No. We know that some countries (like India) sometimes print their legal documents on special paper, commonly known as stamp paper or bonded paper – which is a form of prepaid duty. Please be aware that this kind of paper is not available in Australia.
If your document must be prepared on this kind of paper, you need to arrange for your lawyer in that country to prepare it for you and send you the hard copy by mail.
Notarising your document without stamped paper
If your lawyer sends you the document in electronic form to be printed in Australia, you will probably only be able to print it on paper that is readily available in Australia – such as A4, although in our experience this has not been an issue as the document may need to be formally “stamped” or marked once it reaches the intended destination country and the relevant duty has been paid.
In the past, clients have purchased stamps from Australia Post and attached those stamps to their document! However, we suspect that this will not satisfy the requirements of any foreign country with respect to their local duty liability. We DO NOT recommend this course of action without proper and competent legal advice from a lawyer admitted in the intended destination country.
FAQs for documents requiring notary public services
If you have questions regarding documents for your intended destination country, please review the frequently asked questions here or call our office on 02 9687 8885 to speak to our notary public.
- Do you prepare documents for overseas?
- Do you have stamp paper or bonded paper?
- Do you have any templates for what the document needs to look like or the wording?
- Do my documents need to be in English or in any other language?
- My documents are on email or in a USB stick, can I print them at your office?
- Will you notarise an electronic document?
- Will you bind my documents?
- If I need certified copies of original documents, do I need to bring my own copies?
- Do I need to bring the document myself or I can send someone else?
- My document needs to be witnessed but I have already signed it. Can it still be notarised?