Online Certified Copies in Australia: How It Works

A certified copy means the certifier examined the original and confirms the copy matches it. That is hard to do through a webcam, so many receiving authorities refuse copies certified by video. Often you need no certified copy at all, because the portal wants a clear scan. When one is genuinely needed, the original usually still reaches the certifier.

Key takeaways

• Read what the portal asks for first. Many Australian portals, including Home Affairs, want colour scans of originals, not certified copies.
• Certifying a copy is the notarial act that suffers most on a screen. The certifier cannot handle the paper.
• No certifier can certify a copy from an emailed scan. A copy of a copy is not certified as a copy of the original.
• The usual workable route: post the original to the notary, talk by video if you like, and let the notary certify with the original in hand.
• For digital originals, such as a university credential, issuer verification often beats any certified copy.
• The receiving authority decides what it accepts. Ask it in writing before you book.

Do you need a certified copy at all?

This is the most useful question to ask before booking anything. For many online applications, the answer is no.

Australian government portals commonly ask for clear colour scans of original documents. The Department of Home Affairs has generally accepted colour scans of originals for applications lodged online. Where it does ask for certification, a copy certified by an authorised person is usually enough; a notary is often not needed. Check the current instructions for your application on the Home Affairs immigration site. If they ask only for a scan, a certified copy adds cost and nothing else.

Many universities, employers and banks run their own upload portals too. Read what each portal actually asks for before assuming it wants certification. A scan of the original, taken in good light, is often exactly what they want.

Why is a video certified copy the hardest remote act?

Of all the things a notary does, certifying a copy is the one that suffers most on a screen. When witnessing a signature by video, the notary watches a person sign. When certifying a copy by video, the notary is asked to vouch for a physical object they cannot touch. On camera, a certifier cannot:

• feel the paper, the embossing or a raised seal;
• tilt the document to see holograms, watermarks or security threads;
• check the reverse for endorsements without relying on you to show it;
• tell a good colour print from an original;
• see whether a page has been substituted or altered.

That is why a copy certified without the certifier handling the original is the act receiving authorities most often refuse. It is also why many notaries will not certify an original they have seen only on screen. Where remote notarial acts are lawful, the rules in the notary's state or territory set the outer limit. Those rules differ and have changed since 2020. The receiving authority sets the practical limit.

What route usually works instead?

When a notarial certified copy is genuinely needed and you cannot attend, this arrangement usually works:

1. Agree the details with the notary first. Confirm the destination's requirements and the wording of the certificate.
2. Send the original by a tracked service. Keep a colour copy of everything you send.
3. Talk by video if you want to, to confirm identity details or deal with any signatures.
4. The notary certifies the copy with the original in hand, signs and seals it, and records the act in the notarial register.
5. The original and certified copies come back to you, or go on to DFAT if an apostille is needed.

This removes the trip, not the physical step. For someone far from a notary, that is a real saving. For someone twenty minutes from one, it adds postage and risk to an original for little gain. Our page on certified copies from overseas covers the same route for readers abroad.

Is it safe to post an original?

Usually, if you take care. Use a tracked service and keep a colour copy. Some originals are easy to replace and some are not. Many Australian registries will issue a further birth or marriage certificate on request. Many universities will issue another official transcript. A testamur, an old foreign document or a passport is harder to replace.

If the original is hard to replace, consider ordering a second original from the issuer and posting that instead. If the issuer will not release the original at all, see our page on originals and copies. Never post a passport you need for travel in the meantime.

What about documents that were never on paper?

Some originals are electronic from the start. Examples include a digitally issued academic transcript, an online company extract and an e-certificate from a registry. Two things follow.

The issuer may be able to verify it directly. Many Australian universities issue digital academic documents through a verification platform, commonly My eQuals. The recipient can confirm the document with the issuer through a link. Many registries offer similar checks. If the receiving body accepts that, it is better evidence than any certified copy, and it costs nothing.

If it must be certified, the notary is certifying a printout. The certificate should say exactly what was examined. For example, it might say the copy is a printout of an electronic document the notary accessed on the issuer's portal. Whether a receiving authority accepts that wording is its decision. Ask before you order it.

For DFAT, university documents need the university's verification before an apostille, whether original or notarised copy. DFAT also accepts only a limited range of electronic documents, assessed on lodgement, and never a scan. See its documents it can legalise.

Can a JP certify copies online?

A domestic certified copy, the kind a Justice of the Peace or another authorised person makes for an Australian body, follows the rules of the body asking for it. Some Australian bodies have accepted electronically certified copies. Many have not. There is no general rule. State rules on remote witnessing and certification also differ. Ask the receiving body what it accepts, in writing.

For anything going overseas, a JP's certification generally will not be accepted, online or in person. DFAT cannot apostille a JP-certified copy. So an online JP service does not help with an overseas document.

Situation	Usually enough	Online possible?
Home Affairs online application	Colour scan of the original	Yes, you upload it
Australian body asks for a certified copy	JP or authorised person	Only if that body says so
Digital university credential	Issuer verification link	Yes, if the receiver accepts it
Overseas authority wants a certified copy	Notarised copy	Rarely; post the original
Overseas authority also wants an apostille	Notarised copy, then DFAT	Lodgement by post, not online

What should you ask the receiving authority?

Four questions settle most cases:

• Do you need a certified copy, or will a scan of the original do?
• If certified, must the certifier be a notary, or any authorised person?
• Will you accept a copy certified by a notary who examined the original only by video?
• If the original is electronic, will you verify it with the issuer instead?

Get the answers before you book. The receiving authority decides what it accepts, not the certifier and not Australian law.

What does the certificate actually say?

A notary's certified copy carries a short statement, signed and sealed. It says that the notary compared the copy with the original and that the copy is a true copy. It usually names the document and gives the date. It does not say the original is genuine, and it does not say the contents are true.

That wording is why the method matters. A notary who writes "compared with the original" must have compared it. If the comparison happened over video, an honest certificate has to say so. Many receiving authorities read that line closely. A certificate that describes a video examination is exactly what some of them refuse.

How many certified copies should you order?

Count the recipients before the appointment. Each certified copy is a separate certification, and each carries the notary's signature and seal. If three bodies each want one, order three at the same time. Ordering later means sending the original again. Our page on multiple certified copies explains how that usually works.

If an apostille is needed, DFAT applies it to each notarised copy separately. Plan the number of copies with that in mind.

Here is an illustration, not a real case

A man in Kalgoorlie needs certified copies of his trade certificate and passport for a job in Canada. The employer's portal asks for scans for the application, which he uploads himself. Later, the provincial regulator asks for notarised copies. He agrees the wording with a notary in Perth by phone and posts the trade certificate. For the passport, which he needs, he attends when next in Perth. Both copies are certified with the originals in hand.

In short

Check first whether a scan will do. It often will. If a certified copy is needed, a video call cannot replace the certifier holding the original, and many receivers refuse copies certified that way. Post the original, or attend. For digital originals, ask about issuer verification. Our document notarisation page explains the certified copy itself.

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Not sure whether you need a certified copy or a scan? Send us the receiving body's instructions, and we will explain each step before you book.