Notary public fees in Singapore are mostly fixed by law, under Schedule 1 of the Notaries Public Rules. A notarial certificate is S$75. Witnessing your signature is S$40. Then the Singapore Academy of Law charges S$87.20 to authenticate it. For one signed document, most people pay a little over S$200.
I’m Wahab. I’m a commissioner for oaths in Singapore, not a notary, so I’ve got nothing to sell you here. What I see is people paying S$200 for a notary when their document only needed a S$25 commissioner’s stamp. The table below comes straight from the Notaries Public Rules, so you can check any quote against it.
The notary fee schedule, line by line
These are the fees a notary public in Singapore may charge for the common notarial acts, as set out in Part II of the First Schedule to the Rules.
| Notarial act | Fee |
|---|---|
| Witnessing one person’s signature on a document | S$40 |
| Second person signing the same document | S$20 |
| Each additional person after that | S$10 |
| Each exhibit marked or attached | S$10 |
| Notarial certificate, including seal, for one person | S$75 |
| Each additional person on the same certificate | S$20 |
| Company or corporation signing, with declaration and exhibit | S$150 |
| Statutory declaration, one person | S$40 |
| Certified true copy, with seal | S$10 first page, S$2 each page after |
| Certified true copy, without seal | S$5 first page, S$1 each page after |
| Notarial certificate attached to certified copies | S$75 |
Anything the schedule doesn’t list, the notary may charge “such fee as may be considered reasonable in the circumstances”. That’s where drafting, translation and travel come in, and where quotes differ between firms.
The S$87.20 on top: Singapore Academy of Law
Every notarial certificate in Singapore has to be authenticated by the Singapore Academy of Law. Rule 8(3) of the Notaries Public Rules requires it. For countries in the Hague Apostille Convention, that authentication takes the form of an apostille.
The Academy charges S$87.20, including GST, for each notarised document. It isn’t the notary’s fee. Some notaries collect it from you and lodge the document themselves. Others send you to do it. Ask which before you compare quotes, or one quote will look S$87.20 cheaper than it is.
If the destination country isn’t a Convention member, there’s a further step: legalisation at that country’s embassy in Singapore. Each embassy sets its own fee and timeline.
What a typical job costs in total
Some worked examples, using the schedule above. They leave out translation and embassy fees, and the exact line items depend on how the notary structures the job.
| Job | Notary fees | SAL fee | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| One person signs a power of attorney for property overseas | S$40 + S$75 | S$87.20 | S$202.20 |
| Husband and wife sign the same power of attorney | S$40 + S$20 + S$75 + S$20 | S$87.20 | S$242.20 |
| Certified true copy of a 2-page degree certificate, with notarial certificate | S$12 + S$75 | S$87.20 | S$174.20 |
| Company signs a board resolution for an overseas deal | S$150 + S$75 | S$87.20 | S$312.20 |
Check any quote you get against this. If it’s far above the schedule, ask what the extra is for.
Why a “cheapest notary public in Singapore” doesn’t exist
Because the fees for the common acts are fixed by law, and the Academy’s fee is the same for everyone, notaries can’t really undercut each other on a standard document. A firm that advertises itself as the cheapest is usually quoting without the S$87.20, or it’s cheaper only on the items the schedule leaves open.
The real saving is not needing a notary at all.
When you don’t need a notary, and it costs S$25
If the document is going to be used in Singapore, you don’t need a notary public. You need a commissioner for oaths. That covers:
- Affidavits for the Family Justice Courts, State Courts or Supreme Court.
- Statutory declarations for HDB, CPF Board, ICA, banks, insurers, schools and employers.
- Declarations supporting a name change by deed poll.
A commissioner’s fee is fixed by the Commissioners for Oaths Rules at S$25 per affidavit or statutory declaration, plus S$5 per exhibit. There’s no Academy of Law fee, because the document never needs authenticating.
I’ve seen people pay over S$200 to have an HDB statutory declaration notarised because someone told them to “get it notarised”. People say “notarise” loosely when they mean “get it sworn”. If a Singapore body asked for the document, ask them whether a commissioner for oaths is fine. It nearly always is. The full comparison, document by document, is in notary public vs commissioner for oaths.
What to do next
If your document stays in Singapore, you can have it commissioned at our Chinatown Point office for the fixed S$25, plus S$5 per exhibit. Message us with what the document is and who asked for it, and we’ll confirm before you come in.
If it’s going overseas, you need a notary. A.W. Law doesn’t hold a Notary Public appointment, so we can’t do it for you. Our guide to how to notarise a document in Singapore explains the apostille step and how to find a notary on the Academy’s directory. Take the fee table above with you.
