Your Guide to Statutory Declarations of Identity for Permanent Residency
Table of Contents
If you’re a protected person applying for permanent residency in Canada, you’ll need to provide Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) with documents to confirm your identity. This can be a passport, travel document or other identity documents that was issued outside of Canada. Sometimes, you won’t have access to these kinds of documents, instead you can provide a statutory declaration attesting to your identity.
In this blog, you’ll learn about statutory declarations of identity and how notarypro.dev can help. Read on!
What is a statutory declaration of identity?
Basically, a statutory declaration is a legal document that allows someone to officially declare that something is true as a way to satisfy a specific legal or regulatory requirement.
With this definition in mind, a statutory declaration of identity, when notarized, is a legal document that lets a person attest to (or verify) their own identity, or the identity of someone else.
Did you know? If you’re unable to provide identity documents with your Permanent Resident card renewal application, you’ll need to provide two statutory declarations instead. Here’s why:
The first statutory declaration will both attest to your, or the applicant’s, identity and the reason you can’t get your identity documents issued outside of Canada. The reason must be legitimate, verifiable and related to the conditions of the country that would otherwise be issuing your identity documents.
Secondly, because you don’t have any personal identity documentation, you must also provide a statutory declaration made by another person attesting to your identity. You can choose a friend or family member who knew you before you arrived in Canada, or the official of an organization representing your country of nationality or formal habitual residence.
Do statutory declarations of identity need to be notarized?
Yes, statutory declarations of identity must be signed in front of a notary and notarized to be valid.
Can a statutory declaration of identity be notarized online?
Yes! Statutory declarations of identity can be notarized completely online. With NotaryPro’s online notary platform, it’s easy! Here’s how:
- Complete your Statutory Declaration of Identity – but don’t sign or date it
- Meet your notary via online video call instantly, or schedule a virtual appointment
- Digitally sign your document, and download your notarized document from your email