiant’s personal knowledge, with dates, places, names, amounts, and document references where material;
an explanation of the affidavit’s purpose;
references to attachments, properly labeled and physically or electronically included;
the affiant’s signature over the printed name; and
a complete jurat executed by the notary or authorized officer.

Do not add facts merely because they appear in a sample form. If a detail is uncertain, say what is actually known and explain the basis rather than guessing. Review names against birth certificates, passports, titles, contracts, receipts, or other source documents.

A judicial affidavit is different from an ordinary narrative affidavit. It must follow the question-and-answer format and other requirements of the Judicial Affidavit Rule, including information about the examining lawyer, the witness’s awareness of possible criminal liability, and identification of exhibits.

Jurat or acknowledgment?

An affidavit ordinarily requires a jurat, not merely an acknowledgment.

Notarial act	What the signer does	Common use
Jurat	Personally appears, signs in the notary’s presence, and swears or affirms that the document is true	Affidavits, sworn statements, verifications
Acknowledgment	Personally appears and declares that the signature and execution of the complete document are voluntary	Deeds, contracts, powers of attorney
Signature witnessing	Personally appears and signs the document in the notary’s presence	Documents requiring proof that the signature was witnessed

An acknowledgment cannot automatically substitute for the jurat required for an affidavit. Conversely, placing a jurat on a deed does not necessarily satisfy a law or registry that specifically requires acknowledgment.

What to bring to a traditional notarization

Bring:

the complete affidavit, including every page and attachment;
the unsigned signature page if a jurat is required;
at least one current identification document issued by an official agency and bearing your photograph and signature;
the original ID, not only an image stored on a phone;
supporting records needed to check names, dates, property descriptions, account numbers, or other material details;
any recipient-prescribed form, instructions, number of originals, or documentary requirements; and
an active email address if you want the electronic copy required under the amended paper-notarization rules.

Examples of competent identification recognized by the rules include a current passport, driver’s license, PRC ID, government-office ID, SSS card, senior-citizen card, and other qualifying official identification. A community tax certificate or cedula alone is not competent evidence of identity under the current rules. The Supreme Court amended the identification rule in A.M. No. 02-8-13-SC.

The receiving office may impose stricter requirements, such as two IDs, photocopies, proof of address, a prescribed form, or recent issuance. Those are recipient requirements, not necessarily universal notarial requirements.

If you have no qualifying ID

Identity may alternatively be established through credible witnesses:

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

This is not a shortcut for a missing or expired ID. The witnesses must actually satisfy the rules, personally appear, take the appropriate oath or affirmation, and sign the notarial register.

What should happen at the notary’s office

A proper paper-affidavit notarization normally proceeds as follows:

Document review. The document must be complete. The notary must refuse a blank or materially incomplete document or an incomplete notarial certificate.
Identity verification. The notary determines whether the affiant is personally known or identified through competent evidence.
Voluntariness and understanding. The notary should refuse if there is reasonable doubt that the signer understands the transaction or is acting freely.
Signing. For a jurat, the affiant signs in the notary’s presence. Do not assume that a signature placed earlier can simply be “confirmed” later.
Oath or affirmation. The affiant swears or solemnly affirms that the statements are true.
Register entry. The notary records the date and time, type of act, document title, affiant’s name and address, identification details, fee, and other required information. The affiant signs or affixes the authorized mark in the register.
Certificate and seal. The notary completes the jurat, signs by hand, affixes the official seal, and supplies the document, page, book, and series details.

A notarial certificate should not be backdated, pre-signed, pre-sealed, or completed by someone pretending that an absent affiant appeared.

Confirm that the notary is authorized

A traditional notary must be a member of the Philippine Bar and hold a current notarial commission. The commission generally authorizes notarial acts only within the territorial jurisdiction of the commissioning court and is valid for a two-year term unless earlier revoked or terminated.

Check that the jurat shows the notary’s name, commission and territorial details, validity period, Roll of Attorneys number, PTR and IBP details where required, signature, official seal, and notarial-register references. If authenticity is important, ask the Office of the Clerk of Court or Executive Judge of the commissioning Regional Trial Court about the notary’s current commission or a Certificate of Authority for a Notarial Act.

A traditional notary generally performs acts at the regular place of work or business. Limited exceptions within the notary’s territorial jurisdiction include specified public functions, hospital or medical confinement, and detention situations.

The notary must not act when personally disqualified—for example, where the notary is a party, will receive an improper direct or indirect benefit, or has a prohibited family relationship with the principal.

Paper, electronic, and remote notarization

The governing route depends on the document:

Paper affidavit with a handwritten signature

The amended 2004 Rules apply. Physical appearance before the traditional notary remains the rule. Sending a scan, ID photograph, or prerecorded signing video to an ordinary notary does not satisfy that requirement.

The 2025 amendments also require a notary to transmit an electronic reproduction to each signatory, at no additional cost, through email or a mutually agreed file-sharing mechanism within the timetable stated in the Rules. A signatory may waive transmission, but the waiver also relinquishes objections to the completeness of the electronic reproduction. Compare the received copy with your original and promptly report material discrepancies in writing. See the 2025 amendments and OCA Circular No. 197-2025.

Electronic affidavit

The Rules on Electronic Notarization allow:

In-Person Electronic Notarization, where the affiant physically appears before an Electronic Notary Public; and
Remote Electronic Notarization, where the affiant appears through live videoconferencing.

Both require a commissioned Electronic Notary Public and a Supreme Court-accredited Electronic Notarization Facility. The system includes identity, document-integrity, location, audiovisual, electronic-signature, and recordkeeping safeguards. An ordinary videoconference or commercial e-signature service is not enough.

For remote electronic notarization, the parties generally must be located in the Philippines. Limited extraterritorial notarization is permitted when a principal abroad is within the premises of a Philippine embassy, consular office, or office of a Philippine honorary consul and the other requirements are met. Check the Supreme Court’s eNotary Services portal and FAQs before relying on this route.

Affidavits executed abroad

A person abroad generally has three possible routes, depending on the destination and recipient:

execute the document before a Philippine embassy or consulate offering notarial services, usually with an appointment, personal appearance, valid identification, and unsigned document;
use a local foreign notary and obtain an apostille from the foreign country’s competent authority if both countries apply the Apostille Convention; or
follow the applicable authentication or legalization chain if the foreign country is not covered by the Apostille Convention.

Mission procedures, fees, permitted documents, appointments, and required copies vary. Confirm with the relevant Philippine foreign-service post and the Philippine receiving office before signing. The Philippine Embassy’s official guidance on consular notarization and apostilles illustrates the distinction between the two routes.

Special signing situations

Thumbmark or other mark

A person who cannot sign may affix a thumbmark or another mark, but the Rules require safeguards. The mark must be made before the notary and two disinterested and unaffected witnesses. Both witnesses sign, and the notary must place the prescribed notation and perform the correct notarial act.

Physically unable to sign or make a mark

A notary may sign on behalf of a person who is physically unable to do either, but only upon that person’s direction, in the presence of two disinterested and unaffected witnesses, with their signatures and the prescribed notation.

Arrange these situations with the notary in advance. Additional safeguards may be necessary where the person has impaired sight, hearing, communication, comprehension, or mobility. The notary must be satisfied that the person understands the document and acts voluntarily.

Deadlines and validity periods

There is no universal expiration date for every affidavit. Its usefulness depends on:

the deadline set by the court, agency, contract, or recipient;
whether the recipient requires a recently executed affidavit;
whether the stated facts remain true; and
whether a specific law imposes a validity period.

For proceedings covered by the Judicial Affidavit Rule, parties generally file and serve judicial affidavits and exhibits not later than five days before the pre-trial, preliminary conference, or relevant scheduled hearing. Criminal cases have additional scope and timing rules. A late submission may be treated as waived, subject to the limited relief allowed by the Rule. Do not apply this five-day rule to every affidavit; verify the order and procedural rule governing the particular case.

Other affidavits—such as those concerning lost documents, civil registration, immigration, insurance, employment, property, or administrative complaints—may have completely different filing periods and supporting requirements.

What notarization does—and does not do

Proper notarization gives a document public character and important evidentiary consequences. Under the 2019 Revised Rules on Evidence, documents acknowledged before a notary are generally classified as public documents, subject to stated exceptions.

However, notarization does not:

prove that every factual statement is true;
cure fraud, forgery, lack of authority, incapacity, coercion, or illegality;
make an otherwise void transaction valid;
transfer title or complete registration by itself; or
replace separate statutory requirements, approvals, taxes, witnesses, registration, or agency filing.

The Supreme Court has emphasized that notarization ordinarily supports due execution and authenticity, not the truth of every statement in the document. See Anido v. People, G.R. No. 253527.

An improperly notarized document may lose its public character and be treated as a private document requiring proof of due execution and authenticity. The consequences for the underlying transaction depend on the law governing that transaction. Some formalities are mainly evidentiary or for convenience; others, such as particular donations or wills, may affect validity. The Civil Code must be read together with the applicable special law.

Evidence to preserve

Keep:

the original notarized affidavit;
a complete scan showing every page, attachment, signature, jurat, seal, and notarial reference;
the electronic copy sent by the notary under the amended rules;
the unedited source documents supporting each material statement;
the recipient’s form, instructions, filing deadline, and proof of submission;
the notary’s receipt and contact information;
emails or messages arranging the notarization; and
written notice of any discrepancy, refusal, suspected forgery, or unauthorized alteration.

Do not write over, detach pages from, or replace attachments in an already notarized affidavit. A material correction usually requires a properly corrected and newly executed document rather than a hidden alteration.

Common mistakes to avoid

Signing a paper affidavit before meeting the notary for its jurat.
Sending someone else to have an absent affiant’s signature notarized.
Using a cedula as the only proof of identity.
Presenting an expired, damaged, borrowed, or mismatched ID.
Leaving names, dates, amounts, property descriptions, or attachments blank.
Using an acknowledgment when the recipient requires a jurat.
Treating an ordinary video call as valid remote notarization.
Allowing the notary’s secretary or another person to perform the oath or sign and seal the certificate.
Accepting a backdated certificate or incorrect place of notarization.
Relying on a generic internet template instead of the recipient’s current form.
Assuming that notarization proves the statements or guarantees acceptance.
Missing the separate filing, registration, tax, apostille, or agency deadline.
Waiving the electronic-copy transmission without understanding the effect.
Signing statements based on rumor or assumption rather than personal knowledge and records.

When legal help is urgent

Consult a Philippine lawyer promptly if:

a document was supposedly notarized while you or another signer was absent;
a signature, ID, seal, notarial number, or attachment appears forged or altered;
the affidavit concerns land, a mortgage, an estate, a donation, a substantial loan, corporate authority, or an irrevocable power;
someone is pressuring a confused, ill, elderly, detained, or dependent person to sign;
a court, prosecutor, or agency deadline is near;
the affidavit may admit criminal, civil, tax, immigration, employment, or regulatory liability;
you discover a material falsehood after signing; or
an uncorrected electronic copy differs from the document in your possession.

Notify the recipient and notary promptly in writing when appropriate, preserve the original and all communications, and avoid making alterations yourself. Concerns about a notary’s commission or conduct may be raised with the Executive Judge or Clerk of Court of the commissioning RTC; lawyer-discipline and possible criminal remedies require separate assessment.

Knowingly making a material false statement under oath where the law requires the affidavit may constitute perjury. The current penalty provisions are in Republic Act No. 11594. Other offenses may apply to forged or falsified documents.

Those unable to afford private counsel may check eligibility for assistance from the Public Attorney’s Office or the Supreme Court’s Unified Legal Aid Service.

Frequently asked questions

Must every affidavit be notarized?

An affidavit is ordinarily a statement made under oath or affirmation, so it normally needs a jurat from a notary or another officer authorized to administer the required oath. A recipient may accept a different certification only when a law or applicable rule allows it.

Must I sign in front of the notary?

Yes, for a traditional paper affidavit using a jurat. The affiant must sign in the notary’s presence and take the oath or affirmation.

Do I always need two valid IDs?

The general rule requires at least one qualifying current official identification document bearing the required identifying features when the affiant is not personally known to the notary. A notary or receiving office may reasonably require more.

Is a barangay certificate or cedula enough?

A cedula alone is not competent evidence of identity. A qualifying current official identification document should be used. A particular certification must meet the governing criteria and satisfy the notary.

Does an affidavit need ordinary witnesses?

Not generally, unless a specific law, form, transaction, or special signing procedure requires them. Credible identifying witnesses serve a different function from witnesses to the underlying events.

Can any lawyer notarize my affidavit?

No. The lawyer must hold a valid notarial commission for the place where the traditional notarial act occurs. Electronic notarization requires a separate electronic notarial commission.

Can I have a paper affidavit notarized through Zoom?

Not by an ordinary notary under the paper rules. Remote electronic notarization must use a commissioned Electronic Notary Public and an accredited facility under the Supreme Court’s electronic-notarization rules.

Does a notarized affidavit automatically win a case?

No. Notarization supports authenticity and due execution, but courts and agencies still assess admissibility, personal knowledge, credibility, corroboration, contradictions, and the truth and legal significance of the statements.

How much should notarization cost?

Fees can vary with the lawful schedule, document, drafting work, copies, and agreed travel. A charging notary should display the fee schedule and issue a BIR-registered receipt. The electronic reproduction and transmission required by the 2025 amendments should be provided to the signatory without an additional charge.

Can an affidavit be corrected after notarization?

Minor obvious errors should still be handled transparently. Do not erase, overwrite, replace a page, or swap an attachment. For a material error, the safer course is usually to prepare a corrected affidavit, execute it again, and tell the recipient whether the earlier affidavit must be withdrawn or explained.

Official sources

This article provides general legal information, not advice for a specific affidavit, transaction, or case. Requirements may depend on the governing law, recipient’s current instructions, document, location, and surrounding facts. Sources and procedures checked as of 30 July 2026.