Signing the NOIM with an authorised witness
The Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM) must be signed in the presence of an authorised witness. The parties are signing the NOIM to confirm:
I have read this form’s privacy notice and instructions for completion and hereby give notice of my intended marriage.
So who is an authorised witness? And what does “in the presence of” actually mean?
In the presence of…
Let’s look at this bit first. The NOIM must be signed in the presence of an authorised witness. It says this on the form and it says it in section 42(2)(c) of the Marriage Act 1961.
“In the presence of” means in the actual physical presence of someone. It means you and the witness have to be in the same room while you sign the document. It does NOT mean in the electronic presence. At the start of COVID when we were all in lockdown, this was discussed a lot. But Mum (who’s a lawyer) told me there’s a lot of case law on this phrase meaning “physical presence.”
As of right now, 11 August 2022, there is temporary COVID-era legislation in place that replaces this wording s42(2)(c) of the Marriage Act. It allows for the NOIM to be signed “under the observation (whether or not by means of a facility that enables audio and visual communication between persons in different places) of an authorised witness.” This legislation is temporary and does not make a permanent change to the Marriage Act.
Update as at 18 April 2024
The temporary COVID legislation was extended for a further year, then repealed on 31 December 2023. There is a Bill before Parliament that will make this a permanent change to the Marriage Act. Among other things, section 42(2)(c) of the Marriage Act will be changed to read:
…if a party signs the notice in Australia – must be signed under the observation (whether or not by means of a facility that enables audio and visual communication between persons in different places) of one of the following, who must also be in Australia…
The Bill has been before Parliament since November last year, and there is no sign of it being passed any time soon. In the meantime, we’re stuck with “in the presence of”.
Authorised witnesses
So who is an authorised witness for the purposes of witnessing signatures on the NOIM?
A note before we continue: the NOIM is not a statutory declaration. The list of authorised witnesses for the NOIM is different from the list of people who can witness signatures on a stat dec.
There are two different sets of witnesses for the NOIM:
- those who can witness the signatures of a NOIM signed in Australia
- those who can witness the signatures of a NOIM signed outside Australia.
In Australia
If a party sign the NOIM in Australia, the following people are authorised to witness their signature:
- an authorised celebrant
- a justice of the peace
- a barrister or solicitor
- a medical practitioner
- a member of the Australian Federal Police or the police force of a State or Territory.
NB: A medical practitioner is not an allied health practitioner. This category does not include such people as pharmacists, physiotherapists, nurses, or veterinarians. A medical practitioner is a general or specialist doctor who is registered with the Medical Board of Australia.
My instructions to you
If you’re signing the NOIM in Australia, I’m generally going to be the person witnessing your signatures. If you’re in regional Victoria, interstate, or for some other reason unable to come and meet with me, I’ll probably suggest you find a JP or visit a police station.
Outside Australia
If a party signs the NOIM outside Australia, the following people are authorised to witness their signature:
- an Australian Consular Officer
- an Australian Diplomatic Officer
- a notary public
- an employee of the Commonwealth authorised under paragraph 3(c) of the Consular Fees Act 1955
- an employee of the Australian Trade Commission authorised under paragraph 3(d) of the Consular Fees Act 1955.
Additional definitions
According to section 2 of the Consular Fees Act 1955, an Australian Consular Officer is a person appointed to hold or act in any of the following offices of the Commonwealth in a country or place outside Australia:
- Consul-General
- Consul
- Vice-Consul
- Trade Representative
- Consular Agent.
According to section 2 of the Consular Fees Act 1955, an Australian Diplomatic Officer is a person appointed to hold or act in any of the following offices of the Commonwealth in a country or place outside Australia:
- Ambassador
- High Commissioner
- Minister
- Head of a Mission
- Commission
- Charge d’Affaires
- Counsellor, Secretary, or Attache at an Embassy, High Commissioner’s office, Legation, or other post.
My instructions to you
If you’re signing the NOIM outside Australia, I’m going to tell you to visit the closest Australian Embassy, High Commission, or Consular, or to Google for a notary public close to you to witness the signatures.
Even with the current remote witnessing capability, if you’re outside Australia and I’m in Australia, I can’t witness your signatures on the NOIM over Zoom. The location of the witness and the signing party is still crucial. You should be able to get someone from the closest Australian Embassy/High Commission/Consulate to meet with you over Zoom for this purpose. Struck through as at 31 December 2023 as remote witnessing is not currently legal.
So that’s the rundown on authorised witnesses! Please don’t ever send me a NOIM with witnesses such as editor or accountant – it’s happened before, and it’s a waste of all our time because you’ll have to do it again 🙂
More information
Click here for a full overview of the legal requirements of marriage in Australia.
Read all the posts in my series about marriage legalities here.
Find all the posts in my series about Australian wedding ceremonies here.
- Marriage legalities for everyone in Australia!
- Marriageable age in Australia
- Signing the NOIM with an authorised witness
- Not married to someone else
- Prohibited relationships in Australia
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- Marriage legalities for everyone in Australia!
- Marriageable age in Australia
- Signing the NOIM with an authorised witness
- Not married to someone else
- Prohibited relationships in Australia