Notary Public vs Justice of the Peace

For Australian use, a Justice of the Peace or another authorised witness may be sufficient. For overseas use, an Australian notary is commonly required—but the receiving authority decides. Some original Australian public documents can go directly to DFAT, and not every notarised document needs an apostille or authentication.

Key takeaways

• A JP and a notary are different offices, appointed by different bodies. A JP cannot notarise a document.
• A JP performs authorised witnessing functions principally for Australian use. DFAT says a JP cannot certify documents for overseas use.
• An Australian notary performs notarial acts commonly relied on overseas. DFAT maintains a database of notaries' signatures for legalisation checks.
• For most Australian visa and citizenship applications, Home Affairs accepts copies certified by an authorised person. A notary is often not needed.
• The reliable test is to ask the receiving authority which certifier and legalisation steps it requires, in writing.

Why can choosing the wrong witness cause delay?

Choosing a JP for an overseas document does not fail at the counter. The JP certifies the copy, you post it, and you find out weeks later, when a foreign registry, embassy or university rejects it. By then your deadline has moved, and you have to start again with the original. Choosing a notary for a document staying in Australia fails the other way: it works, but you have paid for something available free. Both mistakes are avoidable with one question asked at the start: who will read this document, and where?

What is a Justice of the Peace?

A Justice of the Peace holds an office created under state or territory arrangements. Depending on the jurisdiction and document, a JP may witness statutory declarations or affidavits, witness signatures and certify copies for Australian use. JPs need not be lawyers. Their permitted functions, appointment process and procedures differ across Australia. Queensland, for example, also has Commissioners for Declarations with a different scope. See commissioners for declarations in Queensland.

Public JP services and official registers make JPs accessible through locations such as libraries, councils and courts. JP witnessing services are generally provided without a fee, but confirm the local service's availability and document rules before attending. That accessibility makes a JP the practical choice for many domestic documents when the receiving body permits one.

What is a notary public?

An Australian notary public is ordinarily an experienced legal practitioner with separate notarial authority under the arrangements applying in their jurisdiction. Appointment, admission and record-keeping rules are not uniform nationally. DFAT maintains a database of Australian notaries' signatures and uses it to verify a notarisation before issuing an apostille or authentication. See DFAT's notary and JP guidance.

A notary may certify copies, witness signatures and administer oaths. For a true-copy certificate, the notary must compare the copy with the original or other source accurately described in the certificate. For a signing, the notary checks matters relevant to that act, such as identity, capacity and apparent free consent. The certificate's wording defines what is proved; it does not automatically establish that every statement in the document is true. See what a notary public does, and how notaries are appointed.

The practical differences

Question	Justice of the Peace	Notary public
Authority	State or territory arrangements	Notarial authority under the applicable jurisdiction's arrangements
Legal qualification	Not generally required	Ordinarily an experienced legal practitioner
Typical use	Domestic documents where the rules permit a JP	Documents for overseas use where the receiver requires a notarial act
DFAT legalisation	DFAT does not legalise a JP certification as a notarial act	DFAT can verify a registered notary's signature when the document is eligible
Records	Follow the jurisdiction's JP procedures	Follow the applicable notarial law and practice requirements
Cost	JP services are generally free	Notarial fee, plus separate DFAT or mission costs only when required
How to find one	Public JP services and registers	By appointment, often through a society of notaries

Can a JP notarise documents?

No. To "notarise" means a notary performs a notarial act: identifying you, witnessing a signature or certifying a copy, and issuing a certificate under their signature and seal, recorded in their register. A JP can witness and certify for domestic purposes, but that is not a notarial act. It cannot be apostilled, and it cannot be legalised by an embassy.

When a foreign form says "attested by a JP or notary", read it carefully. Unless the receiving authority confirms in writing that an Australian JP is acceptable, use a notary. The JP option on such forms is often written with the issuing country's own officials in mind, and "Justice of the Peace" means different things in different countries.

When is a JP the right choice?

• Certifying a copy of your driver licence for an Australian bank.
• Witnessing a statutory declaration for an Australian government department.
• Certifying qualifications for an Australian employer.
• Witnessing an affidavit for an Australian court, where the court's rules permit it.

In these cases, paying a notary buys nothing. A JP's certification is exactly what the receiving party expects. The same goes for most Australian visa and citizenship applications: Home Affairs usually accepts uploaded scans or copies certified by an authorised person. Check the instructions for your visa on the Home Affairs immigration site.

When is a notary commonly required?

• A private document going to a foreign government, court, university or registry that requires notarisation.
• A copy or private document that must first become a notarised public document before DFAT legalisation.
• Documents for overseas property transactions.
• Company documents for a foreign registry or bank.
• Powers of attorney meant to operate in another country.
• Documents for foreign immigration authorities.

Use DFAT after notarisation only when the receiving authority requires legalisation. Depending on the destination and document, DFAT may issue an apostille or authentication; an authentication may then need a foreign mission's legalisation. Check the current destination status on the HCCH status table. Some eligible original Australian public documents can go directly to DFAT with no notary or JP. Our apostille and authentication page covers that step.

If you used a JP and it was rejected overseas

1. Get the rejection in writing, with what the authority wants instead.
2. Retrieve the original document. A JP certification cannot be upgraded, countersigned or apostilled, so the notary needs the original again.
3. Check whether a notary is needed at all. For some public documents, DFAT can act on the original directly.
4. Have the document notarised, bringing the original and current photo ID.
5. Use DFAT and any foreign-mission step only if required by the receiving authority for that document and destination.

The grey area, and other authorised witnesses

Some Australian institutions accept either a JP or a notary. Some overseas institutions occasionally accept a JP certification. Neither is a reason to guess. Ask the receiving authority, in writing, which it requires, and keep the answer.

Many occupations, such as pharmacists, police officers, and some bank staff and accountants, may be authorised to certify copies or witness particular declarations. The lists differ between Commonwealth, state and territory processes. Do not assume that domestic authority satisfies a foreign receiver or makes the signature eligible for DFAT legalisation. Being a solicitor does not itself make someone a notary. See solicitor or notary certification.

Can a JP or notary witness by video?

Some Australian jurisdictions permit specified documents to be witnessed by audiovisual link, subject to detailed rules. Permission depends on the governing law, document and witness category; it is not a general licence for every JP or notarial act. Certifying a true copy also requires a reliable comparison with the source document.

For an overseas document, the notary must first confirm that the proposed notarial act is legally and professionally available, and the foreign receiver must accept it. The Society of Notaries NSW currently states that notaries cannot witness document signing by Zoom in New South Wales. A domestic remote-witnessing rule does not automatically authorise remote notarisation or make a JP's act eligible for DFAT legalisation. See Notary NSW's current appointment guidance.

Translations and certified copies

If a document is not in English, neither a JP nor a notary makes it readable. For Home Affairs, a translation made in Australia should be by a NAATI-credentialled translator, and a JP may then certify a copy if one is asked for. For a foreign authority, ask whether it wants the translation notarised, apostilled, or done after the original is legalised.

Civil-law notaries and US notaries

In much of Europe, Latin America and parts of Asia, a civil-law notary is a public officer who drafts and authenticates major legal instruments, such as property transfers, company formations and marriage contracts, and whose documents carry special evidential weight. An Australian notary primarily authenticates: witnessing signatures, certifying copies and administering oaths. A US notary is different again, typically a lay person commissioned to witness signatures. Because Australian notaries are usually senior lawyers, instructions written for US notaries often need translating into Australian practice.

Here is an illustration, not a real case

A student in Canberra needs two copies of her passport: one for an Australian bank, and one for a university in Germany. She has both certified by a JP at her local library in one visit. The bank accepts its copy. The German university writes back weeks later asking for a notarised copy with an apostille. She takes her passport to a notary, who certifies a new copy, and DFAT apostilles it. Had she asked the university first, the library visit would have covered the bank and a single notary appointment would have covered Germany.

In short

A JP performs authorised domestic witnessing functions under local rules. An Australian notary performs notarial acts commonly required overseas, and DFAT can verify an eligible notarisation when legalisation is requested. Ask the receiving authority which certifier and later steps it requires, and remember that some original Australian public documents can go directly to DFAT.

Related questions

• Should I use a JP or a notary in New South Wales?
• Who can witness a statutory declaration?
• How are notary public fees set in Australia?
• How do I find a notary public near me?
• Can a notary public refuse to notarise?

For a document-specific quote, send us the document type, destination country and receiving authority, required wording, number of signers and copies, location and deadline. We will explain whether our notarial service appears necessary before you book.