Bil Brock Posted January 3, 2013 Posted January 3, 2013 2 months ago I needed my signature notarized to renew my USA flight instructor license. Only a US recognized notary would do. Went to the consulate in Cebu City and got it done, was quick, but the cost is USD $50 or the peso equalvent. Note they won't make change, you need exact payment. For philippine notary's we usually go to a lawyer they charge around 300-500 pesos. Hope this helps. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Posted January 22, 2013 Posted January 22, 2013 Well, we went to The Waterfront Hotel Lahug to get a document notarized at the US consulate there and they were closed. Sign on the door says Monday-Friday 9am-11am. The office is on the lower level, left side after you pass the guard station. Real easy to miss, if you get to the convention hall doors you've passed it. Looks like a really nice hotel from the outside. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Americano Posted January 22, 2013 Posted January 22, 2013 If you went to the US Consulate on Monday the office was probably closed for the Sinulog Holiday but it should have been open today which is Tuesday. The same was true for Immigration where I was at today. USD $50. is way too much for the US Consulate to be charging to notarize a document. The US Consulate is paid by US Taxes and the Consulate Office is funded by US Taxes so why does the Consulate need to be paid extra money to do his job? I believe he is taking advantage of being in a corrupt country and doing some corruption too. He couldn't get away with charging $50. in the USA to notarize a document, he would have criminal charges filed against him, loose his job and maybe go to prison. An American who has been charged this much money should write their Congressman to have this investigated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markham Posted January 22, 2013 Posted January 22, 2013 $50 to have a document notarised by a Consul is actually quite cheap - and contrary to what you may think, their charges are set by the State Department just as the Foreign Office in London sets the charges to be levied by British Embassies and Consulates. From memory, the current rate for notarisation at either the Cebu Consulate or the Manila Embassy is about £50 per page. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Americano Posted January 22, 2013 Posted January 22, 2013 Mark, I will take your word for this but I think I will try to investigate this a little father because why would it be so expensive for an American to get a document notarize here when we can get it done in the USA free or for a very small fee? The most I ever paid was only $4.00 and the rest were free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregZ Posted January 23, 2013 Author Posted January 23, 2013 Mark, I will take your word for this but I think I will try to investigate this a little father because why would it be so expensive for an American to get a document notarize here when we can get it done in the USA free or for a very small fee? The most I ever paid was only $4.00 and the rest were free. I'm with you on this one. It is FREE at the county court house in the state of Georgia. ALL they are doing is confirming that the signature is coming from the signer. A US notary is NOT in any way confirming or involved with what is on the paper in the USA. Documents that require MORE than notarization, such as real estate transactions (in some places), require a lawyer and a fee for surety guarantees. I've paid $200 for 1 document required for a real estate transaction. The US consul is likely capable of ALL types of documents and in that case $50 is reasonable, even though I'd hate it. In my case I was able to AVOID notary requirements with 'secure' email. Very, very, very nice!!! Thank you Department of Defense. :cheersty: 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markham Posted January 25, 2013 Posted January 25, 2013 <p> Mark, I will take your word for this but I think I will try to investigate this a little father because why would it be so expensive for an American to get a document notarize here when we can get it done in the USA free or for a very small fee? The most I ever paid was only $4.00 and the rest were free. I agree that the charges for notarisation imposed by Embassies is on the high side but where else are you going to get a document notarised such that it is accepted by your home country's legal system? Certainly not from a Philippine lawyer because this country is not a signatory to the Hague Convention.I don't know about American notaries but a document notarised by a UK Notary Public is most unlikely to be questioned as to the legality of the content or that the person signing it is other than who he claims to be. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Americano Posted January 25, 2013 Posted January 25, 2013 (edited) <p> Mark, I will take your word for this but I think I will try to investigate this a little father because why would it be so expensive for an American to get a document notarize here when we can get it done in the USA free or for a very small fee? The most I ever paid was only $4.00 and the rest were free. I agree that the charges for notarisation imposed by Embassies is on the high side but where else are you going to get a document notarised such that it is accepted by your home country's legal system? Certainly not from a Philippine lawyer because this country is not a signatory to the Hague Convention.I don't know about American notaries but a document notarised by a UK Notary Public is most unlikely to be questioned as to the legality of the content or that the person signing it is other than who he claims to be. In America I have had many documents notarized. The notary usually doesn't read the document because their only responsibility is to verify the person identity. A notary cannot determine the "legality of the content". That is the responsibility is the courts and judges. A notary only has one purpose. Maybe some notaries are pretending to take on more responsibility in order to justify charging more. Edited January 25, 2013 by Americano 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
i am bob Posted January 25, 2013 Posted January 25, 2013 <p> Mark, I will take your word for this but I think I will try to investigate this a little father because why would it be so expensive for an American to get a document notarize here when we can get it done in the USA free or for a very small fee? The most I ever paid was only $4.00 and the rest were free. I agree that the charges for notarisation imposed by Embassies is on the high side but where else are you going to get a document notarised such that it is accepted by your home country's legal system? Certainly not from a Philippine lawyer because this country is not a signatory to the Hague Convention.I don't know about American notaries but a document notarised by a UK Notary Public is most unlikely to be questioned as to the legality of the content or that the person signing it is other than who he claims to be. Canada is not a signatory of the Hague Convention either but no other country including the UK will disallow any document being signed by one of our Notary Public. The Philippines uses a system similar to Canada but, rather than submitting the document to another office after the Notary Public has signed it for authenticating, 2 independent signatures are obtained for the document. The Act concerning Notary Public in the Philippines is quite short. For those who understand the terms defined in the first part, just skip over that and then there is only a couple minutes reading left right after that part that pertains for this discussion. http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/rulesofcourt/2004/rule_notarial_practice.htm 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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