Why we can't witness WA or Tasmanian documents online

We witness documents online for the Commonwealth, Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory. We do not do so for Western Australia or Tasmania, because neither state has legislated to permit witnessing by audio-visual link.

This note sets out the position in each state. It also deals with a point that is often overlooked, which is that the relevant question is the law under which the document is made rather than where the person making it is located.

Western Australia

Statutory declarations and affidavits in Western Australia are governed by the Oaths, Affidavits and Statutory Declarations Act 2005 (WA).

Section 12(3) provides that a person making a statutory declaration must:

(c) in the presence of an authorised witness declare orally – (i) that he or she is the person named as the maker of the statutory declaration; and (ii) that the contents of the statutory declaration are true; and (iii) that the signature or mark is his or hers…

Section 9(3)(c) imposes an equivalent requirement for affidavits.

Section 12(4) provides that the requirements in subsections (3)(a) and (b), being the signing of the declaration and the signing or initialling of any alteration, need not be complied with in the presence of an authorised witness. The Act therefore distinguishes between the steps that may be completed away from the witness and the oral declaration, which may not be. The presence requirement appears to be deliberate rather than incidental.

The pandemic modifications

Western Australia's pandemic arrangements are sometimes misunderstood. The relevant instrument was the COVID-19 Response and Economic Recovery Omnibus Act 2020 (WA), Part 4 Division 3 of which modified the Oaths Act.

The modification was narrow. Section 45 inserted a further paragraph into section 9(6), the provision listing those who may witness an affidavit, permitting regulations to prescribe additional witnesses while an emergency declaration was in effect. It applied only to affidavits, did not extend to statutory declarations, and did not alter the words “in the presence of an authorised witness” in either section 9 or section 12.

Remote witnessing was accordingly not permitted in Western Australia at any stage during the pandemic. The modification ceased to have effect at the end of 31 December 2022.

Electronic transactions legislation

The Electronic Transactions Act 2011 (WA) contains no provision dealing with witnessing. New South Wales addresses the question directly in section 14G of its equivalent Act. Western Australia has no analogous provision.

The Electronic Transactions Regulations 2012 (WA) exclude witnessed documents from the operation of the Act. Regulation 4(1) provides that Part 2 Division 2 does not apply to:

(c) any other requirement that a document is to be verified, authenticated, attested or witnessed under the signature of a person other than the author of the document.

Witnessed documents therefore sit outside the general electronic transactions framework in Western Australia, which affects electronic signing as well as remote witnessing. The Act was amended in December 2025 in connection with electronic mortgages without any witnessing provision being added, and no relevant Bill is presently before the Western Australian Parliament.

Substantial compliance

Section 16(2) of the Act provides:

The validity of an oath, affirmation, affidavit or statutory declaration is not affected by the fact that the required procedure for taking or making it is not followed exactly as long as the procedure actually followed substantially complies with the required procedure.

It might be argued that witnessing by audio-visual link substantially complies with section 12(3)(c). In our view that argument is unlikely to succeed, given the structure of section 12 discussed above. In any event, section 16(2) operates to preserve the validity of a document notwithstanding a defect in the procedure followed. It is not a sound basis on which to conduct a witnessing service, and we are not aware of any decision considering the question.

Tasmania

The Tasmanian position differs in form. The Oaths Act 2001 (Tas) is a shorter statute. Section 14(1) provides that a justice, another person authorised to administer an oath, or a commissioner for declarations may take and receive the voluntary declaration of a person, and section 14(2) requires the declaration to be in accordance with Form 1 in Schedule 1.

There is no operative provision requiring the declaration to be made in the presence of the witness. The requirement arises from the prescribed form, which the witness completes beneath the words “before me”. The position in Tasmania is therefore that no law authorises witnessing by audio-visual link, rather than that any law prohibits it.

The pandemic provisions

The COVID-19 Disease Emergency (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2020 (Tas) contained no provision dealing with witnessing and did not refer to the Oaths Act. Section 17 conferred a power on the Minister to declare by notice that an action ordinarily requiring “a physical action such as signature or personal service” could be taken electronically.

Any notice made under that power has ceased to operate. The Emergency Cessation Day Notice 2023 declared 30 April 2023 to be the emergency cessation day. Section 8(3) provided that a notice is taken to be revoked 60 days after that day, being 29 June 2023 at the latest, and section 12 prevented any further notice being issued after the cessation day.

The Electronic Transactions Act 2000 (Tas) contains no witnessing or attestation provision, and no relevant Bill is presently before the Tasmanian Parliament.

Commonwealth statutory declarations

A substantial proportion of statutory declarations are made under Commonwealth law, including declarations for federal departments and agencies, Services Australia, the Australian Taxation Office, immigration matters and superannuation.

Those declarations are governed by the Statutory Declarations Act 1959 (Cth). Section 9 provides:

A statutory declaration satisfies the requirements of this section if… (b) the declaration is signed by the declarant under the observation of a prescribed person in either of the following cases: (i) in person; (ii) by video link…

Section 9 contains no geographic limitation. Neither the declarant nor the prescribed person is required to be in any particular state, and section 5(1) provides that the Act applies both within and without the Commonwealth. The class of prescribed persons is defined by professional qualification rather than by place of residence.

A person in Western Australia or Tasmania may therefore make a Commonwealth statutory declaration by video link, and we are able to witness it. The documents we cannot witness are those made under the Western Australian or Tasmanian Acts.

Section 12(6) of the Western Australian Act

Section 12(6)(a) treats as an authorised witness for a Western Australian declaration any person before whom a statutory declaration may be made under the Statutory Declarations Act 1959 (Cth).

That provision might be read as importing the Commonwealth video link procedure into Western Australian law. In our view it does not. Section 12(6) identifies who may act as an authorised witness. Section 12(3) separately prescribes the manner in which the declaration must be made, including the requirement of presence. Adopting the Commonwealth class of witnesses does not adopt the Commonwealth procedure.

Practical position

Where a document is made under Western Australian or Tasmanian law, we will say so at the outset and no charge is made. An authorised witness who is physically present will be required.

Where the document is a Commonwealth statutory declaration, the location of the declarant is immaterial and we are able to assist. We will review this position if either state legislates for audio-visual witnessing.

This note is general information, current as at 20 August 2026. It is not legal advice and should not be relied on as a substitute for advice on your own circumstances. Where a view has been expressed on a question that has not been judicially considered, we have identified it as such.