COMMISSIONERS FOR OATHS ORDINANCE

COMMISSIONERS FOR OATHS

CHAPTER 79

COMMISSIONERS FOR OATHS ORDINANCE

To regulate the appointment and duties of Commissioners for Oaths.

6th February, 1934

ORDINANCE VIII of 1934, as amended by Ordinance XXX of 1936; Act

XIX of 1955; Legal Notices 4 of 1963 and 46 of 1965; Acts XXVIII of 1965,

XXXI of 1966, XVIII of 1971 and LVIII of 1974; Legal Notice 148 of 1975;

Acts: XXXVI of 1979, XXXVI of 1986, XX of 1988, IV of 2004, III of 2006

and XXIV of 2011 and LI of 2020; and Legal Notice 426 of 2012.

This Ordinance may be cited as the Commissioners for

Oaths Ordinance.

In this Ordinance, unless the context otherwise requires -

"oath", "swear" and "affidavit" include, in the case of persons

allowed by any law to make a declaration or affirmation instead of

taking an oath, a declaration or affirmation.

(1) The Minister responsible for justice may from time to

time, by warrant under his hand, appoint persons, being public

officers, public employees, advocates, or legal procurators, to be

Commissioners for Oaths, and may at any time revoke any such

appointment.

(2) The Minister responsible for justice may also, from time to

time, appoint persons, whether or not they are public officers,

performing functions relating to the foreign service of the

Government in any country outside Malta, to be Commissioners for

Oaths in that country, and may at any time revoke any such

appointment.

(3) The appointment of a public officer or public employee to be

a Commissioner for Oaths and any appointment under subarticle

(2) may be made either personally or by the designation of the

office held or the functions performed by the person to be so

appointed.

(4) Every appointment made under this article shall be

published in the Government Gazette, and every such appointment

made after 1st January, 1980 shall have effect only from the date of

such publication.

A Commissioner for Oaths may administer any oath and

take any affidavit for the purposes of any matter required by the

laws of Malta or of any other country, or which is connected with

any proceedings taken or to be taken before any court, or is

reasonably intended to serve for a judicial purpose, or relates to the

exercise of any civil right

Provided that a Commissioner for Oaths shall not exercise

any of the powers given by this article in any proceedings in which

he is the advocate for any of the parties to the proceedings or in

which he is interested.

COMMISSIONERS FOR OATHS

(1) Every Commissioner for Oaths shall, before

administering any oath, satisfy himself as to the identity of the

person taking the oath and that such person thoroughly understands

what he is going to swear to.

(2) The identity of the person taking the oath shall be ascertained

by the production of a legally valid identification document, passport or

other similar official document.

(3) In the exceptional case where the person taking the oath

cannot be in Malta for reasons that the person has no control over, the

Commissioner for oaths may give the oath by electronic means and the

Commissioner for oaths shall, before administering the oath, satisfy

himself with the use of electronic and visual means as to the identity of

the person taking the oath and that such person thoroughly understands

what he is going to swear to.

(1) The Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General

and such of the other Officers of the Attorney General as the said

Attorney General may from time to time designate by notice in the

Gazette, as well as the magistrates and the notaries, shall ex-officio

be Commissioners for Oaths

Provided that a notary may at any time by notice in writing to

the Attorney General resign his office as Commissioner for Oaths, and

such resignation shall be published in the Gazette.

(2) The designation referred to in subarticle (1) may be made

by reference to a person or persons or by designation of the office

or rank held.

Every Commissioner for Oaths before whom any oath or

affidavit is taken or made under this Ordinance shall state truly in

the jurat or attestation at what place and on what date the oath or

affidavit is taken or made

Provided that every Commissioner for Oaths before whom an

oath is taken in accordance with sub-article (3) of article 5 shall state

truly in the jurat or attestation at what place and on what date the oath

was taken and that the oath was taken by electronic means.

Where the offence referred to in article 108 of the Criminal

Code is committed before any officer appointed to be a

Commissioner for Oaths under article 3(2), the offender may in

Malta be prosecuted, tried and punished in the same manner and to

the same extent as if the offence had been committed in Malta.

It shall be lawful for the Minister responsible for justice to

make regulations prescribing the form and manner in which any

oath shall be administered, the form in which any affidavit shall be

drawn up and subscribed, and the fees which may be charged by

any Commissioner for Oaths in respect of the administration of any

oath or the taking of any affidavit.