Ordinance on Public Notarization and Certification - Issuance of the Document

1. The document must be created in clearly legible writing without any gaps.

2. Neither the notary nor the other involved parties are permitted to use facsimile or any other typographically printed signatures.

3. The paper and writing of the document must be durable.

4. The document can be originally produced in multiple copies. The number of copies must be mentioned in the document.

5. Multi-page documents must be securely fastened or connected with tape, except for the copy for the notary. Each page, at least of this copy, must be stamped or initialed by the notary.

6. Appendices that form part of the document must be attached to it or clearly marked as appendices.

7. If required by foreign law, the individual pages of a document and its accompanying appendices must be bound with ribbon and seal.

1. The natural persons participating in the notarization alongside the notary public are to be designated with their surname, first name, date of birth, place of origin or nationality, residential address, and, if necessary, with additional details. Depending on the transaction, the civil and marital status must also be specified.

2. For partnerships and legal entities, the business name registered in the commercial register, the legal form, the domicile, as well as the acting persons with the details prescribed for parties to the deed and the nature of their signing authority must be listed.

1. The insertion of pre-existing texts and forms between the introductory clause and the notarization note is permissible if otherwise it would result in disproportionate effort and an increased risk of errors.

2. When forms are used, filling in the blanks provided for this purpose does not qualify as a correction.

1. Alterations must not be made in a document. Stricken portions must remain legible.

2. Corrections must be made in the document or in an authenticated addendum and must be clearly marked. If possible, a corrected document should be prepared.

3. Amendments that alter the content may only be made during the notarization process. For facts and legal relations as well as for ingress and notarization certificates, the authority to make corrections lies with the notary. For individual declarations and declarations requiring signatures, the authority lies jointly with the declaring parties and the notary. Each correction must be signed by the authorized individuals with their full name or initials.

4. Obvious typographical errors may also be corrected after the conclusion of the notarization process. Each such correction must be initialed by the notary.

1. The public officer may use a stamp resembling the state seal. It consists of the state coat of arms and an inscription with the designation of the official office, the official function, or in the case of a female or male lawyer, with the designation "Public Notary." The stamp and translations of the inscription must comply with the specifications of the State Chancellery. Embossing stamps are permitted.

2. Where sealing is required, the public officer uses an adhesive or paper seal. Embossed seals are not permitted.

1. The attorney maintains an alphabetical and a chronological register of the essential data of the notarization. The registers are to be kept in paper form or electronically. An electronic register is printed out annually. Law firms may maintain a consolidated register. In such cases, the documents must be attributable to the notarizing attorney.

2. The attorney shall make arrangements for the documents and registers to be transferred to a successor if they relinquish the profession. If there is no successor, the documents and registers are to be delivered to the notary public office within six months in whose jurisdiction the attorney has their residence or business address for safekeeping. If necessary, the bar association will order the delivery.

3. Access to the documents and registers stored at the notary public office, as well as the creation of copies or extracts, requires the approval of the notary public office. Approval is granted if a legitimate interest is demonstrated.

1. The Document on Assembly Resolutions Includes

a) Location, date, and possibly time of the assembly, the name of the company, the name of the person presiding over the assembly, the person keeping the minutes, and the vote counters;

b) The determinations of the person presiding over the assembly regarding the lawful and statutory convening of the assembly, the number of participants as well as the rights represented by them, the quorum of the assembly, as well as any objections to these determinations;

c) Motions and further statements by participants for which documentation is requested;

d) In the case of votes, the voting results, the resolutions adopted in their exact wording, and the mention of the documents on which the resolutions were based;

e) The signatures of the person presiding over the assembly and the person keeping the minutes;

f) The signature of the certifying officer with the certification that they have attended the assembly.

2. If the proceedings are predetermined, the assembly can be conducted with the simultaneous presence of participants as if it were a contract certification.

3. Otherwise, the certifying officer records the proceedings in an appropriate manner and prepares the public document simultaneously or at a later time. If substantive law requires the co-signature by certain individuals, the certifying officer obtains their signatures before signing themselves.

4. In the certification of resolutions of a virtual general assembly or resolutions of the highest management and administrative body made by electronic means without a meeting location, the certifying officer is considered present in the sense of Art. 23 para. 1 of the Introductory Law to the Swiss Civil Code of July 3, 1911, if they participate in the virtual general assembly or the virtual meeting of the highest management and administrative body during the consultation and voting on the resolutions requiring certification in the same way as the other participants through electronic access.

1. Officially documented are legally significant facts and legal relationships for which there is a legitimate interest in recording them in a public document, and whose legal significance is understood by the certifying officer.

2. If the interest in documentation or the legal significance of the documentation is not apparent, the certifying officer must examine these concerns and specify them in the document, along with the personal details of the person requesting the documentation.

3. The certifying officer clarifies the facts of the case carefully and without delay, and documents the results of their investigations fully and clearly. The registers, documents consulted, and any further investigative actions are not required to be specified.

1. The notary public issues documents according to foreign law if

a) they understand the legal acts to be notarized and are able to explain them to the parties involved;

b) they ascertain the applicable foreign law in such a way that they can draft the document according to the instructions of the parties involved, or can review a draft submitted by the parties for its compatibility with foreign law;

c) the document is likely to be recognized as a public document at the destination and produces the intended legal effects;

d) such a document does not create a false appearance of legality and cannot give rise to any abuse.

2. Insofar as foreign law is not applicable, Swiss law shall apply subsidiarily.

1. The administration of the oath, the statutory declaration, and comparable forms of declarations shall be governed accordingly by the provisions concerning the issuance of documents under foreign law. The declarant must appear in person before the notary.

2. Unless foreign law applies, the notary certifies that the declarant has signed the document in their presence and has sworn or solemnly declared under oath that the content of the document corresponds to the truth.

1. The notarization of a signature consists in the certification by the notary that the signing person has affixed the signature in their presence or has acknowledged it as their own in their presence.

2. The acknowledgment of the signature may be made by a representative if a power of attorney, issued and notarized for this purpose, is available from the signing person, and the signing person is known to the notary.

3. If the notary does not know the signing person or the representative, they shall verify their identity.

4. If, exceptionally, a blank signature is notarized, the notary shall mention this in the notarization record.

5. Sections 1, 3, and 4 of this provision apply mutatis mutandis to the notarization of a manual mark.

1. A general authentication authorization can be issued, in which the signatories commit to recognizing all signatures submitted for authentication with this authorization as genuine. Additionally, they assume responsibility for any potential misuse that might be perpetrated by employees or third parties using the authentication authorization.

2. The authorization must be executed on a form available from the State Chancellery. The authentication of the signatures on the authorization must take place in the presence of the issuing persons.

3. The authentication authorization must be renewed with every change of name or company, and with every change of persons authorized to sign, but no later than every three years.

4. The authentication officer shall retain a duplicate of each authentication authorization with the original signatures.

1. The certification of a copy consists in the attestation by the certifying person that the copy fully and correctly reproduces a document presented to them.

2. If it is not apparent from the copy, the attestation must specify whether the document presented to the certifying person was an original document, a certified copy, or an uncertified copy.

1. Any paragraphs, insertions, deletions, and other modifications in the document presented to the certifying officer must be explicitly mentioned in the transcript.

2. Furthermore, the provisions regarding the certification of a copy shall be applied accordingly.

1. The excerpt must reproduce verbatim and in full the essential parts of the document, which was presented to the certifying person, for the specified purpose and must not give rise to any misleading interpretations. Omissions must be clearly indicated.

2. Furthermore, the provisions regarding the certification of a copy and a transcript shall be applied accordingly.

1. The certification of the translation of a document consists of the attestation by the certifying person that the translation is correct.

2. If the certifying person does not sufficiently master the foreign language, they must engage a translator. The translator must confirm the accuracy of the translation. The certifying person must accordingly supplement the certification.

1. Certification of the date consists of the official confirmation by the certifying person regarding when and by whom a document was presented to them.

1. **Certification** is carried out by an appropriate notation, which must be signed by the certifying person, specifying the place and date. A stamp containing the certification notation may be used. When certifying signatures and marks, the exact designation of the signing person and their representative must also be recorded.

2. Certifications are to be made on the document to which they refer. If this is not possible or if the certification pertains to multiple pages, the certification is to be connected to the document or to the other pages like a deed.

3. The officiating persons affix the certification with their stamp, while the other certifying persons use their legal designation and a stamp provided by the state chancellery with the inscription "Public Certifying Person."

4. The provisions regarding the sealing of documents are applied accordingly.

1. For electronic authentications pursuant to Art. 35ter para. 2 of the Introductory Act to the Swiss Civil Code of July 3, 1911/June 22, 1942, public officials use a qualified electronic signature based on a qualified certificate from a recognized provider of certification services in the sense of the Federal Act on Electronic Signatures of March 18, 2016.

1. The Office for Commercial Register and Notaries issues to authorized persons the necessary authorization for their entry into the Swiss Register of Authorized Persons.

1. The attorney shall prepare the registers in accordance with Article 6 paragraph 1 of this decree for the documents in their possession at the time this decree comes into force, within a period of two years.

1. The Regulation on the Certification of Private Signatures of January 15, 1938, is hereby repealed.

1. This decree is to be applied as of January 1, 2006.