What is an Affidavit and How to Get it Notarized?

What is an Affidavit? 

An affidavit is defined as a sworn written testimony or statement that attests to the accuracy and truthfulness of a specific fact. Most commonly used in a court of law, an affidavit is a legal commitment to tell the truth under oath. This can be tried for perjury in court, just as if you were testifying in a courtroom. The document is signed by the affiant, or person making the statement, and by a person who is legally authorized to administer an oath, such as one of our notaries at NotaryLive.com, or certain government officials. 

Common Situations Where Affidavit Used

While they may not be as entertaining as every legal TV show makes them out to be, affidavits are used in many different types of situations. Some of the most common uses of an affidavit are the following, but not limited to: 

Purchasing land or real estate

Property Disputes

Marriage and Divorce Proceedings

Debt Cases

Verifying finances to a judge or bank

Proving a relationship to a deceased individual 

Confirming another person’s identity in the case their identity was stolen.

Absentee Ballot 

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Types of Affidavits Forms 

Since there are a multitude of uses for an affidavit, there are specific forms that can be used depending upon your situation. Here are some of the most popular affidavit forms. 

Affidavit of Death: Used to notify businesses, courts, and other places that someone has passed away. Commonly accompanied by a death certificate. 

Affidavit of Debt: States that someone owes a specific amount of money to an entity or another person. Commonly accompanied by the original contract. 

Affidavit of Domicile: Legal document filed in court to establish the legal place of residency for a recently deceased person. 

Affidavit of Heirship: Used to show that you have legal rights to the assets of a relative that has passed away. 

Affidavit of Marriage: States that you are legally married. Both you and your spouse must sign the affidavit. 

Affidavit of Residence: Sworn statement that a person resides at a certain address. 

Affidavit of Service: Document provided by process servers after they have successfully served somebody. 

Financial Affidavit: Sworn statement of your income, expenses, assets, and liabilities. Commonly used in divorce proceedings. 

Personal Information Theft Affidavits: Used to prove to banks, credit agencies, or creditors that your identity was stolen or compromised. One of the first steps to start recovering their identity. 

Small Estate Affidavit: Used when a spouse passes away without a will, and swears that you are responsible for managing the person’s estate and distributing any assets that person may have left behind. 

General Form

A general affidavit is a sworn statement of fact, written by an affiant who has special knowledge of a specific manner. Unlike the specific forms listed above, a general form can be used by the affiant to tailor the affidavit to their needs depending on the situation. Whether used for court, business, marriage, or divorce, a general affidavit form must still be formalized by a public notary. 

Notarizing an Affidavit

For an affidavit to be valid, it must be notarized. The purpose of the notary is to confirm your signature on the affidavit, so they must witness the actual signature on the document. While you can get your affidavit notarized at a local bank or law office, NotaryLive.com has made the notarization process much simpler. All you have to do is upload your affidavit to our platform, confirm your identity using state of the art ID verification technology, and instantly be connected with a live notary via webcam. 

No matter your situation, make the process of getting your affidavit formalized less stressful with NotaryLive.com and getting started notarizing your affidavit now!