Certification

Certification, Notarisation, Attestation

The three terms are often confused but mean different things. Certification confirms an external fact: that a signature is genuine or that a copy matches the original. It says nothing about the content of the document. Public notarisation goes considerably further: the notary establishes the intentions of those involved, advises on the consequences and is responsible for the content of the deed — it is mandatory for transactions such as property purchases and marital and inheritance contracts and is described on the notarial services page. An attestation, finally, confirms a state of affairs, for instance that a person is alive or resident at a particular address.

Anyone looking at a form usually finds the answer in the text itself: "signature to be officially certified" calls for a certification, "to be publicly notarised" for notarisation. If in doubt we clarify this in advance by telephone, so that you do not have to come twice.

How a Certification Works

You bring the completed but not yet signed document and a valid identity document. We establish your identity, you sign in our presence, and we add the certification note with date, seal and signature. If you have already signed, it is sufficient for you to acknowledge the signature expressly as your own. For copies we compare the copy with the original. The whole process usually takes a few minutes.

If you are acting for a company or an association, we also check your authority to represent it — with a commercial register extract, articles of association or a power of attorney. This is the most common reason why an appointment cannot be concluded straight away.

Certification for Use Abroad

If a Swiss document is to be used abroad, superlegalisation by the cantonal state chancellery is often required: as an apostille for states party to the 1961 Hague Convention, otherwise as legalisation via the Federal Chancellery and the competent embassy. It is not mandatory in every case, though — whether an apostille, a legalisation or no additional confirmation is required is decided by the receiving body in the country of use, and individual treaties provide for simplifications. Clarify this there in advance. We issue the certification so that it passes through this route and, on request, arrange the superlegalisation for you. For documents in other languages we also arrange translation.

Electronic Certification

More and more registers and authorities work without paper. Electronic certification corresponds in substance to the paper form but is created as a PDF with a qualified electronic signature and time stamp under the Federal Act on Electronic Signatures. The procedure is governed by the Ordinance on Electronic Public Notarisation (EÖBV); only a notary entered in the federal register of notaries (UPReg) may issue one. One point is often overlooked: the original is the file. A printout is only a copy and loses the evidentiary force of the signature. Whether we certify your document electronically ourselves or arrange it through a registered notary, we clarify beforehand by telephone.

Where We Certify

Which notary may certify where is governed by cantonal law, and the authority ends at the cantonal border. For us that means: in the Canton of St. Gallen our public notaries certify at our head office in Wil SG. In the Canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Manuel Steuri is admitted as a notary and certifies at our Teufen office. In the Canton of Zurich, certifications are issued by the state notary offices and the municipalities; at our Zurich office we prepare your document, while the certification itself takes place in Wil, in Teufen or at the competent Zurich notary office. Call us — we will tell you in one sentence how to get there fastest.