Understanding New E-Notarization Rules And How It Can Help Philippine Businesses
Understanding New E-Notarization Rules
And How It Can Help Philippine Businesses
By: Atty. Jonathan A. Pabillore & Dominique P. Gana-Pabillore
of Gana Manlangit Gana & Pabillore Law (GMGP Law)
We have all found ourselves needing the services of a notary, none more so than corporations and businesses. From your articles of incorporation, secretary’s certificates, recurring reportorial requirements to the SEC, and sales and other contracts, a notary’s services are essential to keep business operations above board.
I. 2004 Notarial Rules
In 2004, the Supreme Court published the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice (2004 Rules), which outlined and defined the notary’s various powers: Acknowledgment, Oath/Affirmation and Jurat, Signature Witnessing, Copy Certification, among others.
Under the 2004 Rules, a notary is commissioned by a Regional Trial Court. Their powers coincide with the court’s territorial scope—a notary commissioned by the Regional Trial Court of Makati can only perform their powers within the city of Makati. But it cannot be anywhere in Makati. The Rules require that notaries carry out their functions at their place of business, that is, their law office. In “certain exceptional occasions or situations,” notaries may, at the request of the parties, perform notarial acts outside their place of business:
i. Public offices, convention halls, and similar places where oaths may be administered;
ii. Public function areas in hotels and similar places for the signing of instruments or documents requiring notarization;
iii. Hospitals and other medical institutions where a party to an instrument or document is confined for treatment; and
iv. Any place where a party to an instrument or document requiring notarization is under detention.
We don’t know why these restrictions were introduced. Perhaps because of sham notarial shops under the proverbial MRT or LRT station. If so, the 2004 Rules don’t appear to have deterred them. In any case, these are serious limitations which exclude important scenarios where a party may genuinely need a notary and still won’t fall under any of the exceptions.
For example, someone who’s bedridden and can’t or won’t stay in a hospital for confinement may want to execute a notarial will and unless the fourth exception were to be stretched to mean someone who’s detained for whatever reason, as opposed to being imprisoned, they cannot seek notarial services. Even when they aren’t tied down, persons with disabilities may find it genuinely difficult to go out of their way to have their documents notarized. There’s no good reason to prohibit a notary from going to them, instead of the other way around.
While each notarial act fulfills a specific purpose, they all share common elements. All of them require the presenter or principal to personally appear before the notary. They should also be personally known to the notary. If not, they must show competent evidence of their identity. This may consist in an official government ID. If one does not have a government ID, which is more common in the Philippines than one thinks, they can offer one disinterested witness who knows both the principal and the notary and swears an oath; or two disinterested witnesses who both know the principal, but not the notary, and can themselves offer competent evidence of their identity.
II. E-Notary Rules
For more than two decades, the 2004 Rules alone governed notarial practice in the country. Then in 2025, the Supreme Court promulgated the EN Rules. The new rules do not replace the 2004 Rules, but they add new dimensions to it that will deeply transform the notarial practice.
Electronic notarization (EN) centers around electronic documents. It’s not about remotely notarizing physical documents with the assistance of electronic tools. For instance, a principal cannot mail a physical document to a notary and appear through videoconferencing as the notary performs the requested notarial act. No, the EN Rules are about electronic documents. That is why, EN can still be done both in-person and remotely.
Principals and notaries, however, must conduct their transactions through a comprehensive platform, which the Supreme Court refers to as an “Electronic Notarization Facility (ENF).” An ENF must be able to meet the requirements of notarial acts and guarantee the integrity of electronic documents. These electronically notarized documents will bear the hallmarks of a valid notarization, such as an Electronic Notarial Seal and Notarial Certificate, basically the electronic counterparts that you would find on any notarized document, except now any person can quickly verify and validate the notary’s credentials.
a. Notarial Acts
The EN Rules preserve or carry over most of the notarial acts under the 2004 Rules. An electronic notary may administer an oath or affirmation; acknowledgement; jurat; and signature witnessing. It, however, removes any mention of copy certification—because the new 2019 Rules on Evidence have redefined what an “original” document means, but this is for another topic. On the other hand, it adds a new modality for notarizing documents. A Filipino abroad may now request notarial services from Philippine lawyers, provided the ceremony is performed inside a Philippine embassy or consular office. This will be a huge boon to practicing lawyers here in the Philippines. Instead of requesting for an apostilled document and have it shipped, a lawyer can simply ask their client to avail of electronic notarization.
b. Regular Place of Business
Obviously with remote electronic notarization it has become irrelevant, to some extent, where the notary exercises their powers or where the principal is at any given time. In general, they must both be in the Philippines. The ENF should be capable of locating both the notary and the principal to guarantee their presence in the country and, presumably, the ENF will have security features to catch any attempts at foiling this limitation.
For in-person electronic notarizations, the Supreme Court has lifted the restrictions we mentioned earlier under the 2004 Rules. The new EN Rules give parties wider latitude and freely allow them to choose any venue, for as long as “the professional, private, and confidential nature of the electronic notarial act is maintained.”
Unfortunately, the EN Rules excludes notarial wills, depositions, and physical documents with wet signatures, so the difficulties we mentioned under the 2004 Rules for disabled or incapacitated persons may still present a problem.
c. Notaries
The Supreme Court, through an Electronic Notarization Administrator, instead of Regional Trial Courts, will be accrediting electronic notaries. Regional Trial Courts will continue to commission traditional notaries. The Supreme Court will also be maintaining a publicly accessible roster of commissioned lawyers, so those seedy LRT or MRT notaries may finally be on their way out.
With these new rules, businesses can find better and more convenient ways to notarize many transactions, all without having to leave the office, arranging meetings with clients or business partners at the notary public’s office, or even scrambling to find one that can accommodate everyone’s schedule, especially on weekends. And it now frees people to use electronic and digital signatures, which will facilitate transactions across the nation and even across borders. It will also eliminate business costs, though small, do add up if notarization is a regular part of the business, like travel and parking. For small businesses, cutting back as much on unnecessary costs can sometimes spell the difference between green or red days. Not to mention, businesses can be more confident dealing with clients across provinces, without having to worry about mailing notarized documents, further cutting back on unnecessary costs for both parties.
There are still caveats, though. For one, principals or clients must guarantee a minimum internet speed of 2 mbps and video quality of 720p. Everyone must also transact through the Supreme Court’s designated ENFs, which will come with some learning curve and perhaps contain technical glitches at the start. Not only that, but we can expect some, if not most, agencies and local government units (LGUs) to be slow in accepting or adopting electronically notarized documents. For instance, though the legality of electronic signatures has long been around, by virtue of the Electronic Commerce Act of 2000, people have largely skirted its use because some agencies refused to acknowledge or recognize the validity of these otherwise valid signatures. We may find the same scenario unfolding here, because the EN Rules do not mandate the use of electronic documents or electronic notarization. It just provides an additional option for lawyers and principals. However, if the new system does runs well and we see quick and wide adoption, the EN Rules will mark the next biggest shift for businesses and the legal industry.
Gana Manlangit Gana & Pabillore Law Office (GMPG Law) is a full-service law firm in Makati City, handling corporate, business, estate, property, family, labor and litigation matters since 1997.
Have more questions on how to access e-notaries for your business or any other business concerns? Please visit www.gmgplaw.com or send an email to gmgplaw@gmail.com.
Permitly is your leading partner when it comes to business registration, permit renewals, and other necessary registration processes to get your business started the right way in the Philippines. Permitly is known for its hands-on approach when it comes to business registration, especially when it comes to sole proprietorship, one-person corporation (OPC), and freelancers. As part of the CJ Management Group, the team has over 20 years of experience when it comes to helping businesses get legit. Not sure where to start? Contact us for a free 15-minute consultation.
Sources:
A.M. No. 02-8-13 SC 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice
A.M. No. 24-10-14 SC Rules on Electronic Notarization (2025)