Blank Spaces in a Document to Be Notarised

Fill in every blank that asks for information before you see the notary, leave only the signature, date and witness spaces for the appointment, and deal with spaces that do not apply by striking them through or writing "not applicable". A notary will commonly decline to notarise a document with open blanks, because someone could fill them in afterwards.

Key takeaways

• A blank left open after notarisation could be filled in later, making it look as if you signed something you did not. That is why notaries take blanks seriously.
• Complete names, addresses, amounts, descriptions and choices before the appointment.
• Leave your signature, the date of signing and the notary's section for the appointment.
• Spaces that do not apply: strike through or write "N/A", and initial in front of the notary.
• Boxes marked for official use by the receiving authority stay empty.
• The notary will not complete the substance for you. If you do not know what goes in a blank, ask whoever issued the document.

Why do notaries care about blank spaces?

A notarial certificate tells a reader overseas that you signed the document, or swore to it, in front of the notary on a given day. The reader assumes the document they are holding is the one you signed. If a space was blank at the appointment and has been filled in since, that assumption is false, and the certificate now appears to vouch for words you never saw. An open space for an amount in a loan document, a name in a power of attorney, or a property description in a sale authority is an invitation to exactly that kind of fraud.

So a careful notary looks through the document for gaps before anyone signs. Where they find one, they will commonly ask you to complete it, strike it through, or confirm it is meant to be left for the notary or an official. If you cannot or will not, the notary may decline. That is not obstruction; it protects you. Our guide to what happens when a notary declines explains the notary's discretion.

Which blanks should you fill in before the appointment?

Any blank that asks for information about you, the transaction or the other parties. Typical examples are your full name and address, your date of birth, passport number, the names of attorneys or agents, amounts, account numbers, property addresses and descriptions, and any options you are asked to choose, such as which powers an attorney will have. Fill them in clearly, in ink or on screen before printing.

Where a form gives you a choice, such as ticking one of several options, make the choice before the appointment and cross out the options that do not apply, if the form's instructions allow. If you are not sure what a blank means or what the right answer is, ask the person or organisation that gave you the document. For documents with legal effect, such as a power of attorney, that may mean the lawyer who prepared it, in Australia or overseas. Our guide to notarising a power of attorney covers the document where this matters most.

Which blanks should you leave for the day?

Three kinds. Your signature, because a notary can only witness a signature made in front of them. The date of signing, and usually the place of signing, because they record when and where you signed, which is the appointment. And the witness or notary section, which is for the notary to complete. The Attorney-General's Department gives the same advice for Commonwealth statutory declarations in its guide to making a declaration with a witness: do not sign the form, add the date or include witness details until you are with your witness. The same applies whether your witness is a notary or, for a document staying in Australia, a Justice of the Peace.

If you signed before the appointment, the notary cannot witness that signature; our guide to documents already signed explains the options.

What do you do with spaces that do not apply?

Close them off so nothing can be added later. The usual methods are to draw a line through the space, write "N/A" or "not applicable", or, for a larger unused area such as the rest of a page, draw a diagonal line or a Z through it. A page left blank on purpose can be marked "this page is intentionally left blank". Whichever you use, many notaries will ask you to initial each one in their presence, so that the closing-off is also witnessed.

Follow the document's own instructions first. Some forms, particularly from foreign governments, say exactly how unused fields should be marked, or say that certain fields must never be written on. Some receiving authorities are strict about any mark outside the expected spaces. If in doubt, ask them.

Blank space	Before the appointment	At the appointment
Your name, address, ID details	Fill in	Notary checks them against your ID
Names of attorneys, agents or parties	Fill in	Notary may ask you to confirm them
Amounts, account and property details	Fill in	Notary may ask what they are
Options to tick or choose	Choose; cross out others if allowed	Initial any crossings-out
Fields that do not apply	Leave, or mark N/A	Strike through and initial
Your signature and the date	Leave blank	Sign and date in front of the notary
Witness or notary section	Leave blank	The notary completes it
Official use boxes	Leave blank	Leave blank

Will the notary fill in the blanks for you?

Not the substance. The notary witnesses and certifies; they do not decide what your document should say. Many Australian notaries are also solicitors, but choosing an attorney's powers, the amount of a loan or the terms of a sale is legal work separate from notarising the document, and a notary will not quietly fill in content on the day. They will happily complete their own section, and may help with purely administrative details, such as writing the place of signing.

If a blank needs information you do not have, the fix is to get it before the appointment: from the bank, agency, lawyer or relative overseas who sent you the document. Booking a notary before the document is ready usually means a second appointment.

What about other signatories and missing attachments?

Some blanks are legitimately left for other people. A contract or company resolution often has signature spaces for several parties, who may sign in different places on different days. The notary certifies only what happens in front of them, usually your signature, and the certificate says so. The other parties' spaces stay blank, and each of them signs before their own witness. Tell the notary in advance who else is signing and where, so the certificate can be worded to fit.

Missing attachments are a different matter. If the document refers to a schedule, plan or annexure, such as "the property described in Annexure A", that attachment should be present and complete at the appointment. A reference to a document that is not there is a gap, much like a blank space, because anything could be attached later. Notaries commonly mark each annexure so it is identified as part of the notarised document. Bring every attachment the document mentions, in final form.

What about documents in another language?

Blanks in a document you cannot read are the riskiest of all, because you may not know whether a space is for your name, an amount, or a statement you are agreeing to. Before the appointment, get the document explained or translated so you know what each blank is for. The notary also needs to understand what they are notarising, which may mean a translation; our guide to notarising a foreign language document explains how that works.

What if a blank is filled in after notarisation?

Then the document no longer matches what was notarised, and it should not be used. A receiving authority that notices handwriting in a different ink, or text added after the notarial certificate, may reject the document. DFAT's page on documents it can legalise says public documents that have been altered in any way are not acceptable for legalisation. If something was left blank by mistake and needs completing, the safer course is usually to prepare a fresh document and have it notarised again, rather than adding to one that has already been certified. Our guide to an invalid notarial act explains the wider consequences.

How do you prepare the document?

1. Read every page. Mark each blank space, including small ones in tables and footers.
2. Fill in the information blanks. Names, addresses, amounts, descriptions and choices, in ink or before printing.
3. Ask the issuer about anything unclear. Do not guess what a blank is for.
4. Identify spaces that do not apply. Plan to strike them through or mark N/A, following the form's instructions.
5. Leave the signature, date and notary sections empty. They are completed at the appointment.
6. Bring the original document unsigned. With every page, attachment and annexure, and your photo ID.

Common mistakes to avoid

The most common mistake is arriving with a document that still has open blanks for information you have not got, such as an account number or an attorney's address, which usually means rebooking. The second is filling in the date of signing in advance. The third is writing in an official use box. The fourth is leaving a half-empty page without closing it off. The fifth is completing a blank after the notary has finished, which can make the whole document unusable.

Here is an illustration, not a real case.

Deepa brings a power of attorney for her flat in Mumbai. The notary notices that the space for the sale price range is empty and the attorney's address is missing. Deepa had meant to "fill it in later". The notary explains why that cannot happen after notarisation, and Deepa rebooks once her brother sends the address and her lawyer in India confirms the price wording. At the second appointment, the unused alternative powers are struck through and initialled, and she signs.

In short

Before a notary appointment, fill in every blank that asks for information, leave the signature, date and notary sections for the day, and close off spaces that do not apply with a line or "N/A", initialled in front of the notary. Leave official use boxes alone. If you do not know what goes in a blank, ask whoever issued the document. Our document notarisation services page explains what happens at the appointment.

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Not sure which blanks to fill in before your appointment? Send us the document and tell us where it is going, and we will explain each step before you book.