How to Notarise an Employment Contract in Australia

An employment contract rarely needs a notary. When it does, it is almost always because the job, the visa or the employer is in another country: a work permit application abroad, a foreign employer that wants the contract formalised, or a government office that wants contracts attested before it will issue a residence visa.

This page covers what a notary can do with an employment contract, and the three practical problems that come up most often.

Notarisation does not make the contract valid

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. A notary does not review the terms, check them against any 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
• certify a copy of a signed original

If you have questions about the terms themselves, speak to an employment lawyer in the relevant country before you sign, not afterwards.

Whose signature is being notarised?

A contract has two parties, and a notary can only attest signatures made before them. The first question to ask the receiving authority is which signatures it wants notarised.

• Your signature, as employee. You sign in front of the notary in Australia.
• The employer's signature. If the employer is overseas, its representative usually signs before a notary in their own country, and the two signed parts are put together.
• An Australian employer's signature. An authorised officer attends with identification, evidence the company exists, such as an ASIC extract, and evidence of their authority to sign, such as a board resolution. A human resources manager signing for a company is exactly the case where authority evidence is needed.

Agree the order of signing with the other party before either of you signs.

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 wet-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. Re-execute the contract on paper, with the relevant party signing in wet ink before the notary. This is the cleanest route where the receiving authority wants a notarised signature.
2. Have the notary certify the printout with wording that describes exactly what it is, for example a printout of an electronically executed document produced to the notary. Whether a foreign authority accepts that depends entirely on the authority. Ask before relying on it.

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 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.

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. Some also want every page initialled by the parties. Check both requirements before the appointment, because either can mean starting again.

What to bring

• Photo identification for each signatory, preferably a passport
• The contract, unsigned if it is being signed before the notary, or the signed original if a copy is to be certified
• Company existence and authority evidence, if a company is signing
• The receiving authority's written requirements

Apostille or legalisation

The notarial certificate goes to DFAT: an apostille for a Hague Apostille Convention country, or authentication then embassy legalisation for other countries. No notary can issue an apostille. Where legalisation is required, some embassies have their own requirements for employment documents; ask the embassy first.

What it costs

Notarial fees are not fixed by statute and vary between practitioners. As a market estimate only:

• witnessing one signatory on a contract: roughly $100–$200
• certified copy of a signed contract: roughly $80–$150
• each additional copy at the same appointment: roughly $20–$50

What drives the cost up for employment contracts: two signatories instead of one, an employer needing authority evidence, a bilingual contract or separate translation, page-by-page initialling on a long contract, and re-execution where the contract was originally signed electronically. DFAT and embassy fees are separate and charged per document.

Frequently asked questions

Does my employer need to come with me? Only if the receiving authority wants the employer's signature notarised in Australia. Often only yours is needed.

Can a Justice of the Peace witness it instead? Not for overseas use. A JP's attestation is not recognised abroad and cannot be apostilled.

Can the notary confirm the job is real? No. The notary attests signatures and copies, not the employment relationship.