Ordinance on Public Notarization (Notarization Ordinance, BeurkV) (Beurkundungsverordnung, BeurkV) (BeurkV)

1. The cantonal qualification examination must demonstrate the applicant's capability to perform notarizations.

2. The examination must also be taken by anyone who reapplies for notarization authority after it has lapsed for ten years.

1. The qualifying examination consists of a written and an oral examination.

2. The written examination involves the completion of one or more written tests. The candidate may consult the necessary statutes.

3. The oral examination should generally not exceed two hours.

4. The examination for municipal notaries must correspond to the limited certification authority.

5. The Notary Commission specifies the examinations in more detail; in particular, it may take into account a passed bar examination or previous certification activities with relaxed requirements.

6. Applications are to be submitted to the Notary Commission.

1. The Notary Commission evaluates the overall result and communicates its decision to the applicant.

2. If the result is unsatisfactory, the applicant may register for a second examination at the earliest after six months. After failing twice, the examination may be taken for the third and final time at the earliest one year after the second examination.

3. The Notary Commission decides the scope of the re-examination based on the previous results in the individual examination subjects.

4. The Notary Commission publishes the appointment as a notary in the official gazette.

1. The fee for the qualification examination shall range from CHF 500 to CHF 1,100 and shall be determined by the Notary Commission.

2. For retaking an entire examination, the same fees must be paid; for retaking a part of the examination, the fees shall be appropriately set by the Notary Commission.

3. The Government Council determines the compensation for the members of the Notary Commission.

4. A fee of CHF 100 is payable for the issuance of a patent.

1. The insurance contract to be concluded by the notary must meet the following requirements

a. The risk to be covered is liability for damages for which the notary is liable arising from the practice of notarization;

b. The sum insured must be at least one million Swiss francs;

c. The deductible must not exceed five percent and a maximum of two thousand Swiss francs;

d. * The "Special Conditions" must contain the following text: "The policyholder authorizes the insurer to inform the Notary Commission of the Canton of Obwalden of the suspension or termination of the insurance."

2. The existence of this requirement must be evidenced by a certificate from the insurer (proof of insurance).

1. Notaries use a seal provided to them by the Notary Commission at their own expense.

2. Certification officers use the official stamp.

3. The use of the State Chancellery's stamps for certifications for foreign purposes remains reserved.

1. The notarial officers shall maintain a register.

2. The register must be obtained from the Notarial Commission. The envelope should bear their stamp as well as a consecutive reference number.

3. The Notarial Commission shall enter the reference number and the date of obtaining the register into the directory of notarial officers.

1. The following documents are to be included in the collection of records

a. a copy of the public deed, except those which remain permanently with a registry office;

b. the powers of attorney of representatives and other documents, such as consent declarations from spouses and official approvals, insofar as they do not need to be submitted to a registry office or another official body.

2. The documents belonging to the collection of records must be retained for 20 years.

1. The notary public must hand over the register, the file collection, and the seal of the notary commission when the authorization to certify documents expires or is suspended.

2. The same obligation applies to the heirs of a deceased notary public.

3. The supervisory authority may grant exceptions.

1. The document officials are required to maintain a record of the fees received, which must be presented upon request to the supervisory authority and the tax authority.

2. They shall provide the client with an invoice or interim invoice for the fee claims, expenses, and collections upon first request and transfer amounts received without delay in favor of the client.

1. The Notarial Commission maintains a register of public notaries, which is published in the Official State Gazette.

1. The public document must include, in addition to the formal components mentioned in Art. 18 of the Act

a. the heading indicating the transaction;

b. the personal details of the parties, namely

1. for natural persons: name and first name, date of birth, place of origin, residential address, civil status,

2. for partnerships and limited partnerships as well as legal entities: company or name, registered office, type of company, business premises or domicile, acting organ and the person acting for it (name and first name) as well as the indication of how the authority to represent was proven;

c. the personal details of the representative, namely

1. in representation by natural persons: name and first name, date of birth, residential address,

2. in representation by partnerships and limited partnerships as well as legal entities: acting organ and the person acting for it (name and first name),

3. in all cases, the indication of how the authorization for representation was proven;

d. if applicable, the indication of how the identity of the persons mentioned under letters b and c was verified, if they were not known to the certifying officer.

2. In the extraordinary procedure, paragraph 1 applies mutatis mutandis, with the limitation that for auxiliary persons, it is sufficient to give the name and first name, date of birth, and residential address, and with the addition that the circumstance leading to the application of the extraordinary procedure must be recorded in the document.

3. The provisions contained in the Notarization Act regarding special procedures are reserved.

1. The public document shall either be handwritten or produced by typewriting or other durable reproduction methods.

2. For handwritten public documents and signatures, writing implements that ensure the durability of the script must be used.

3. The dating may be applied using a stamp.

4. In official certifications, the attestation by the certifying officer may be affixed with a stamp, but not the signature.

1. The public document shall be drafted in a coherent, legible, and clean manner.

2. Uncommon abbreviations are to be avoided.

3. Important figures, such as purchase price, lien amount, and legacy amount, must be written at least once in words as well as in numbers.

4. If multiple copies of a public document are executed, the number of copies must be specified.

1. Deletions that merely serve to suppress redundant letters, numbers, symbols, words, or sentences must be made in such a manner that the deleted content remains legible.

2. Other writing errors, especially those that affect the meaning, as well as omissions, must be corrected in a way that the correction is legible.

3. The official certifying the document must attest to the correction on the public document at the margin or within the text or in an appendix with their signature, the date of execution, and their official stamp.

1. If, after the completion of notarization, information that is not required for validity under civil law, such as valuation, fire insurance, easements, ground burdens, land charges, or annotations, is missing or proves to be incorrect, the amendment requires a written declaration from the affected party that they have obtained knowledge thereof and, if registration in a register is necessary, that they consent to this despite the new circumstances.

2. If, after the completion of notarization, information that is solely of a technical nature for registration, such as place of origin, date of birth, or designation of the acquisition title, is missing or proves to be incorrect, the notary can make the necessary changes on their own initiative.

1. The notary is required to register notarized transactions involving real property with the land registry without delay, unless the parties agree otherwise.

2. If legal transactions must be registered with another authority or approved or permitted by a governmental agency, the notary shall inform the parties thereof.

3. For wills and inheritance contracts, the notary shall place the original in a sealed envelope in the depository of the testator's municipality of residence, unless the parties expressly decide otherwise.

4. In all other respects, the obligation to notify register officials is governed by federal law provisions.

1. Contractual Provisions to be Included in a Register Must be Clearly Designated in the Application.

1. Every public document shall be assigned an order number (year and number within the year).

2. Multiple copies of the same public document, executed at the same time, shall receive the same order number.

3. The order number referring to the public document shall also be affixed to the documents belonging to the file collection. It shall be recorded in the register.

1. For the notarization of special cases, particularly in the sale of small plots of land, agreements on boundary improvements, the establishment of condominium ownership, or independent and permanent building rights, the supervisory authority may issue directives aimed at serving the interest in clarity, simplicity, and uniformity.

1. The supervisory authority acts ex officio, insofar as it is not merely a matter of deciding on an appeal concerning a breach of the documentation duty or on contested remunerations, and establishes the facts ex officio.

1. The supervisory authority may conduct the proceedings in writing or summon to oral hearings.

2. In the written proceedings, the chairperson orders the necessary exchange of briefs and sets the applicable deadlines.

3. Legal briefs must be submitted in sufficient copies for the supervisory authority and each opposing party, but at least in duplicate.

4. The provisions of the Administrative Procedure Ordinance apply mutatis mutandis.

1. Third parties are only allowed access to the negotiations if the supervisory authority permits it for special reasons.

2. The deliberation takes place excluding the parties involved in the proceedings and third parties.

1. The Decision shall be delivered in writing. It must include

a. The deciding authority, the names of the participants and the registrar;

b. Parties and party representatives;

c. Reasoning (presentation of the facts, parties' submissions, considerations);

d. Legal ruling with costs decision;

e. Signature of the chairperson and the registrar;

f. Date of the decision and the dispatch.

1. The procedural costs amount to CHF 50 to CHF 1,500.

2. The allocation of the procedural costs and any party costs is governed mutatis mutandis by the provisions of the Fees Ordinance for the State Administration.

1. In the event of the permanent revocation of the notarization authority or the revocation for a limited period, the matter shall be resolved in disciplinary proceedings.

2. In other cases, the resolution takes place after clarification of the facts through a declaratory decision. The notary shall be heard before the decision is issued, unless the circumstances preclude a hearing.

1. The application for the reinstatement of the authority must be submitted in writing to the supervisory authority, detailing the reasons.

2. The supervisory authority decides after clarifying the facts of the case.

1. In disciplinary matters, reports and complaints may be submitted in writing or orally. If they are not evidently unfounded, the official concerned must be heard.

2. Anyone who confines themselves to merely reporting is not involved in the proceedings as a party.

1. Any regulations that conflict with this ordinance are hereby repealed, in particular: ...[4]

1. The Government Council shall determine when this ordinance enters into force.