How to Notarise an Employment Contract in Australia

An employment contract is notarised by signing it in front of a notary, who confirms your identity and adds a notarial certificate, or by having a notary certify a copy of the signed original. For use abroad, DFAT then apostilles or authenticates it. It is usually needed only when the job, visa or employer is overseas.

Key takeaways

• An employment contract rarely needs a notary. When it does, it is almost always for a work permit, visa or employer abroad.
• Notarisation does not make the contract valid or its terms lawful. That is a question of employment law where the work is done.
• Ask whose signature must be notarised: yours, the employer's, or both. A notary can attest only signatures made in front of them.
• A contract signed electronically has no paper original. Usually the answer is to sign a paper version before the notary.
• Many authorities that ask for a "contract" really want a reference or statement of service showing dates and duties.

When an employment contract needs a notary

In Australia, employment contracts are signed and used every day without anyone certifying anything. The need for a notary almost always comes from another country: a work permit application abroad, a foreign employer that wants the contract formalised, a foreign government office that wants employment documents attested before it will issue a residence visa, or a family member's visa application overseas that relies on your Australian job.

The first step is to find out exactly what the receiving authority wants, in writing. "Notarised employment contract" can mean a contract signed in front of a notary, a certified copy of a contract already signed, or a contract with a DFAT apostille or authentication on top. Each is a different job.

What notarisation does, and does not do

Whether an employment contract is binding, and whether its terms are lawful, is governed by the employment law of the place where the work is done, and sometimes by the law the contract chooses. A notary does not review the terms, check them against an award or foreign labour law, or confirm that the job is genuine.

What a notary does is one of two things:

• witness a signature on the contract, confirming the signatory's identity and, for a company, their authority to sign; or
• certify a copy of a signed original, confirming the copy matches the document shown to the notary.

If you have questions about the terms themselves, such as pay, restraint clauses, termination or which country's law applies, speak to an employment lawyer in the relevant country before you sign, not afterwards. A notary witnesses; a lawyer advises.

Whose signature is being notarised?

A contract has two parties, and a notary can only attest signatures made before them. Ask the receiving authority which signatures it wants notarised before either party signs.

• Your signature, as employee. You sign in front of the notary in Australia, with photo identification.
• An overseas employer's signature. Its representative usually signs before a notary or official in their own country, and the two signed parts are put together, or the contract travels between the parties for signature.
• An Australian employer's signature. An authorised officer attends with identification, evidence that the company exists, such as a current ASIC extract, and evidence of their authority to sign, such as a board resolution or delegation. A human resources manager signing for a company is exactly the case where authority evidence is needed, because the notary's certificate may state the capacity in which they sign.

Agree the order of signing with the other party before either of you signs. If the other party signs first abroad and you sign here, the notary here deals only with your signature. Company and individual notarisation explains what a company signatory needs to bring.

Electronically signed contracts have no paper original

This is the point specific to employment contracts, because so many are now signed on an electronic platform. A notary certifying a copy attests that it matches an original they sighted. A contract signed electronically has no ink original. A printout of it is a printout, and a notary cannot honestly certify it as a copy of a paper document that does not exist.

There are usually two ways through.

1. Sign the contract again on paper, with the relevant party signing in ink before the notary. This is the cleanest route where the receiving authority wants a notarised signature, and it is usually the one foreign authorities accept most readily.
2. Have the notary certify the printout with wording that describes exactly what it is, for example a printout of an electronically signed document produced to the notary, and how the notary viewed it. Whether a foreign authority accepts that depends entirely on the authority. Ask before relying on it.

If the contract has already been signed on paper at home, the notary cannot witness that signature after the event; see when a document is already signed. For electronic signatures more generally, see e-signed documents and a notary.

Contract, reference letter or statement of service?

People are often sent for the wrong document. Skills assessment bodies, migration authorities and foreign employers frequently want an employment reference or statement of service on company letterhead, setting out your dates of employment, hours and duties, rather than the contract.

A notarised contract shows what was agreed at the start. It does not prove you worked there, for how long, or in what role. If the requirement mentions duties, dates, hours or experience, it probably wants a reference. A notary can certify a copy of a reference letter, or witness the signature of the person who wrote it, but cannot confirm its contents. Reference letters and a notary covers that document.

Language, and every page

Some destinations want employment contracts in their own language or in bilingual form. Sign the bilingual version before the notary rather than notarising an English version and translating it afterwards, because a translation made later is a separate document with its own certification. Some destinations also want every page initialled by the parties. Check both requirements before the appointment, because either can mean starting again. Document translation explains how translations are prepared.

At the notary

Who is signing	What to bring
You, as employee	Photo identification, preferably a passport, and the unsigned contract
An Australian company	The officer's identification, a current ASIC extract, and evidence of authority
A copy to be certified	The signed paper original
A bilingual contract	The final bilingual version, unsigned, with every page ready to initial
Any signatory	The receiving authority's written requirements

The notary checks identity, makes sure each signatory understands what they are signing and is doing so freely, witnesses the signatures, and adds a signed and sealed notarial certificate. Document notarisation sets out the notary's role.

Apostille or legalisation

A signed contract is a private document, so DFAT will act on it only after a notary has notarised it. DFAT then issues an apostille, a certificate confirming the notary's signature and seal, for a country in the Hague Apostille Convention, or an authentication certificate for other countries, which that country's embassy or consulate then legalises. Check the destination on the HCCH status table on the day. Some embassies set their own requirements for employment documents, so ask the embassy before you start. Apostille and authentication explains the DFAT step.

A Justice of the Peace cannot fill this role. A JP's attestation is not recognised abroad and cannot be apostilled.

Common mistakes

• Signing at home first. The notary must see you sign. A contract signed before the appointment has to be signed again on a fresh copy.
• Notarising the contract when a reference was wanted. Read the request for words like duties, dates or experience before you book.
• Translating after notarising. If the destination wants its own language, the bilingual version is the one to sign.
• A company signing without authority evidence. A notary may decline to state that someone signs for a company without seeing why they may.
• Using a JP copy. It cannot be apostilled, so it stops the chain before DFAT.
• Forgetting the other signature. If the authority wants both parties' signatures notarised, plan the overseas employer's side at the same time as yours.

Here is an illustration, not a real case

A chef in Melbourne accepts a job in a Gulf country. The employer's agent asks for "the employment contract, notarised and legalised". The contract was signed on an e-signature platform, so there is no paper original. The agent confirms that the authority wants the employee's own signature notarised, not a copy, and that the employer will sign its part there. The chef prints the final contract, takes it unsigned to a notary with his passport, and signs it there. DFAT authenticates the notary's certificate, because the country is outside the Convention when he checks the HCCH table, and its embassy then legalises it. His previous employer's statement of service, which the authority also wants, is a separate document.

In short

Find out which signatures the authority wants notarised, and whether it wants the contract at all or a reference. Sign a paper version before the notary if the original was signed electronically. The notary witnesses signatures or certifies copies, not the terms. DFAT then apostilles or authenticates the notary's certificate. For contracts more generally, see notarising contracts.

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Asked for a notarised employment contract for a job abroad? Send us the requirement you were given, and we will explain each step before you book.