Affidavit

[kerran 4]

Thanks again for the replies (:

[simel1110 4]

You're welcome and good luck kerran

[Adil & Jeanne 296]

yes, affidavit should be notarized. It is a sworn statement. Just go to your bank and ask for notary. this is not hard to do. To Whom It May Concern is the formal greeting on any standard business letter when you do not know name of receiptent.

I am in disagreement here with many who state that an affidavit does not need to be notarized. The instructions for I-751 do call these affidavits and by my understanding of the definition of an affidavit is a "sworn statement of fact" witnessed by someone legally eligible to take oaths. I am not an attorney so my definition might be outdated, but to me an affidavit will require notarization. Notaries are fairly cheap and easy to find. So my recommendation is to be safe and get them notarized.

Cheers,

Alvin

[carlish 1]

yes, affidavit should be notarized. It is a sworn statement. Just go to your bank and ask for notary. this is not hard to do. To Whom It May Concern is the formal greeting on any standard business letter when you do not know name of receiptent.

We didn't notarize ours. The Affidavit of Support document (I-864) is a sworn statement, and I don't think we were required to notarize it either.

Edited June 15, 2011 by carlish

[MishaMoose 2]

While this won't answer the OP's question as to the need to notarize the affidavit I think there is some misunderstanding about the role of the notary. My ex wife was a notary for many years in 2 different states.

The notary’s role is to establish that person who signed on the document is the person who belongs to that signature. That is why it must be signed in the presence of the notary.

The notary has no bearing on the ‘sworn status’ or anything else about the document. According to the ex they aren’t even supposed to read the document, the contents are not their concern. Their sole purpose and sole legal role is to validate that the person signing is who they say they are.

You swear that the document is true by affixing your signature, it does not seem unreasonable that a notarized signature would be beneficial but I do not know.

If I ever get to this point I suspect I will have the affidavits notorized - it can't hurt.

[angus28 7]

We didn't notarize ours. The Affidavit of Support document (I-864) is a sworn statement, and I don't think we were required to notarize it either.

I do not think the OP was talking about I-864, it was affidavit letters for ROC. However, I had our friends notarize their letters. I do not think it matters if you send the letters unnotarized, it is just showing that the letters were signed by actual people.

[spookyturtle 9,465]

While this won't answer the OP's question as to the need to notarize the affidavit I think there is some misunderstanding about the role of the notary. My ex wife was a notary for many years in 2 different states.

The notary’s role is to establish that person who signed on the document is the person who belongs to that signature. That is why it must be signed in the presence of the notary.

The notary has no bearing on the ‘sworn status’ or anything else about the document. According to the ex they aren’t even supposed to read the document, the contents are not their concern. Their sole purpose and sole legal role is to validate that the person signing is who they say they are.

You swear that the document is true by affixing your signature, it does not seem unreasonable that a notarized signature would be beneficial but I do not know.

If I ever get to this point I suspect I will have the affidavits notorized - it can't hurt.

This. The Notary verifies the identity of the person signing the statement. The contents are not their concern and a notarized signature doesn't make the contents of the document any "truer". If USCIS has any questions they can contact the person who wrote the affidavit. Notarizing is not the signer swearing under oath, it is the Notary swearing that this person personally appeared before them and signed in their presence.

[carlish 1]

I do not think the OP was talking about I-864, it was affidavit letters for ROC. However, I had our friends notarize their letters. I do not think it matters if you send the letters unnotarized, it is just showing that the letters were signed by actual people.

I was just comparing the affidavit for the ROC to the I-864, which are both sworn statements. Neither are required to be notarized.

[deidre 13]

We included 2 affidavits, and we didnt notarize them. Basically, the way I read the I-751 instructions was a Sworn Affidavit - sworn just being the writer of the letter stating at the end of their letter "i hear by swear the above info is true blah blah blah", and signs it. If USCIS wanted a Notarized Affidavit then the instructions should have said exactly that "Notarized" but it doesnt so i wasnt worried about it. I also thought about when we went through the AOS process with the affidavits...again, back then we did not get them notarized.

IMO, having it notarized is a bonus. You dont have to have them notarized if you dont want too. You also dont have to include any affidavits either...

[TBoneTX 43,188]

You also dont have to include any affidavits either...

Si, man. A very sharp immigration attorney to whom I spoke before filing our ROC said that affidavits aren't necessary unless the other evidence is thin or insufficient.