Prepare the Relevant Documents & Certified Copies

When dealing with official documents and identification, you will need often need to provide certified copies or present the originals.

Note that many Organisations will not return documents submitted for processing, hence it is always best to provide a certified copy if originals are not requested.

To be safe it is always good to check with the requesting party, if an original is required and how it will be returned to you.

In Australia, the following people are authorised to certify documents:

• Health Professions: Chiropractor, Dentist, Medical practitioner, Nurse, Optometrist, Pharmacist, Physiotherapist;
• Legal Professions: Legal practitioner, Patent attorney, Trademarks attorney;
• Court Positions: Bailiff, Justice of the Peace, Judge, Magistrate, Registrar, or Deputy Registrar, Clerk, Master of a court, CEO of a Commonwealth court;
• Government representatives (elected): Federal, State or Territory or Local;
• Public Servants: Federal, State or Territory or Local – employed for five years or more;
• Member of: Chartered Secretaries Australia, Engineers Australia, Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy;
• Bank officer, building society officer, credit union officer, finance company officer – employed for five years or more, Veterinary surgeon, Accountant (member of ICA, ASA, IPA or CPA, ATMA, NTAA); and
• Minister of religion, Marriage celebrant, Notary public, Police Officer, Sheriff or Sheriff’s Officer, Teacher (full-time) at a school or tertiary education institution.

Outside Australia, the following people are authorised to certify documents:

• Justice of the Peace;
• Notary public;
• Australian Consular Officer or Australian Diplomatic Officer (within the meaning of the CONSULAR FEES ACT 1955); and
• Employee of the Commonwealth or the Australian Trade Commission who works outside Australia.

If you have completed Step 8 – Apply for the Death Certificate you should by now have received the original Death Certificate. We recommend certifying around 20 copies as this represents the key document and will be requested by many government departments, companies and organisations to prove the person has passed away.

Note: Make sure to keep the original, so further certified copies may be made as needed.

At this stage of the administration process a certified copy of the Will should be enough to prove that you are the named Executor. Where a Will is available, you should make around 20 certified copies to be prepared. Make sure to keep the original so further certified copies may be made as needed.
Where the Will isn’t enough, you will have to provide a certified copy of the Grant of Probate. See Step 1.4 below and Step 27 – Apply for Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration for further information

Where no Will is in place, the Administrator will need to make copies of the Letters of Administration. See Step 11.4 below for further information.

A Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration will be needed when dealing with large financial transfers later in the administration process. Step 27 – Apply for Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration explains this in more detail.

As you initiate contact with government departments, companies and organisations you will be informed in response by each organisation about which supporting documents they will need to initiate and complete their process.

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In many cases you as the Executor or Administrator will need to provide one, two or three forms of identification. This is to give the party you are dealing with confidence that you are the person you are claiming to be. For financial matters such as paying out bank account funds you will likely need a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration, which is explained in more detail in Step 27 – Apply for Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration.