Philippine Supreme Court Makes E-Notarization Available Online

The Supreme Court of the Philippines is making electronic notarization available through a public portal, giving eligible digital documents a court-approved route and setting procedures for their use in government transactions.

The Court had set Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, for the nationwide rollout. Its portal now offers public access to notary services and a registration route through accredited facilities. Users register with a facility provider, then select a commissioned Electronic Notary Public through the Court’s portal. The service is available through three Court-accredited electronic notarization facility providers.

They are NotarizeIT by UNAWA, Inc.; TWALA by Ohelio, Inc.; and QLegal by Quanby Solutions, Inc. The registration step runs through a provider, while the portal guides users to select a commissioned notary.

Under rules approved Feb. 4, 2025, the electronic process applies to documents in PDF or PDF/A format. It permits notarization remotely or in person. Notarial wills, depositions and paper documents bearing handwritten signatures or marks remain governed by the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice. Those document categories stay within the country’s existing notarial process.

The Court’s agreements with two government agencies set out procedures for handling e-notarized documents in their systems. On Oct. 13, 2026, the Court signed separate joint memorandum circulars with the Land Registration Authority (LRA) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The LRA circular covers e-notarized documents in transactions with the agency and Registers of Deeds nationwide. The SEC circular describes how the agency will accept, verify and process those documents in its systems. The procedures address document handling in land-registration transactions and within the SEC’s systems.

Supreme Court Associate Justice Alfredo Benjamin S. Caguioa called the circulars “a significant step towards innovation and access to justice.”

The Court’s 2025 rules supplement its existing notarial framework. They follow temporary remote-notarization rules adopted in 2020 during pandemic-era mobility restrictions. The 2004 rules continue to govern paper documents with handwritten signatures or marks, as well as notarial wills and depositions.