From upload to a completed document
Most online sessions take about ten minutes from start to finish. Here is exactly what happens at each step, and what to have ready.
How does online notarization work in Ontario?
Meet a commissioner by secure video.O. Reg. 431/20
You verify your identity on camera, swear or affirm your document, and sign during the session — nothing is signed in advance. Most sessions take about ten minutes.
- Secure video
- Government photo ID
- Sign in the session
- Sent to your dashboard
What you need
A device with a camera and internet, valid government-issued photo ID, and your completed but unsigned document (PDF or DOCX).
Not everything is online: Certified copies, signature witnessing and Wills or Powers of Attorney are done in person or with a lawyer.
General legal information for Ontario residents, not formal legal advice.
A quick look at the booking flow
Service, document, time, done — a preview of what you'll actually do.
Choose your service
Online / remote notarization
from $38.95
Commissioning affidavits
from $25.00
Certified true copies
from $20.00
Upload document & select service
Upload your unsigned document. We check for signer and jurat fields, and show the full price up front.
Supports PDF, DOCX & scans
IllustrationLive video identity verification
Connect by browser with your assigned Ontario commissioner and present valid government photo ID.
Driver's licence or passport
Verify, swear & sign
Take the oath or affirmation, sign electronically, and the commissioner completes and signs the jurat.
Jurat completed and signed
Instant download & audit trail
Receive your completed PDF, with a timestamped, append-only record of every step of the session.
Secure document storage
Choose what fits your document
Online remote notarization
Meet a commissioner by secure video from anywhere in Ontario, with ID verified on camera.
Learn more →In-person notarization
Sit down with a commissioner to witness and seal your document with a wet-ink signature.
Learn more →Certified true copies
Have copies of an original certified as true reproductions for your records or submissions.
Learn more →A quick guide to what's eligible
The same rules our guided intake uses, at a glance. Find your document to see whether it can be done online.
Start here
What do you need done, and where will the document be used?
Online by secure video
Eligible under O. Reg. 431/20. You verify ID on camera and sign during the session.
- Swear an affidavitCommissioner for Taking Affidavits
- Make a statutory declarationCommissioner for Taking Affidavits
- Invitation or sponsorship letterCommissioner for Taking Affidavits
In person
The professional must examine an original or witness the signature in person.
- Certified true copyNotary public
- Witness a signatureNotary public
- Use a document outside CanadaNotary public
We confirm the route
The right path depends on your document — we confirm the service and price first, no obligation.
- Child travel consent letterCommissioner or notary public
- Sign a Will or Power of AttorneyOntario lawyer
- Certified translationCoordinated professional service
- Have a document preparedOntario lawyer
Handled by a lawyer
This type of document is completed by an Ontario lawyer rather than a commissioning appointment.
- Real estate or property documentOntario lawyer
Two things can change the route: if the person signing is outside Ontario, or the finished document will be used outside Canada, we confirm the right path (often an in-person step or an apostille) before you book.
General information only, not legal advice. Acceptance of any document is always the receiving institution's decision.
What counts as valid ID
The name on your ID should match the name on your document. Bring one piece of primary ID, or a primary plus secondary piece if requested.
Primary ID
- Canadian or foreign passport
- Ontario driver's licence
- Ontario Photo Card or PR card
Secondary ID
- Credit or bank card with your name
- Birth certificate or citizenship card
Not accepted as ID
- Ontario Health Card (OHIP). Ontario's Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004 restricts requiring a person's health number as identification, so a health card is not requested or recorded.
- Social Insurance Number (SIN) card. A SIN card has no photo or signature, and collection of the SIN is restricted to tax and employment purposes.
- Expired ID of any kind. An expired passport or licence is no longer accepted as current proof of identity.
- A photo, screenshot or photocopy of ID. The physical original card or passport must be shown — a picture of it on a phone or paper is not accepted.
- Bank, credit, student or employer cards on their own. These are not government-issued photo identity documents and do not meet the standard on their own.
Affidavit vs. statutory declaration vs. certified copy
Affidavit (sworn / affirmed)
Court, estate and OSAP filings. Requires an oath or solemn affirmation and a formal jurat.
Statutory declaration
Government, common-law and insurance matters. Declared under the Canada Evidence Act, no oath.
Certified true copy
Not sworn. The notary compares a physical original to a copy and certifies it as identical.
When online commissioning applies
Ontario does not separately regulate "online" or "remote" notarization. Eligible oaths, affirmations and statutory declarations may be commissioned remotely by two-way video under O. Reg. 431/20 (Commissioners for Taking Affidavits Act). Witnessing a signature is a Notaries Act act that requires the notary to be physically present — so signature witnessing, travel-consent letters, certified true copies of paper originals, and Wills & Powers of Attorney are completed in person, not over video. "Online/remote/virtual notarization" are informal descriptive terms for the remote commissioning described here, and acceptance of a remotely commissioned document is always up to the receiving institution.
What makes a remote commissioning valid
For an eligible document, Ontario's O. Reg. 431/20 sets out how a live video session has to run.
Live two-way video and audio
The oath or declaration is administered in real time over a continuous two-way connection. A pre-recorded video or an emailed signature without a live commissioner does not qualify.
Identity checked on camera
You show valid government-issued photo ID to the camera so the commissioner can be satisfied as to your identity before the oath.
You sign during the session
The commissioner watches you sign during the call. A document signed beforehand has to be re-signed on camera.
A modified jurat is used
The jurat records that the oath was administered remotely and states where each person was located, as O. Reg. 431/20 requires.
The modified jurat
“Sworn (or Affirmed) before me remotely by [name] of the City of [city], in the Province of [province], via audio-visual communication technology in accordance with O. Reg. 431/20, on [date].”
Illustrative wording, filled in for your document. General information, not a prescribed form or legal advice.
Ask a real person, get a straight answer
Tell us your document and what it’s for. We’ll confirm whether it can be done online, what ID you need, and the fee up front — before you book anything.
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