All about our virtual notary public services
The covid19 pandemic changed the way the business world operated. Shut downs, health mandates, and lock ins forced adaptation. While many of these mandates have been scaled back, leftover changes have remained.
One welcomed remnant has been the rise of the virtual notary.
Some legal documents can be signed virtually. As of 2023, the Law Society of Alberta have given further guidance about the type of documents which can and cannot be virtually notarized. A copy of that guidance can be found at this link.
The Law Society of Alberta does not regulate commissioning and notarizing documents . These rules come from different laws and statutes. For example, Alberta land titles has totally different signing requirements for real estate documents than King’s Bench has for court documents.
Before you book a virtual signing, it is important to understand what documents can and cannot be handled virtually.
Moto Noto is not a law firm. Because we are not lawyers, we are not familiar with each and every law and the signing requirements for each document. That said, here are the documents we are able to notarize virtually:
Affidavits
Statutory Declarations
Travel Consent Letters
Invitation Letters
Guarantees (temporarily permitted)
Documents that cannot be notarized virtually include:
True copies of documents (as the notary will need to verify and review the original)
Wills
To book a virtual signing with Moto Noto you must meet a few requirements:
You must have access to a clear and working video camera.
You must have valid government photo ID.
You must have an excellent internet connection. If the audio or video feed fails during the meeting this may result in an incomplete signing.
You must provide a valid email address where documents can be exchanged.
As all of our virtual signings take place over Google Meet you must have access to this free online software.
You must have a physical copy of the document, which will be scanned in to the notary to finalize after you have signed.
You must have access to a scanner or cellphone PDF maker.
Here is what will happen on the virtual signing:
The notary will first confirm your name and government issued ID. The notary will take a screen shot of your ID both front and back. The screenshot should include a clear live photo of you so that your ID can be verified.
The notary will need to confirm that the person signing is not being improperly influenced by others. So it is recommended that the person signing be alone if possible.
The notary will confirm that the physical document that you have in front of you is the same document that the notary has in front of them. This will require going through each page.
The notary will watch you sign the document and each page of the document must be initialled.
You must then scan in a copy of the signed document and email it to info@motonoto.ca.
Upon receipt the notary will review the document, and finalize the signing and send a fully signed copy back to you via email.
If there is a problem which occurs during your virtual signing - ie) the audio or video feed fails, you cannot scan the document, you may be required to come into the office to finalize the signing. This will be an additional fee.
Certain documents may require additional certificates if they are signed virtually. For example, if you are signing an affidavit to be used in litigation, the notary will be required to fill out an additional certificate. In some cases this may result in an additional fee. A free copy of the certificate can be found here.
To ensure that the notary is prepared for your signing, we recommend sending a copy to info@motonoto.ca in advance so that the appropriate arrangements can be made.
Virtual signings can be booked online but must be pre-paid in advance to hold your signing spot. To book an appointment, check out our Online Booking.
For more information about our prices check out our Pricelist.
