Self-Declaration Affidavit in Vadodara

e-StampNotary

Two different things with similar names

A self-declaration is a written statement you sign. A self-declaration affidavit is the same statement sworn on oath before a notary, on stamp paper. The words are close and the documents are not. The first costs you a sheet of paper. The second costs stamp duty, a notarial fee and a trip to the office, and carries the consequences of a sworn statement.

An increasing number of departments, banks and employers now accept the first. Self-attestation has replaced third-party attestation in many processes, and where a body has adopted that route a notarised affidavit adds nothing except cost. So the first question is always the same one: has the office asked for a declaration, or for an affidavit? The requirement letter almost always says.

Ask before you buy stamp paper.

Ring the office or read the checklist. If it says self-declaration, self-attested copy, or declaration on plain paper, that is what to file. We will say so and send you away without a bill. If it says affidavit, sworn statement, or provides a verification and attestation block, then it is sworn and we will draft it properly.

When an oath is genuinely required

Where the statement will be relied on to release money, property or an entitlement to you rather than to someone else.
Where the receiving body has to indemnify itself, and needs a deponent it can hold to the statement.
Where a document is missing and the fact must be established by evidence rather than by production.
Where a statute, a rule or a court's practice requires an affidavit - filing in a proceeding is the clear case, and that is dealt with on our court affidavit page.
Where the document has to take effect outside India, which raises further questions about legalisation.

What the notarial act certifies

Section 8(1)(e) of the Notaries Act, 1952 allows a notary to administer an oath to, or take an affidavit from, any person. Section 8(2) provides that nothing is a notarial act unless it is done under the notary's signature and official seal. Rule 11(8) of the Notaries Rules, 1956 permits a notary to prepare and take affidavits. Rule 11(2) requires the notarial register in Form XV, and Rule 11(9) a receipt for the fee.

What is certified is the swearing: that a person appeared, was identified, and swore to the contents on a particular date before a particular notary. The contents are yours. If they are false, the seal does not protect you; it identifies you.

Wording that survives scrutiny

Most rejected declarations fail on drafting, not on substance. Four rules cover it.

Be specific. "I do not own any other house in Vadodara" is a statement. "I am not the owner of any property" is a slogan and will be read as one.
Say how you know. Where a fact is within your own knowledge, say so. Where it comes from records or from someone else, say that instead. An affidavit that presents hearsay as personal knowledge is worse than one that is candid about the source.
Date the facts. A declaration speaks as at its date. Where a state of affairs has a start and an end, give both.
Do not declare law. "I am the legal owner and full title vests in me" declares a conclusion. Set out the facts and let the reader draw it.

Where people go wrong

A general declaration filed where the office has its own printed format. Theirs always wins.
Swearing to something outside your own knowledge - a relative's income, another person's whereabouts, the contents of a record you have never seen.
Using a self-declaration to stand in for a document that exists and can be obtained. If the birth certificate can be got, get it.
Deponent not the person whose fact it is.
Copying a format from the internet with another state's stamp recital left in it.

What a declaration cannot do.

It cannot transfer immovable property, dissolve a marriage, create guardianship, or make a record true because you have sworn it. Where an interest in immovable property is created or extinguished, registration is what the Registration Act, 1908 requires and a notarial seal is not a substitute - see notarised versus registered and what a notary cannot do.

Stamp and fee.

Stamp duty as currently prescribed under the Gujarat Stamp Act, 1958 - the current figure is confirmed at the counter. Administering an oath or taking an affidavit is capped at ₹35 under Rule 10(1) of the Notaries Rules, 1956. Full ceilings on our charges page.

What to bring

The requirement letter or checklist from the office asking for the declaration
Aadhaar and PAN of the person who will depose
Any printed format the office has issued
Documents supporting the facts you intend to state
Address proof matching the address you want recited

Character affidavit

Affidavits filed in court proceedingsકોર્ટ સોગંદનામું

Income Affidavit — what it supports, and what it cannot replaceઆવક અંગેનું સોગંદનામું

Domicile Affidavit — supporting a residence certificate applicationડોમિસાઇલ સોગંદનામું

Common questions

What is the difference between a self-declaration and an affidavit?

A self-declaration is a statement you sign. An affidavit is the same statement sworn on oath before a notary, on stamp paper, with a verification. Many departments and banks now accept the first, in which case the second is wasted money. Read the checklist: if it asks for a declaration or a self-attested statement, sign and file it. If it asks for an affidavit, it must be sworn.

Can I use one affidavit for several different offices?

Sometimes, but it is usually a false economy. Each office reads for its own points, and a general page that satisfies none of them precisely is more likely to be returned than three short specific ones. Where the same fact is genuinely being stated to several bodies, we can draft it once and prepare certified copies. Bring all the requirement letters together.

Does swearing an affidavit make what I say legally true?

No. The notary certifies that you appeared, were identified and swore to the contents on that date - the swearing, not the truth. If the contents are false, the affidavit is the record of your having sworn to a falsehood, which is a far worse position than never having made the statement. Tell us the real facts and the wording will be built around them.

Self-declaration affidavit