Notary Public in BOURNEMOUTH: Frequently Asked Questions

Alice is a qualified notary public offering notary services across Bournemouth, Dorset and Hampshire. Alice regularly assists clients who are based throughout Dorset and Hampshire including Dorchester, Blandford, Wimborne, Ferndown, Verwood, Fordingbridge, Ringwood, across the New Forest (including Burley, Bransgore, Lymington, New Milton and Brockenhurst), Southampton, Eastleigh and Chandler's Ford.

If you require notary public services then Alice will be delighted to assist you.

A notary public is a member of the notarial profession which is the oldest and smallest branch of the legal profession – there are approximately 750 notaries public in England & Wales.

A notary public is a specialist lawyer who holds an internationally recognised public office and is authorised to authenticate documents for use abroad.

The notarial profession is an entirely separate part of the legal profession to that of a solicitor. Notaries public are also subject to separate rules, regulations and requirements.

Alice has been appointed as a notary public by the Court of Faculties of the Archbishop of Canterbury and she is regulated by the Master of the Faculties through the Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

No. In fact, most lawyers are not notaries.

There are three branches of the legal profession in England & Wales - solicitors, barristers and notaries.

There are approximately 150,000 solicitors, 16,500 barristers and only 750 notaries.

Most notaries are also solicitors but most solicitors are not notaries. There is also very little cross-over between barristers and notaries.

Whilst solicitors and notaries both provide legal services, a notary public carries out an entirely different role to that of a solicitor. Most notaries are also solicitors but the two roles are distinct and subject to separate rules, regulations and requirements. A solicitor cannot provide notarial services unless they have also qualified as a notary public which involves additional training and background checks.

The main differences between solicitors and notaries are as follows:

• Solicitors can provide a wide range of services from commercial litigation to conveyancing and criminal law to wills and probate. A notary public focuses on one highly specialised area – the preparation and authentication of documents for use abroad.
• Solicitors have an overriding duty to act in the best interests of their client. A notary public’s primary duty is to the transaction itself and the notarised document can be relied on not only his/her client but also by third parties which may include foreign government authorities and international trading partners.
• Solicitors are a much larger branch of the legal profession – there are around 150,000 solicitors in England & Wales compared to approximately 775 notaries

A notary public is primarily concerned with the authentication and certification of signatures, authority and capacity relating to documents for use abroad. This is not a mere rubber-stamping exercise. The signature and seal of a notary public is recognised by the UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office and also by various High Commissions and Embassies throughout the world.

The overriding international duty of a notary public is “to the transaction” rather than to an individual client. A notarial act is a record of a matter of significance that is relied on by authorities and trading partners in foreign jurisdictions to facilitate international transactions. 

A notarial act is accepted and relied on as full and final proof of matters stated in the act. Great care is therefore essential at every stage to reduce the risk of errors, omissions, alterations, fraud, forgery and money laundering.

Alice can carry out all permitted notarial activities and she can arrange for the legalisation of documents before they are sent to their final destination.

Each notarial matter is different and the requirements and timescales will vary greatly according to whether the client is a private individual or a company and in particular according to the processing times of third parties such as the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, legalisation agents, translating agencies and couriers.

Some of the typical key stages are likely to include:

• Receiving and reviewing the documents to be notarised together with any instructions you have received
• Liaising with your advisors or the relevant body abroad to obtain the necessary information to deal with the document
• Checking the identity, capacity and authority of the person who is to sign the document
• If a document is to be certified, checking with the issuing authority that it is genuine.
• Meeting with the signatory to verify their identity, ascertain they understand what they are signing, that they are doing so of their own free will and to ensure the document is executed correctly
• Endorsing or drafting and affixing a notarial certificate to the document
• Arranging for the legalisation of the document
• Arranging for the storage of copies of all notarised documents and other paperwork in accordance with the requirements of the Notarial Practice Rules 2019

You need a notary public if you are told by, say, your lawyer or other representative abroad that your document needs to be “notarised”.

A notary public will be able to authenticate your document so that is satisfies the requirements of this country and the receiving country – a notary public essentially facilities an international transaction.

A notary public can also assist with arranging for UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office and embassy/consular legalisation.

Some examples of when you may need a notary public are as follows:

• Preparing and executing powers of attorney for individuals and companies.
• Authenticating company and business documents and transactions.
• Authenticating personal documents and information for immigration or emigration purposes, or to apply to marry or to work abroad.
• Assisting with the purchase or sale of land overseas.
• Assisting with overseas adoptions.
• Authenticating foreign wills and providing documents to deal with the administration of the estate of people who are abroad or owning property abroad.

The answer depends on the transaction in question and your notary public will be able to advise you on what documents are required.

As a general idea of the documentation required, it is likely that you will need to provide evidence of your identity and, if you are acting on behalf of a company, evidence of your authority to do so as well as the documents to be notarised together with any instructions you have received from the receiving country.

A notary public will often need to see all of the documentation before accepting instructions and certainly before he or she meets you.

Recipients in some countries require verification of the notary public’s signature and seal. When this is required, ‘legalisation’ must be obtained before the document is accepted abroad.

For some countries, it is sufficient for an apostille to be affixed to the document. An apostille is a certificate from the UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office on behalf of the UK Government which confirms that the notary public’s signature and seal is genuine.

For other countries, embassy/consular legalisation is also required which is when the recipient requires the notarial act to bear a legalisation stamp from the consular department of the diplomatic mission representing the country where the document is to be used.

In any event, a notary public should be able to assist you with this process.

Some countries require a document to be apostilled / legalised in addition to it being notarised. This is because they require official confirmation of the notary public’s signature and seal.

For some countries, it is sufficient for an apostille to be affixed to the notarised document. An apostille is a certificate from the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office which confirms that the notary public’s signature and seal on the document is genuine.

For other countries, embassy/consular legalisation is also required which is when the recipient requires the notarised document to bear a stamp / certificate from the consular department of the diplomatic mission representing the country where the document is to be used.

Therefore, sometimes ‘legalisation’ refers to an apostille only and other times it also refers to the embassy/consular process.

Alice is a notary public based in Bournemouth and she provides a flexible notary public service throughout Dorset and Hampshire. She regularly assists clients who are based in Poole, Christchurch, Dorchester, Blandford, Wimborne, Ferndown, Verwood, Fordingbridge, Ringwood, throughout the New Forest (including Burley, Bransgore, Lyndhurst, Lymington and New Milton), Southampton, Chandler's Ford and Eastleigh.

Alice also has a notary office in Chandler's Ford / Eastleigh.

There are very few notaries public in Dorset & Hampshire. Alice is therefore delighted to assist clients from a wide variety of locations and is committed to providing a friendly, professional, efficient and cost-effective service. 

Notary Public Bournemouth | Notary Public Dorset | Notary Public Hampshire

The cost of engaging a notary public very much depends on the document in question and what the notary public is being asked to do. Your notary public will usually be able to give you an indication on the cost involved for your transaction. In order to do this, your notary public will often need to know:

• What service you require – for example: attesting signatures, certifying copy documents, obtaining legalisation etc.
• The type of document that needs to be notarised.
• Who is signing the document and, if the person is signing on behalf of a company, what authority do they have to do so?
• How many documents are there?
• Which country is the notarised document going to be sent to?

It is important to note that seeing a notary public is far more than a mere rubber-stamping exercise and the cost involved reflects the great care that a notary public takes at every stage of the process to minimise the risk of error, omissions, alterations, fraud, forgery, money laundering etc and also the fact that they notary public will, amongst other things, often need to liaise with your foreign lawyer or representative, advise on requirements for this country and draft a notarial certificate.

If you require notary public services then do not hesitate to contact Alice: 07780812793 or alice@agt-notarypublic.co.uk